Thinking Thanksgiving
Hurricane Sandy affected many people in some way or another, which you either heard about or experienced firsthand - for us it involved flooding, no power and being transient for some days. Granted we didn’t have any losses in our family – luckily, but it has been turmoil to get our lives and schedules straightened out.
Last year I put a reminder in my electronic calendar to update our Thanksgiving menu which caught me by surprise as it was not on my mind for obvious reasons.
I’m opting to keep things simple this year for turkey day and will focus more on charitable work on Thanksgiving. We have a lot to be thankful for.
Turkey Tricks
I’ll prepare the turkey in two steps. These are my turkey tricks for the person whose kitchen space is spare plus the recipe is kind of fool proof guaranteeing a delicious turkey dinner. The best part perhaps is that the advance steps enable you to socialize with the rest of your friends and family around the Thanksgiving table instead of slaving away in the kitchen.
Granted a whole roasted turkey is a beautiful sight but you might not have the space in the refrigerator next to the multiple sides and desserts which will make the holiday table. This is the reason why I’m suggesting you brine skin-on turkey and to cook it off the carcass – that’s how the French say it. It means the turkey is cooked off the bone.
(perfectly pink turkey breast)
Trick one – Brine the turkey
Turkey brining does wonders to the lean bird, the process goes as follows:
Submerge turkey breasts in a water/salt mixture in the ratio of 1 quart of water to ¼ cup of kosher salt. A general rule for brining turkey is 2 ½ hours minimum per inch of turkey breast thickness. It does not mean you have to contaminate your child’s school ruler with raw turkey. You simply gauge the thickness of the breast e.g. a 2 ½ -inch thick turkey breast can be brined up to 5 hours without being too salty. When brining a turkey the microscopic cells soak up the salty water so you’ll end up with a moist and flavorful roasted turkey.
Trick two – half way submerge the turkey in an aromatic liquid
A brined turkey cooked in the following liquid assures a perfectly moist product.
The recipe is for each-10lb turkey breast.
1 cup carrots, sliced thinly
1 oz ginger, sliced thinly
1 oz rosemary, chopped
1/8 cup apple cider vinegar
10 black pepper mill grindings
1 tablespoon paprika powder
1 ½ cups of water
2 cloves garlic
10 pounds brined turkey breast(s)
- Put all ingredients into a blender cup and process for 3-4 minutes or until the mixture has a thin puree consistency.
- Put the brined turkey breast(s) skin-side-up in an oven proof baking or casserole dish. Add the vegetable/spice mixture in-between the turkey and pan or casserole.
- Cook the turkey for 1 hour 45 minutes or until the internal temperature measures at least 165. Measure the temperature with a kitchen thermometer. Another way to know the turkey is cooked is to place the turkey breast on a plate and poke it with a pointed knife at it’s thickest part, if the juices running-out are clear - instead of red it is generally cooked.
Chef’s note: 165 degrees Fahrenheit is the recommended temperature from the Department of Health. I cook my organic, pasture raised turkey at home to an internal temperature of 155 degrees Fahrenheit and let it rest in a warm place for 30 minutes.
Happy Thanksgiving and share your turkey cooking experience.
