Roasted Turkey with Bread Stuffing
This recipe from America's Test Kitchen is the way I roasted our Thanksgiving turkey this year. It was fabulous. I don't remember ever having such tender, juicy white meat from a turkey. Though I like the flavor of my other recipe just as well, this one was definitely more tender. The process of how to roast it can be used no matter the aromatics used though. Someday I'll add pictures. My camera broke so I'll be posting without pictures for awhile.
Recipe:
1 12-15 lb turkey
Dana's Stuffing recipe
For the legs:
1 tsp salt, divided
1/2 tsp black pepper, divided
1 tsp finely chopped fresh sage, divided
4 medium skewers
2 approximately 8 inch lengths kitchen twine
Remove giblets from turkey (set them aside for the gravy), rinse inside and out and pat dry. For this recipe you remove the legs from the turkey first. Using a sharp knife cut down the sides of the breast where the leg is attached until you reach the hip joint. Pull down on the leg until the hip joint pops out and continue to cut the leg off. It's a continuous process of pulling and cutting. Once you have severed the leg from the body, you want to remove the thigh bone from the leg. Make a slit through the meat down the center of the thigh bone. Scrape and cut the meat from the thigh bone. Once you can hold the end of the bone it's much easier to scrape the meat down the bone until you come to the joint. Cut around the joint and through the cartilage of the joint and remove the thigh bone. Lay open the thigh and sprinkle with 1/2 tsp each salt, 1/4 tsp each pepper and 1/2 tsp each sage. Stick two skewers per leg through the skin to close the thighs and truss it up with the twine finishing with a knot to hold it closed.
For the breast:
2 gallons cold water
1 C salt
Trim off excess skin around neck. Now you need to remove the back bone. Using kitchen scissors cut up each side in between the breast and back bone almost all the way to the neck until you reach bone or until your scissors won't cut through anymore. Using some force, push breast and back apart with hands until neck bone pops up, then cut through the meat on both sides of the neck bone to remove the back (set aside for the gravy). Mix water and salt together in bucket or large container. Tuck wings under breast and place in very cold brine for at least 6 hours.
Preheat oven to 425°F. Take breast out of brine and let it drain and then pat it dry. Meanwhile, place oven-safe skillet over a medium-high burner to get hot. Rub breast with oil and place breast-side down in skillet. Immediately move skillet to oven and bake for 20-30 minutes. Remove from oven, soak up juices in cavity a little with paper towel. Place breast (breast up) on top of a stuffing bed. Nestle turkey legs around breast, skewer-side down, brush legs with oil and sprinkle with salt. With a spatula push any exposed stuffing under turkey as well as possible. Place in oven and bake 30 minutes. Turn down heat to 350°F and bake approximately 40 minutes, until breast registers 160-165°F and the legs 170-175°F on thermometer. If one is done before the other, remove the parts that are done. You don't want to over-cook it! Let the turkey rest for 30 minutes on a cutting board before you slice it. You can just slice the thigh pieces and the breast! So tender! Serve with gravy below
Turkey Gravy:
Reserved giblets, neck, back-bone and thigh bones
1 large onion, chopped coarse
1 carrot, cut in 1-inch pieces
1 celery rib, cut in 1-inch pieces
6 garlic cloves, peeled
1 Tbs oil
6 C chicken broth
2 C water
1/2 C white grape juice
2 Tbs white wine vinegar
6 sprigs fresh Thyme
1/3 C flour
Salt and pepper to taste
Turn oven to 450°F. Place bones, giblets, onion, carrot, celery and garlic in roasting pan. Drizzle with oil and toss. Roast, stirring occasionally for 40-50 minutes. Remove from oven and place over high heat and bring to boil . Add chicken broth and stir to get all the little bits from the bottom of the pan. Transfer contents to a stock-pot and add water, juice and Thyme and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, until it's reduced by about half. Strain contents through a fine strainer, pressing on solids to get all the broth. Let the liquid sit for a few minutes and skim off 1/4-1/3 C fat or put in fat separator. Put the fat in a saucepan and heat over medium-high. Add the flour, whisk and let it cook for a minute. Add the strained broth and whisk until bubbly and thickened for about 5 minutes. Season to taste. It will thicken as it cools.
Recipe:
1 12-15 lb turkey
Dana's Stuffing recipe
For the legs:
1 tsp salt, divided
1/2 tsp black pepper, divided
1 tsp finely chopped fresh sage, divided
4 medium skewers
2 approximately 8 inch lengths kitchen twine
Remove giblets from turkey (set them aside for the gravy), rinse inside and out and pat dry. For this recipe you remove the legs from the turkey first. Using a sharp knife cut down the sides of the breast where the leg is attached until you reach the hip joint. Pull down on the leg until the hip joint pops out and continue to cut the leg off. It's a continuous process of pulling and cutting. Once you have severed the leg from the body, you want to remove the thigh bone from the leg. Make a slit through the meat down the center of the thigh bone. Scrape and cut the meat from the thigh bone. Once you can hold the end of the bone it's much easier to scrape the meat down the bone until you come to the joint. Cut around the joint and through the cartilage of the joint and remove the thigh bone. Lay open the thigh and sprinkle with 1/2 tsp each salt, 1/4 tsp each pepper and 1/2 tsp each sage. Stick two skewers per leg through the skin to close the thighs and truss it up with the twine finishing with a knot to hold it closed.
For the breast:
2 gallons cold water
1 C salt
Trim off excess skin around neck. Now you need to remove the back bone. Using kitchen scissors cut up each side in between the breast and back bone almost all the way to the neck until you reach bone or until your scissors won't cut through anymore. Using some force, push breast and back apart with hands until neck bone pops up, then cut through the meat on both sides of the neck bone to remove the back (set aside for the gravy). Mix water and salt together in bucket or large container. Tuck wings under breast and place in very cold brine for at least 6 hours.
Preheat oven to 425°F. Take breast out of brine and let it drain and then pat it dry. Meanwhile, place oven-safe skillet over a medium-high burner to get hot. Rub breast with oil and place breast-side down in skillet. Immediately move skillet to oven and bake for 20-30 minutes. Remove from oven, soak up juices in cavity a little with paper towel. Place breast (breast up) on top of a stuffing bed. Nestle turkey legs around breast, skewer-side down, brush legs with oil and sprinkle with salt. With a spatula push any exposed stuffing under turkey as well as possible. Place in oven and bake 30 minutes. Turn down heat to 350°F and bake approximately 40 minutes, until breast registers 160-165°F and the legs 170-175°F on thermometer. If one is done before the other, remove the parts that are done. You don't want to over-cook it! Let the turkey rest for 30 minutes on a cutting board before you slice it. You can just slice the thigh pieces and the breast! So tender! Serve with gravy below
Turkey Gravy:
Reserved giblets, neck, back-bone and thigh bones
1 large onion, chopped coarse
1 carrot, cut in 1-inch pieces
1 celery rib, cut in 1-inch pieces
6 garlic cloves, peeled
1 Tbs oil
6 C chicken broth
2 C water
1/2 C white grape juice
2 Tbs white wine vinegar
6 sprigs fresh Thyme
1/3 C flour
Salt and pepper to taste
Turn oven to 450°F. Place bones, giblets, onion, carrot, celery and garlic in roasting pan. Drizzle with oil and toss. Roast, stirring occasionally for 40-50 minutes. Remove from oven and place over high heat and bring to boil . Add chicken broth and stir to get all the little bits from the bottom of the pan. Transfer contents to a stock-pot and add water, juice and Thyme and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, until it's reduced by about half. Strain contents through a fine strainer, pressing on solids to get all the broth. Let the liquid sit for a few minutes and skim off 1/4-1/3 C fat or put in fat separator. Put the fat in a saucepan and heat over medium-high. Add the flour, whisk and let it cook for a minute. Add the strained broth and whisk until bubbly and thickened for about 5 minutes. Season to taste. It will thicken as it cools.
Comments
Post a Comment