Buttermilk Brined Turkey Breast with Mushroom Gravy

Juicy, succulent buttermilk brined turkey breast for intimate celebrations.

If I’m being honest, I usually go straight for the dark meat on Thanksgiving. While the breasts have a tendency to be dry and bland, the legs and thighs are almost always juicy and flavorful. 

But now, since it’s just my husband and I for Thanksgiving, I’ve decided to lean-in on lean meat. To prevent any dreaded dryness—and ensure supreme succulence—I’ve created a buttermilk brined turkey breast recipe just for the occasion. The acid in buttermilk tenderizes the meat, while the milk sugars help with browning, and the salt traps in moisture. If you’ve never tried it, I promise it’s a total game-changer. 

With that sorted, the only problem is that a breast—even a particularly juicy one—doesn’t give off a boatload of drippings for  making gravy. But, there’s still enough to work with, so I also developed a mushroom gravy to go with my buttermilk brined turkey breast that incorporates whatever drippings I manage to collect (or even none at all).

The combination of succulent, golden-brown meat with an umami-packed gravy makes for an undeniably special meal—holiday or not—and I truly don’t feel like I’m missing out on the legs or the thighs. 

What to serve with this turkey breast.

You can easily pair this with any of your favorite sides. If you are looking for ideas, this recipe is part of a collection of small scale Thanksgiving recipes for those (like my husband and I) that prefer a more intimate celebration. Check out that collection here which includes sides and dessert.

Buttermilk Brined Turkey Breast with Mushroom Gravy

For small Thanksgivings (or Friendsgivings), a turkey breast is a natural choice—perfectly portioned yet still plenty festive. To avoid the cliche of a dry, rubbery breast, a buttermilk brine tenderizes the meat, traps in moisture, and aids in browning, for a juicy, succulent roast. Plan to get your turkey breast in the brine about 24 hours before you want to bake it so it has plenty of time to do its thing. When shopping for a turkey breast consider that a bone-in turkey breast offers maximum flavor, while a boneless breast will roast faster and be easier to carve—the choice is yours. A good rule of thumb is to plan for about half a pound of meat (uncooked) per person (or one pound per person if you want to ensure plenty of leftovers). The mushroom gravy uses whatever drippings you manage to collect, so there is no need to stress about not having enough, and it is quite easy to throw together while the turkey is resting.

Servings 2 -8 (plus leftovers)

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 2 hours hrs

Marinading Time 1 day d

Total Time 1 day d 2 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

Ingredients

Turkey Breast

• 1 quart buttermilk
• 54 grams (3 tbsp) fine salt
• 1 3-5 lb single turkey breast boneless or bone-in, thawed
• 3 ribs celery roughly chopped
• 3 medium carrots roughly chopped
• 1 small yellow onion roughly chopped

Mushroom Gravy (optional)

• 2 tbsp butter
• 4 oz (about 4-6) cremini mushrooms sliced
• ¼ tsp kosher salt
• ¼ tsp pepper
• 2 tbsp all purpose flour
• 1½ cup chicken stock plus more as needed

Instructions

• In a gallon size ziploc bag, combine buttermilk and salt. Stir to dissolve salt.
• Add turkey breast to bag and turn to coat in buttermilk.
• Refrigerate turkey breast in brine overnight, 12-24 hours.
• 1 hour before you plan to bake, remove turkey breast from the brine, lightly shaking off excess brine. Place on a plate and bring it to room temperature.
• Preheat oven to 350° with a shelf in the middle and one near the top. Bake turkey breast on the middle shelf for the first half of baking then move to the top shelf until internal temperature of 160° in the thickest part of the breast. Total roasting time will be around 20 minutes per pound for boneless turkey breast or 25 minutes per pound for bone-in turkey breast. If skin is browning too much towards the end of baking, tent with foil and transfer back to middle shelf.
• Transfer turkey breast to a cutting board and tent loosely with foil. Allow to rest for about 15-20 minutes before carving. Reserve pan drippings, if desired, for making gravy.
• While turkey is resting, make gravy: Add 1½ cup chicken stock to the roasting pan with the vegetables. Gently scrape any browned bits stuck to the pan.
• Place a fine mesh sieve over a bowl or large spouted measuring cup. Pour contents of the roasting pan into the sieve and collect the drippings below.
• Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add mushrooms to saucepan and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5-7 minutes or until mushrooms are softened and starting to brown.
• Add salt, pepper, and flour to mushrooms, and cook, stirring continuously, for 1 minute.
• Gradually pour chicken stock to the saucepan while stirring. Bring to a boil over high heat then reduce heat as needed to maintain a simmer. Cook, stirring frequently, until thickened to coat the back of a spoon, about 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat. Add additional chicken stock as needed if gravy over-thickens.
• With a sharp chefs knife or a serrated knife, cut along the breast bone to remove it. Carve turkey against the grain and serve with gravy.

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: buttermilk brined, mushroom gravy, roasted turkey, thanksgiving, turkey, turkey breast