Step 3:  Preparing the Brined Turkey

Remove the turkey from the brine and discard the brine. Rinse the turkey thoroughly under cold water, until all traces of the brine have been rinsed away. When you think you have rinsed all traces of the brine away, rinse the turkey again. Leaving the brine on the turkey can cause it to taste salty, so you want to make sure that all of the brine is gone.

Pat the turkey completely dry with a clean cloth or paper towels. Lay the turkey in a shallow pan and place it in the refrigerator for up to 12 hours, blotting occasionally to remove any remaining moisture on the skin. You want the skin of the turkey to air dry as much as possible because dry skin will result in crispy skin when the turkey is cooked.

Two hours before you're ready to begin roasting the turkey, remove it from the refrigerator. With kitchen shears, cut off the flap of skin at the neck hole and any loose skin around the cavity. Dust the turkey lightly with white pepper and paprika, but do not add any salt.

Core 6 medium apples and quarter them. Stuff the apples into the cavity of the turkey, filling the cavity completely.

If your turkey did not come with any metal or plastic wire holding the legs together, truss the legs together with baker's twine. (The turkey pictured here has its legs secured with a wire band.) Secure the wing tips to the edge of the breast by jamming the sharp end of a bamboo skewer through each wing tip and into the edge of the breast. Puncture the breast only enough to secure the wings. With kitchen shears, cut off the remaining length of the skewers.

Place the turkey into a roasting rack and place the roasting rack into a 9" X 13" X 2" disposable aluminum roasting pan. Line a 14-inch deep-dish pizza pan with aluminum foil and place the roasting pan into the pizza pan to give the aluminum roasting pan additional support. Allow the turkey to come to room temperature.

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