Pickle-Brined Turkey Breast Over the Coals
Wild turkey breast soaked in leftover pickle juice, then grilled hot and sliced across the grain.
- calories
- 330
- weight
- 8 oz
- cal / oz
- 41
- protein
- 48 g
- serves
- 4, scales
- prep
- 10 min
- cook
- 30 min
- total time
- 40 min
- water
- none
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Grill grate
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Dairy free
- Gluten free
- Nut free
- Foil packet
- Pre-mix at home
- Needs a cooler
- Basic
Ingredients
| Wild turkey breast half | 1 side, about 2 lb | domestic breast works the same way |
|---|---|---|
| Dill pickle juice | 2 cups | whatever is left in the jar |
| Honey | 2 tbsp | brown sugar substitutes one for one |
| Worcestershire sauce | 1 tbsp | |
| Garlic | 3 cloves, minced | a heaping teaspoon of jarred garlic is fine |
| Red pepper flakes | 1 tsp |
Method
- At home, stir the pickle juice, honey, Worcestershire, garlic, and pepper flakes together until the honey dissolves.
- Put the breast in a zip bag, pour the brine over it, press the air out, and seal. Keep it cold for 8 to 24 hours. Anything past a day and the surface goes mushy.
- Pack the sealed bag flat in the bottom of the cooler on ice. It travels in its own brine.
- Build a fire and let it burn to coals, or run a grill at medium-high. You want a hand held over the grate to be uncomfortable in about four seconds.
- Pull the breast out, let the brine drip off, and lay it on the grate. Turn every five or six minutes.
- Cook 20 to 30 minutes total, until the thickest part reads 165°F. Wild birds vary in thickness more than store birds, so go by temperature, not clock.
- Rest it on foil for ten minutes, then slice thin across the grain.
Wild turkey breast is lean to the point of being unforgiving. Two minutes past done and it turns to sawdust. The brine is insurance: salt in the pickle juice pulls moisture into the muscle and holds it there through the heat, and the acid softens the surface enough that a bird that ran wild all spring eats like one that did not.
The rest of the marinade is balance. Honey offsets the sourness and helps the outside color over coals, Worcestershire adds depth the pickle juice has none of, and the garlic and flakes cover the seasoning. This is a car camping recipe because it needs a cooler and 8 hours of lead time, so do the brining at home and let the drive count as marinating time. Slicing across the grain at the end matters as much as the brine does.
Packing
Brine and bird go into one heavy zip bag at home, doubled if the drive is long. Carry a small instant-read thermometer; this cut has no margin for guessing.
Variations
- Slice the leftovers cold into tortillas the next morning.
- Spicy pickle juice replaces the pepper flakes entirely.
- No grate: wrap the brined breast in a double foil packet and set it at the edge of the coals for about 35 minutes.
https://realtree.com/timber-2-table/recipes/pickle-juice-brined-grilled-turkey-breast