Ingredients: |
Ingredients: 12-15 pound turkey, neck & giblets removed (reserved if making gravy)
Kosher salt
1 tsp. plus 2 T minced, fresh sage
salt & pepper
wooden skewers
Stuffing:
1.5 lbs. hearty white sandwich bread, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 T vegetable oil
3 T unsalted butter
3 onions chopped fine
6 celery ribs, minced
1 C dried cranberries (or other dried fruit)
4 large eggs, beaten
3 teaspoons other fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme, parsley)
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Directions: |
Directions:The Evening Before Thanksgiving:
1. Put turkey breast-side-up on a cutting board. Tuck the wing back just to get it out-of-the-way. Remove the thighs/legs by cutting through the skin around the quarters where it attaches to breast. Cut away the top of the meat until your knife reaches the hip bone. Bend the entire leg quarter back so that the bone pops out of the hip socket, then you can continue to cut the meat away and remove entire quarter.
2. To take out the thigh bone, use the tip of your knife to cut along the length of the thigh. Cut around the tip of the bone and work your knife underneath the bone to expose the joint between thigh and leg. Cut through the cartilage and remove thighbone (reserve bones to your pot for the gravy, if making). Repeat to remove the second leg quarter.
3. Rub interior of each thigh with ½ teaspoon sage, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
4. Poke 2 or 3 skewers through skin/meat to close up the thigh where your removed the thigh bone. Wrap some kitchen twine around the wooden skewers to tightly close the thigh into a nice, round piece of boneless meat. Set on a large plate, cover, and refrigerate for 6 to 12 hours until ready to cook.
Thanksgiving Day
5. Trim away and discard any excess skin from around the neck.
To remove the back bone from the breast, flip the turkey over breast-side-down. Use kitchen shears to cut through ribs (following vertical line of fat where breast meets back) until you can’t cut anymore. You’ve reached the bone near the wing joint. Repeat on other side of backbone.
6. Use a little force to bend the back-section away from the breast, and the shoulder joint should pop out of the socket. Cut between the bonds to separate the back from the breast (reserve back for gravy, if making).
7. Dry Brine the breast, by rubbing Kosher salt under skin and in what was the cavity. Use about 1 T per 4 lbs. of bird. Seal in a plastic bag, place on cookie sheet in refrigerator until ready to cook, turning once.
8. Cut bread into 1/2-inch cubes (including the crust). Spread on-top 2 rimmed baking sheets and bake at 300-degrees from 25 to 30 minutes until it becomes dry and lightly browned. Stir a few times during baking and empty into the largest bowl you own.
Thanksgiving Day:
If making gravy, an hour before you are ready to start cooking turkey, bake the reserved bones.
Pre-heat oven temperature to 425-degrees, and set two over racks to the lowest and second lowest positions.
Remove the breast from brine and pat dry using paper towels (leaving the leg quarters in refrigerator for now). Tuck the wings behind back.
Melt down butter in 12″ non-stick oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Add minced onions and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they have softened and are just beginning to brown.
Add minced celery and 2 T. sage and other herbs to skillet, plus 1-1/2 teaspoons pepper. Continue to cook for 3 to 5 minutes until celery is slightly softened. Empty vegetables into your large bowl with the bread cubes.
Use paper towels to wipe out skillet. Brush surface of breast with 2 teaspoons vegetable oil and set turkey breast with the skin-side-down into skillet. Roast at 425-degrees for 30 minutes. Place a foil-lined baking sheet on the rack below turkey to catch any drippings.
Add cranberries and beaten eggs to bread mixture and toss to combine (mixture will be dry). Empty stuffing to 16″x13″ roasting pan, then use a rubber spatula to form an even 12″x10″ rectangle. The turkey will be set on-top of stuffing to protect it and prevent it from burning.
Remove the breast from the oven and use paper towels to pat up the hot juices from the top of the breast. Use wads to paper towels to flip over and set over two-thirds of stuffing.
Brush leg quarters with 1 teaspoon vegetable oil and arrange over the remaining stuffing. Lightly season lets and breasts with salt.
Tuck exposed stuffing under the turkey, so that it is almost entirely covered.
Bake for 30 minutes at 425-degrees.
Reduce oven to 350-degrees and continue cooking for between 40 minutes and 2 hours; until breast registers 160 to 165 degrees and thighs registers 175 to 180 degrees.
Empty onto a cutting board as each individual piece attains the proper temperature. Allow to rest for 30 minutes before carving. While turkey rests, use a spatula to stir stuffing and scrape up any browned bits. Evenly rearrange stuffing over the entire roasting pan and keep warm in the turned-off-oven.
Before serving, adjust seasoning of the stuffing with salt and pepper to taste. Arrange the stuffing in center of large serving platter.
Remove skewers and twine from leg quarters. Carve and serve. |
Personal
Notes: |
Personal
Notes: This has a lot of steps, but it is actually really easy and makes the final carving a breeze. I make this every thanksgiving and is bases off of Cooks' Illustrated's (2015) revision of Julia's original recipe.
Boning the thighs and removing the back are the most daunting tasks, but you do this the day before without prying eyes. Have a sharpened boning knife poultry shears ready.
Do not brine if using an "enhanced" self-basting bird, it will be too salty.
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This recipe for Julia Child's Deconstructed Turkey is from