Read The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook Online
Authors: The Editors at America's Test Kitchen
Tags: #Cooking
The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook (163 page)
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
When you’re expecting a crowd for Thanksgiving dinner, but have just one oven to dedicate to roasting the turkey, only a really large bird will do. But a 20-pound-plus turkey presents some problems: Finding a container big enough to brine it and turning the bird halfway through cooking were two concerns. Buying an already brined or kosher turkey was the first step in eliminating one of these hurdles. Initial high heat gave our turkey crisp skin, while lowering the heat for the remainder of the cooking time prevented the meat from drying out. Though we did turn the bird once for even cooking, we decided to make this step optional since it is so cumbersome. We brushed the turkey just once with butter before going into the oven, which saved us the step of continuous basting. Finally, trussing was another step we could happily skip—the thigh meat cooked faster when left untrussed.
SERVES ABOUT 20
Rotating the bird helps produce moist, evenly cooked meat, but for the sake of ease, you may opt not to rotate it. In that case, skip the step of lining the V-rack with foil and roast the bird breast side up for the entire cooking time. Because we do not brine the bird, we had the best results with a frozen Butterball turkey (injected with salt and water) or a kosher bird (soaked in salt water during processing). Follow illustrations for how to carve the turkey.
3 | onions, chopped coarse |
3 | carrots, peeled and chopped coarse |
3 | celery ribs, chopped coarse |
1 | lemon, quartered |
6 | sprigs fresh thyme |
5 | tablespoons unsalted butter, melted |
1 | (18- to 22-pound) frozen Butterball or kosher turkey, trimmed, neck, giblets, and tailpiece removed and reserved for |
1 | cup water, plus extra as needed |
Salt and pepper | |
1 |
1.
Adjust oven rack to lowest position. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Line V-rack with heavy-duty aluminum foil and poke several holes in foil. Set V-rack in flameproof roasting pan and spray foil with vegetable oil spray.
2.
Toss half of vegetables, half of lemon, and thyme with 1 tablespoon of melted butter in bowl and place inside turkey. Tie legs together with kitchen twine and tuck wings behind back. Scatter remaining vegetables into pan.
3.
Pour water over vegetable mixture in pan. Brush turkey breast with 2 tablespoons melted butter, then sprinkle with ¹⁄
2
teaspoon salt and ¹⁄
2
teaspoon pepper. Place turkey, breast side down, on prepared V-rack. Brush with remaining 2 tablespoons melted butter and sprinkle with ¹⁄
2
teaspoon salt and ¹⁄
2
teaspoon pepper.
4.
Roast turkey for 1 hour. Baste turkey with juices from pan. Using 2 large wads of paper towels, turn turkey breast side up. If liquid in pan has totally evaporated, add another ¹⁄
2
cup water. Lower oven temperature to 325 degrees. Continue to roast until breast registers 160 degrees and thighs register 175 degrees on, about 2 hours longer.
5.
Remove turkey from oven. Gently tip turkey up so that any accumulated juices in cavity run into pan. Transfer turkey to carving board. Let rest, uncovered, for 35 to 40 minutes. Carve turkey and serve with gravy.
TURKEY—PRETTY IN PINK?
Having prepared thousands of turkeys in the test kitchen, we have experienced the occasional slice of pink turkey meat. First off, always rely on an instant-read thermometer to ascertain doneness when roasting poultry. In the case of turkey, look for 160 degrees in the thickest portion of the breast and 175 degrees in the thickest part of the thigh.
So what about the unsettling color? Just because a slice of turkey has a pinkish tint doesn’t necessarily mean it is underdone. In general, the red or pink color in meat is due to the red protein pigment called myoglobin in the muscle cells that store oxygen. Because the areas that tend to get the most exercise—the legs and thighs—require more oxygen, they contain more myoglobin (and are therefore darker in color) than the breasts. When oxygen is attached to myoglobin in the cells, it is bright red. As turkey (or chicken) roasts in the oven, the oxygen attached to the myoglobin is released, and the meat becomes lighter and browner in color. However, if there are trace amounts of other gases formed in a hot oven or grill, they may react to the myoglobin to produce a pink color, even if the turkey is fully cooked.
When cooking turkey or other poultry, don’t be afraid if you see a little bit of pink. As long as you’ve let your thermometer be your guide, the meat is perfectly safe to eat.
MAKES ABOUT 8 CUPS
Complete step 1 up to a day ahead, if desired. Begin step 3 once the bird has been removed from the oven and is resting on a carving board.
1 | tablespoon vegetable oil |
Reserved turkey neck, giblets, and tailpiece | |
1 | onion, unpeeled and chopped |
6 | cups low-sodium chicken broth |
3 | cups water |
2 | sprigs fresh thyme |
8 | sprigs fresh parsley |
5 | tablespoons unsalted butter |
¹⁄ | cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour |
1¹⁄ | cups dry white wine |
Salt and pepper |
1.
Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add neck, giblets, and tailpiece and cook until golden and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Stir in onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until turkey parts and onion release their juices, about 15 minutes. Stir in broth, water, and herbs, bring to boil, and adjust heat to low. Simmer, uncovered, skimming any impurities that may rise to surface, until broth is rich and flavorful, about 30 minutes longer. Strain broth into large container and reserve giblets. When cool enough to handle, chop giblets. Refrigerate giblets and broth until ready to use. (Broth can be stored in refrigerator for up to 1 day.)
2.
While turkey is roasting, return reserved turkey broth to simmer in medium saucepan. Melt butter in large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add flour and cook, whisking constantly (the mixture will froth and then thin out again), until nutty brown and fragrant, 10 to 15 minutes. Vigorously whisk all but 2 cups of hot broth into flour mixture. Bring to boil, then continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, until gravy is lightly thickened and very flavorful, about 35 minutes longer. Set aside until turkey is done.
3.
When turkey has been transferred to carving board to rest, spoon out and discard as much fat as possible from roasting pan, leaving caramelized herbs and vegetables. Place pan over 2 burners set on medium-high heat. Return gravy to simmer. Add wine to pan of caramelized vegetables, scraping up any browned bits. Bring to boil and cook until reduced by half, about 7 minutes. Add remaining 2 cups turkey broth, bring to simmer, and cook for 15 minutes; strain pan juices into gravy, pressing as much juice as possible out of vegetables. Stir reserved giblets into gravy and return to boil. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
Brining is our go-to technique when we want moist, well-seasoned turkey. But with refrigerator space at a premium around the holidays, we looked to salting as a space-saving alternative. We carefully separated the skin from the meat and rubbed the meat thoroughly with kosher salt. We discovered that salting the turkey (which is actually a kind of dry brine) and refrigerating it for 24 to 48 hours resulted in a turkey that was well seasoned throughout, though it wasn’t quite as moist as a traditionally brined turkey. Since the dryness was concentrated in the breast, we iced the breast before the turkey went into the oven—because the breast meat started at a lower temperature than the dark meat, we were able to remove the turkey when the dark meat was thoroughly cooked but the breast wasn’t overdone.
SERVES 10 TO 12
If using a self-basting turkey or kosher turkey, do not salt in step 1, and season with salt after brushing with melted butter in step 5. This recipe was developed and tested using Diamond Crystal kosher salt. If you have Morton’s kosher salt, which is denser than Diamond Crystal, use only 4¹⁄
2
teaspoons of salt in the cavity, 2¹⁄
4
teaspoons of salt for each half of the breast, and 1 teaspoon of salt per leg. Table salt is too fine and is not recommended for this recipe. If serving with
GIBLET PAN GRAVY
, note that you can complete step 1 of the gravy recipe up to a day ahead, if desired. Begin step 3 once the bird has been removed from the oven and is resting on a carving board. For information on carving the turkey, see
CARVING A WHOLE ROASTED TURKEY
.
1 | (12- to 14-pound) turkey, trimmed, neck, giblets, and tailpiece removed and reserved for gravy |
5 | tablespoons kosher salt |
1 | (5-pound) bag ice cubes |
4 | tablespoons unsalted butter, melted |
3 | onions, chopped coarse |
2 | carrots, peeled and chopped coarse |
2 | celery ribs, chopped coarse |
6 | sprigs fresh thyme |
1 | cup water |
1 | recipe |
1.
Use your fingers or thin wooden spoon handle to gently loosen skin covering breast, thighs, drumsticks, and back of turkey; avoid breaking skin. Rub 2 tablespoons salt evenly inside cavity of turkey, 1 tablespoon salt under skin of each side of breast, and 1¹⁄
2
teaspoons salt under skin of each leg. Wrap turkey tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 24 hours or up to 48 hours.
2.
Remove turkey from refrigerator. Rinse off any excess salt between meat and skin and in cavity, then pat dry, inside and out, with paper towels. Add ice to two 1-gallon zipper-lock bags until each is half full. Place bags in roasting pan and lay turkey breast side down on top of ice. Add ice to two 1-quart zipper-lock bags until each is one-third full; place 1 bag of ice in large cavity of turkey and other bag in neck cavity. (Make sure that ice touches breast only, not thighs or legs.) Keep turkey on ice for 1 hour (pan should remain on counter).
3.
Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Line V-rack with heavy-duty aluminum foil, poke several holes in foil, and spray foil with vegetable oil spray.
4.
Remove turkey from ice and pat dry with paper towels (discard ice). Tuck tips of drumsticks into skin at tail to secure and tuck wings behind back. Brush turkey breast with 2 tablespoons melted butter.
5.
Set V-rack in pan, then scatter vegetables into pan and pour water over vegetable mixture. Place turkey, breast side down, on V-rack. Brush turkey with remaining 2 tablespoons melted butter.
6.
Roast turkey for 45 minutes. Remove pan from oven and reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. Using 2 large wads of paper towels, rotate turkey breast side up; continue to roast until breast registers 160 degrees and thighs register 175 degrees, 1 to 1¹⁄
2
hours longer. Transfer turkey to carving board and let rest, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Carve turkey and serve with gravy.