Thanksgiving Day is the day for people to give thanks for everything they have. This day traditionally is a day for friends and families to get together for a very special meal. Often this meal includes a turkey.
Since Thanksgiving day is just in few days, it is good to prepare on time. Learn how to cook the turkey differently. It is still delicious, but at the same time, it is healthy. This bird uses sugar and dry salt cure instead of wet brine.
But that will help it brown and concentrate flavor. Hard herbs such as thyme, fresh sage, and rosemary impart savory, woodsy note to the meat. On the other hand, soft herbs such as chives and parsley garnish the turkey, and they also perk up the gravy.
The wine added to the roasting pan will keep the turkey moist as it flavors the pan drippings in the gravy. Read on to find more about the necessary ingredients and how to prepare this special meal.
Necessary Ingredients
- Thawed, frozen or whole fresh turkey – 1 of around 14 lb.
- Divided kosher salt – 1 tablespoon
- Sugar – 1 teaspoon
- Melted, unsalted butter – ½ cup
- Fresh poultry herb blends or six sprigs each fresh sage, rosemary, and thyme – 2 (1 oz.) pkg.
- Halved lemons – 2
- Divided, fresh flat-leaf parsley – 1 bunch of them
- One garlic head split horizontally
- Cooking spray
- Freshly ground black pepper – ¾ teaspoon
- Divided, dry white wine – 1 ½ cups
- Unbleached all-purpose flour – 1.1 ounces around ¼ cup
- Divided thinly sliced chives – ¼ cup
- Divided unsalted chicken stock – 4 cups
How to Prepare This Meal
Step #1
The first thing is that this meal serves 16 people with the appropriate serving size of around 3 tablespoons of gravy and 6 oz. of turkey.
Start by removing the neck and giblets from the turkey, but bear in mind to reserve the neck. Then trim the excess fat and pat the turkey dry.
After that, rub 2 tsp. of sugar and salt over the drumsticks, breasts, and thighs. Put the turkey in a shallow dish and do not cover it. Put it in the fridge for around 8 hours, or if have the time, leave it overnight.
Step #2
Take out the turkey from the fridge and let it stay at room temperature for 60 minutes. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 425°F.
Step #3
Chop half of the herb blend and combine it with butter. Then set it aside. After chop parsley to ¼ cup and reserve.
Step #4
In this step, get the turkey ready for the oven. First, lift wing tips up and over the back and tuck under the turkey. Put the remaining herb blend, remaining bunch of garlic, parsley, and lemons in the body cavity.
Take a kitchen twine and tie the legs together. After put the turkey on the rack of a roasting pan and then coat it with cooking spray. Then put the neck in the bottom of the roasting pan. Bake the turkey at 425°F for around 15 minutes.
Step #5
Lower the temperature of the oven to around 350°F. Then leave it in the oven. Add the reserved butter mixture over the turkey with the help of a brush.
Put one cup of wine into the pan. Bake at this temperature for one hour and pour juices from the pan every 20 minutes. Put the remaining ½ cup of wine in the pan and cover the turkey with foil.
Bake at the same temperature for another 35 minutes.
Step #6
Remove the pan from the oven and put the turkey on a cutting board but remember to reserve the neck. Leave it like that loosely covered with foil for around 20 minutes.
After that time passes, remove the foil and sprinkle with it with 2 tbsps. of chives and 2 tbsps. of reserved chopped parsley. Those who want can remove the skin before they serve the turkey, this is optional.
Step #7
Remove everything but ¼ cup pan drippings from roasting pan. Then, heat it over medium. Put ½ cup of stock to ¼ cup of drippings into the pan and bring to a boil.
Add the stock mixture to a saucepan of medium size. The next thing is to add 3 cups of stock and the reserved neck and bring to a boil. In a bowl combine the remaining flour and ½ cup of stock.
Stir and cook for around 10 minutes. Stir in the remaining pepper, 1 tsp. of salt, 2 tbsps. of chives and 2 tbsps. of parsley. Next is to serve the gravy with the turkey.
Dinner is ready, now just eat and enjoy and enjoy the company of friends and family. There is nothing left to say but bon appetit.
