Cooking Your Turkey
Everything you need to know about preparing, cooking, basting and coupling your turkey with a delicious gravy to match.
Ingredients
- 1 Whole free-range turkey
- Onions, carrot and celery
- Olive oil
- Sale & pepper
- Sage, thyme, parsley and rosemary
- Chicken stock
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
- 1 orange (or other aromatic fruit)
Method
Whole Turkey
- Bring the Turkey out of the fridge an hour or two before cooking. This will reduce cooking time and allow for more even heat distribution while cooking. Preheat the oven to 180C.
- Rub the Turkey with butter and salt and pepper.
- Line your baking dish with chopped vegetables like onion, carrot and celery.
- Stuff the turkey with a mixture of sage, thyme, rosemary and chopped onion and breadcrumbs. You can also add a halved oranges or other aromatic fruit. Don’t over-stuff the turkey, just line the cavity so that air-flow is still possible – making for a more even cook. Cover loosely with foil.
- Cook for 45mins for every 1kg of Turkey. Because Turkey’s are so large, it’s recommended that you use an oven thermometer when cooking.
- Insert the end of the thermometer into the thickest part of the flesh (usually the top of the breast) – that way you can ensure that the desired cooking temperature is reached.
- Halfway through cooking, baste the turkey with a turkey-baster or by simply spooning liquid from the bottom of the dish over the body of the bird – this will stop the outer layers drying out.
- About 30-40 mins before it’s done, remove the foil to allow the skin to go crispy brown.
- Remove from the oven and cover with foil and a tea-towel and let it rest for at least an hour. This allows the heat to dissipate gently and will result in an unbelievably tender Turkey!
Turkey Buffe
Same as the Whole Turkey but with an adjusted cooking to time to match the weight. The Breast is where the bulk of the meat is anyway.
Boneless/Seasoned Breast Roll
Place you Turkey Breast roll in a roasting dish with a cup of stock. Breast is the leanest part of the Turkey, so it doesn’t produce as much juice as a whole Turkey will. Brush with Olive Oil and salt and pepper and cook on 180C for 40mins per kilo – basting regularly.
Gravy
Use any remaining fluid from the bottom of your roasting tray to make a gravy. Mix with additional chicken stock, a dash of white wine and chopped parsley. In a pan over low heat stir in a few tablespoons of plain flour to make it thick and creamy.
