Serves many

Roasting a turkey isn't all that difficult - the trick to a really juicy and succulent bird is to treat it to a salty water bath overnight. The salt in the brine helps to tenderise the meat and helps to give a nice crispy skin.

My favourite place to buy Thanksgiving turkeys is from Wyndham House Poultry at Borough Market. They are well used to desperate Americans and Canadians scrambling for last minute turkeys but to be on the safe side try you can order them several weeks in advance.

Brine

7 ½ litres of water
300 grams sea salt
100 grams caster sugar
4 bay leaves
2 sprigs of thyme
2 sprigs of sage
10 cloves
2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns, cracked

Turkey

a turkey, approximately 6-7 kilos in weight
230 grams lightly salted butter, softened
Sea Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

To make the brine, place water and brine ingredients in a large stockpot big enough to fit your turkey in. Bring to a simmer, then remove from the heat. Set the brining aside liquid to cool, strain and return the brining liquid to the pot.

Place the turkey in the pot of brine and if necessary weigh it down to ensure that it is completely submerged in the liquid. Place the pot in the fridge overnight.

Approximately 6 hours before you want to serve the turkey, remove it from the brining liquid and pat dry with kitchen roll. Set the turkey aside at room temperature to dry out for 1 - 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 230 C. With your fingers, gently separate the skin from the breast meat of the turkey, and smear approximately half of the softened butter under the skin of each breast. Rub the remaining butter all over the turkey, and season the skin and the cavity generously with salt and pepper.

Set the turkey breast-side up on a rack in a large roasting tin. Roast the bird for 25 minutes, then lower the temperature to 175 C. If the skin on the bird appears to be scorching or darkening too quickly, cover the turkey loosely with a sheet of aluminium foil. Roast for a further 2 hours, basting every 15 minutes with any juices that accumulate in the base of the tin. After 2 hours, insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the bird, typically the inner thigh area. When the temperature reaches 65 C, remove the turkey from the oven and set aside to cool.
Note: The optimum internal temperature for the turkey is 75C, however as the thighs will take longer to cook they will be slightly cooler than the rest of the bird.

Carefully remove the legs from the turkey, including the thigh meat, being careful not to detach the skin. Return the legs to the roasting tin and roast in the oven for a further 45 minutes, or until the juices run clear when a skewer or fork is pierced into the thigh meat and the internal temperature reaches 75C.

Return the rest of the turkey to the oven briefly to gently rewarm before serving. Carve into portions and serve with the pan juices from the roasting dish.