Simple & Easy Turkey Recipes for Thanksgiving

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Braised Turkey Legs

Course:

Dinner

Seasonal Event:

Thanksgiving, Christmas

Yield:

Serves 4

Recipe by Dan Kohler, 11/14/2020

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 275°F. Season turkey legs generously with salt and pepper on all sides. Heat oil in a large straight-sided sauté pan over high heat until shimmering. Add turkey legs, skin side down. Cook, without moving, until turkey is deep golden brown, about 8 minutes. Flip legs and cook until second side is browned, about 5 minutes longer, reducing heat as necessary if oil smokes excessively. Transfer turkey to a large plate.
2. Return sauté pan to heat and add onion, parsnip, celery, and fennel. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables are browned, 5-7 minutes.
3. Add garlic, sage, parsley, and bay leaves, cook for 2-3 minutes, until fragrant.
4. Add wine, bring to a boil, and cook until reduced by half, about 5 minutes.
5. Add turkey legs to pan, letting them rest on the vegetables.
6. Pour chicken stock into pan until it’s about ⅔ up the side of the turkey legs, leaving the skin exposed. Bring stock to a bare boil, then transfer pot to oven.
7. Cook turkey, uncovered, until legs are fall-apart tender, sauce is reduced, and skin is deep mahogany, about 2 hours. Carefully remove from oven and transfer turkey legs to a plate using a slotted spatula. If during the cooking process the liquid evaporates too much, add more chicken stock to the pan.
8. Strain liquid through a fine-mesh strainer into a large bowl or medium saucepan. Reserve solids. Skim excess fat from surface of liquid and discard. Set liquid aside.
9. Remove sage, parsley, and bay leaves from vegetables. Add cooked vegetable solids to blender and puree until smooth. Add ~2 tablespoons butter, then season with salt and pepper, and blend again.
10. In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, melt remaining two tablespoons butter. Add flour and cook, whisking constantly, until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Slowly whisk in hot turkey-cooking liquid until fully incorporated. Bring to a boil to thicken and season to taste with salt and pepper. (you may not need any salt, depending on how salty your broth was to begin with.)
11. Spread vegetable puree on platter, place turkey legs on top. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with hot gravy.

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Directions for Brine

1. Wrap spices in sachet (cheesecloth parcel tied with twine)
2. Bring 6 liters of water to boil and add all other ingredients
3. Submerge turkey in brine for 24 hours in cooler or refrigerator.
4. Remove turkey from brine give quick rinse and dry

Directions for Spatchcocked Turkey

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees
2. Spatchcok turkey by cutting out backbone and breaking breastplate. Rub turkey with oil and season with salt and pepper
3. Place vegetables parchment rimmed baking sheet. place rack on top and transfer spatchcocked turkey on top, breast side up
4. Roast, rotating halfway through and basting 4 times until an instant read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh reads 165F, about 1 hour. Allow to rest for at least 25 minutes before carving.

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Directions:

1. Completely thaw turkey breast, if frozen (make sure turkey is free of any ice).
2. Preheat oil to 375º F. Rinse turkey well with warm water. Dry turkey well with paper towels.
3. Inject 4 oz marinade into each side of breast. Sprinkle outside generously with Butterball Cajun Seasoning.
4. Place turkey, breast side up, in basket. Slowly lower basket into hot oil; be cautious of splattering oil. Reduce temperature to 325° F. Fry turkey for 7 minutes per pound. (Example: 6 lb. turkey breast, 6X7=42 minutes)
5. Remove from oil to check doneness. Insert an instant-read thermometer; it is done when it reads 170º F. Remove from oil and drain on paper towels.
6. Let rest 15 minutes. Carefully carve with sharp knife.

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DIRECTIONS:

MOROCCAN SPICE RUB:

1. Combine all ingredients in small mixing bowl and mix until well incorporated.

HERBED BUTTER:

1. Place all ingredients in food processor and blend until incorporated, and smooth consistency. **Note: It takes about one day for each 4-5 lbs to defrost. So a 17 lb turkey will take about 4 to 5 days to thaw in the refrigerator.

TURKEY:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees, remove turkey from fridge and let it sit out until it comes to room temperature. About an hour.
2. With turkey right side up (turkey breast facing up). Carefully separate skin from the turkey neck hole, and generously rub herbed butter between turkey skin and turkey meat on both side of the turkey.
3. Flip turkey upside down and season generously with Moroccan spice rub, and flip turkey back right side up and season generously.
4. Divide vegetables equally, half of veggies go inside the turkey cavity. Tie legs together with butchers twine.
5. Place the other half of veggies on the bottom of the roasting pan along with chicken stock.
6. With turkey right side up (turkey breast side facing up) place in roasting pan, and immediately reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees.
7. Roast turkey until digital thermometer reads 160 degrees in the thickest part of the turkey thigh. About 3 - 3.5 hours, basting turkey with pan juices every 30 minutes.
8. Remove turkey from oven and place on sheet, and lightly cover turkey with aluminum foil about 20 mins.
9. **Feel free to make a pan gravy for turkey by straining pan drippings. Reserve 1/2 cup pan drippings and bring the rest of the pan drippings to a gentle boil in a medium size sauce pot.
10. In a small bowl , whisk 1 tablespoon corn starch with 1/2 cup reserved pan drippings until fully incorporated and slowly add to gently boiling pan drippings, whisking until it forms a gravy like consistency. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

ZESTY CRANBERRY-ORANGE SAUCE:

Yield: 1 cup

1. Put Grand Marnier in medium saucepan and reduce by ½, add zest and juice of one orange, 1 cup orange juice, frozen cranberries, bring to a boil; then simmer for 12 to 14 minutes until reduced to syrupy consistency
2. Set cranberry sauce aside to cool to room temperature.

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Directions

1. Brine the turkey: Remove giblets, neck and liver from turkey and reserve. Wash the turkey. In a nonreactive container, completely dissolve salt and sugar into water. Add remaining brine ingredients (except for ice.) In a clean and sterile cooler place the bird breast side down. Pour brine over turkey in cooler. Add ice on top. Close lid and shake to combine. Brine turkey for 12 hours.

2. Prepare the gravy: Place reserved neck, giblets, and liver in stockpot, cover with 6 cups low sodium chicken stock. Slow simmer for one hour. Strain, reserve stock separately, remove parts, chop neck meat with liver and giblets and set aside for gravy.

3. Prepare the turkey: Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. After 12 hours, remove turkey from the brine. Quickly rinse turkey in a clean sink and pat dry using paper towels. Strain the brine into colander and rinse to melt ice. Leave turkey and vegetables at room temperature for one hour. Stuff brine vegetables into the cavity to plump up the breast. Tie legs together and pull back, securing around neck and wings. Smooth room temperature butter all over the turkey and place breast side up on a rack inside of a large roasting pan.

4. Roast the turkey: Place bird in preheated oven. Once bird is in oven, immediately turn heat down to 350 degrees. Baste in 45 minute intervals. Roast for approximately 2 to 2.5 hours. Start testing doneness at 2 hours—thigh meat should reach 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove turkey from oven, take it out of the pan and place on platter. Let rest for 30-45 minutes under aluminum foil while you make gravy.

5. Finish the gravy: After the turkey roasts, take the rack out of the roasting pan. Take roasting pan and place over low heat on two kitchen burners. Add two cups of mixture of onions, celery, carrots. Start to stir with spoon to allow vegetables to cook in remaining juices and oil in pan. The juices will come to a sizzle. When liquid is no longer making noise, incorporate one half to three-quarters cup flour depending on how thick you prefer your gravy, scraping all bits off bottom. Using whisk, incorporate strained chicken stock that you made. Bring to simmer. Strain mixture into a medium saucepot. Adjust the seasoning and consistency, adding more stock to taste. Add reserved chopped liver, neck and giblets, keep warm on side while you carve turkey.

6. Carve turkey: Pour any of the juices that has pooled up over resting process into gravy. Remove legs and breast from carcass, separating and take breast off bone.

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Directions for Turkey

1. Sauté in olive oil the shallots till translucent and add sage leaves for 1 minute to pop the aroma. Add to the softened butter. Add the salt and pepper and mix with a spatula.
2. Lay the Turkey breast skin down on a cutting board and spread the butter mixture on both sides of the breast and then close the breast over with the skin. Please the breast in a roasting pan. Add the maple syrup to the left over butter mixture and pour on top of the breast. Roast in the oven at 350 for 1 ½ hours or till internal temp of 150 degrees. Then remove and baste the turkey with the pan juices. Raise the oven temp to 500 degrees place turkey back in the oven to brown the skin for 5 minutes. Then remove and cool down before slicing.
3. While the turkey is in the oven prepare the Yams and relish

Directions for Meringue
1. Whip the 4 egg whites with the powdered sugar and cream of tartar till hard peaks and then transfer to a pastry bag with a star tip.
Note: The Meringue can be made early and left in a pastry bag in the cooler.

Directions for Yams

1. Place the diced yams in a saucepan with the water and brown sugar and cook for about 7 minutes till they are half cooked. Then strain and add 2 tbsp. of grain mustard and ½ of the drained liquid. Toss and place in a baking dish and bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees.
2. Once done they can be topped with the Meringue and use a torch to toast .

Directions for Relish

1. Place all ingredients except the apples and pears in a bowl and mix together.
2. Check seasoning and taste. Then add diced apples and pears and mix together.

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DIRECTIONS:

1. For the turkey, with clean hands, insert your fingers between the skin and the meat at the neck opening, and carefully break through the membranes between the skin and the meat all over the breast and thighs. Insert herbs neatly underneath the skin.
2. Position the rack on the lowest level of the pressure oven. Set the pressure oven temperature to 450°F and the function to ROAST. Turn on the timer to preheat the oven.
3. In a mixing bowl, toss together all of the cut-up vegetables and the garlic cloves. Spread them evenly in the pressure oven’s baking tray.
4. Tie the turkey’s legs together at the ends of the drumsticks with kitchen string or butcher’s twine. Fold the wing tips under. Season the turkey all over inside and out with salt and pepper. Drizzle and rub with some olive oil all over the skin.
5. Place the turkey in the roasting pan on top of the bed of vegetables. Place the pan in the preheated pressure oven.
6. Set the Vent Release Valve to SEAL and lower Sealing Lever to the SEAL position and set the timer for to 55 minutes.*
7. When the time is up, slowly release the pressure valve and slowly lift the pressure bar until no steam remains. Test the turkey for doneness: an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh not touching bone should read 165°F. If not, roast under pressure for 5 to 10 minutes longer.
8. Remove the turkey from the pan to a platter and cover it with aluminum for to rest for 15 minutes before carving. Skim any fat from the surface of the pan juices; reserve the juices in the roasting pan.
9. Transfer the turkey to a carving board. Cut into serving pieces and serve with the roasted vegetables and garlic. Tip: When cooking a whole roast turkey we recommend wrapping the drumsticks in foil to prevent excessive browning. Check roast skin color after first 30 minutes and tent with foil to control browning if so desired. Ensure that foil does not come into contact with heating elements.
10. Order your own Wolfgang Puck Pressure Oven at Puckoven.com

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You'll Need:

-Mixing bowl x 2
-Frying pan
-Chopping board
-Kitchen string
-Large oval heavy based pot with a lid

Directions:

To make the stuffing, place the apricots and sultanas in a bowl and cover with boiling water to soak for 15 minutes. Heat a frying pan over a medium heat and melt the butter. Add in the onions and fry gently for 6 minutes until completely softened. Place the rest of the stuffing ingredients in a mixing bowl and add the cooked onions. Season with sea salt and ground black pepper and mix until completely combined. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 200˚C/400˚F/Gas mark 6. Butterfly the turkey breast or ask your butcher to do it for you. Lay it flat on a chopping board and pile on the stuffing down the center. Carefully, tightly roll it up and then using kitchen string tie it in 2-inch intervals. Place the stuffed and tied breast in a large oval heavy based pot with a lid. Rub all over with soft butter and season with ras el hanout, sea salt and ground black pepper.

Cover with a lid and roast the turkey breast in the middle shelf of the oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes (or 40 minutes per kg). Check that it’s cooked by inserting a metal skewer to the center to see that the skewer is very hot and the juices run clear when removed. Baste regularly throughout the cooking time.

15 minutes before the end of the cooking time, remove the lid and add the figs around the turkey breast and drizzle all over the turkey and the figs with honey.

Remove from the oven, transfer the breast and figs to a chopping board and allow to rest under tin foil while you prepare the gravy. Place the pot over a medium heat and whisk in the white wine to deglaze the bottom. Add in the chicken stock and reduce by half. If you want a thicker sauce, add three tablespoons of the gravy liquid to a small bowl and whisk together with 1 tablespoon of plain flour. Season with a little honey and some extra ras el hanout to taste.

When you have a smooth mixture whisk this back into the gravy and bubble away until it reduces the desired thickness. Season with sea salt and ground black pepper. Carefully remove the string from the cooked turkey and then carve in generous slices. Serve with the warm gravy, sprinkle of pomegranate, coriander and the Christmas sides of your choice.

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Directions

1. Whisk water, salt, brown sugar, and tarragon together in a large container. Submerge turkey legs, weighing them down with a heavy plate if you need to. Let soak for a minimum of 4 hours and no longer than 24 hours.
2. One hour prior to cooking, remove legs and pat dry with paper towels. Rub legs with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Cook legs on a high-heat grill for 15 to 20 minutes.
4. While the legs are cooking, make the sauce: In a bowl, combine honey, brown sugar, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, and red wine vinegar. Brush on turkey legs during the last 10 minutes of grilling.
5. When done, transfer legs from the grill to a platter or plate and cover with foil. Allow to rest about 10 to 15 minutes.

Print Recipe

Turkey Meatloaf with Potatoes and Gravy

Course:

Dinner, Main Dish

Cuisine:

American

Seasonal Event:

Holidays, Christmas

DIRECTIONS:

SEASONING MIX:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F
2. Caramelize the onions over medium heat for 30 minutes.
3. Transfer the onions to a blender or food processor. Add in the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. Set aside to cool.

TURKEY MEATLOAF:

1. In a large pan, melt the butter and saute the onions, carrots, celery and garlic over medium heat until softened and just translucent. About 10 minutes. Add in the thyme, sage and rosemary. Saute another 5 minutes. Season with 1 tsp. each salt and black pepper. Set aside to cool.
2. Add the smoked turkey to a food processor and pulse until the meat is chopped in to small pieces. Combine the smoked turkey with the ground turkey, seasoning mix, sautéed herbs and vegetables, milk, eggs and 2 tsp. each salt and pepper.
3. Spray two 10-inch loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray. Line the pans with parchment paper and spray them again. Fill the loaf pans with the meat mixture. Cover with foil.
4. Place the loaf pan into a deep baking dish. Fill the baking dish with water ½ way up the loaf pan. Bake in a 350°F for about 1 hour and 15 minutes. While the meatloaf is baking make the gravy and potatoes. The meatloaf is done when a meat thermometer reads 160°F. Allow the meatloaf to cool completely in the pan. Remove from the loaf pan and slice into 1-inch thick slices.

TO SERVE:

1. Sear each slice of meatloaf on both sides until heated through. Place the potatoes and a small bunch of spinach onto each plate. Top with gravy.

TURKEY GRAVY:

1. In a large sauce pot, saute the butter, onions and celery until the vegetables are light brown in color. Stirring frequently, incorporate the flour to make a light roux. Add in the herbs and continue to stir for 1 minute.
2. Whisk in the chicken stock and bullion. Bring the gravy to a simmer for 10 minutes. Whisk in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.
3. Strain the gravy through a mesh sieve to remove any unwanted lumps. Set aside.

RED SKIN MASHED POTATOES:

1. Place the potatoes and 1 Tbsp. salt into a large pot. Cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. About 30 minutes.
2. Drain the potatoes and return to the pot.
3. Add butter and sour cream. Coarsely mash the potatoes. Stir in the cream, green onions, salt and pepper. You can add more cream to reach your desired texture.
4. Re-season with salt and pepper as needed. Keep warm.