It is September and in our house that means two things, the start of the fall season (yes even if it is 100 degrees outside) and FOOTBALL!!!! Now 10 years ago I would say that I was a sports lover. But now I have married into the BEARS cult. Just kidding. I am most definitely a Bears fan. Sorry dad. Its not just the sports but the cheering together as a family for a team and seeing the kids get excited is a great thing. Because this last Sunday was the official start of football season, I felt it was a perfect day to make my next meal. TURKEY! Now if you know my husband, you know his favorite holiday is Thanksgiving. It's weird right? Not to him. Since I met him 13 years ago he has always loved Thanksgiving. He says there is not stress about gifts and it has his 3 favorite Fs. Family, Food, and Football!!! :) He obviously has never made a turkey because the first couple of times I made a turkey, it was STRESSFUL!!!!! To date I think I have mad 3-4 turkeys and I feel like I am getting better every time. This leads us to our new cooking technique. Roasting!!!! Roasting is basically anything in you do in the oven. The oven gives you so many options with regards to food. It uses both air and radiant heat to cook the food but it usually is a slow transmission which means it usually takes longer to cook something as compared to searing, grilling and broiling. As said earlier, not all types of cooking are for everything. Roasting is good for something that is thick or irregular shape such as a baked potato or a turkey. There are two major difficulties and problems that people face with cooking in the oven or roasting. #1 How long to leave it in the oven and #2 at what temperature. The difficulty allies in getting a nice crust for flavor on the outside while making sure the inside of the item in question is cooked through. Of course without overdoing the outside layers. This is a huge problem with turkeys. Everyone has had a dry piece of turkey or a soggy piece of skin atop of a turkey. These are the two most common reasons for not wanting turkey right? Well Alton Brown as come up with a wonderful way to get crispy skin and nice juicy meat. Follow this and you will have turkey success. I have done this technique multiple times and it always turns out yummy!!!
Start with a turkey. Now you would be surprised how hard it was to find a turkey in August. That is why it took me so long to do this post. Once finding one, of course they only had HUGE 20lb ones. Great. I am going to be eating turkey forever right???? So once I got a turkey, I washed it, took out the "parts" (don't forget this. I did this once and was mortified) and dried it with a paper towel. I then took chicken stock, brown sugar, orange juice concentrate and 1 1/2 cups of Kosher salt and dissolved it over the stove. Once this cooled I placed the turkey in a cooler. (I have also used a really big paint bucket) I then poured the liquid over the turkey and then put a bunch of ice over the top. Put the top back on and went to bed!!!!! This is called a brine. The point of this salty liquid in to move more liquid into the meat proteins so after the cooking you will end up with juicier meat. Which is one of the biggest problems with turkey right. Yucky dry meat.
This is the inside of my ice chest. I promise there is a 20 lb turkey brining away in there. ;)
The next afternoon, after a day of rock climbing (honestly) I came home, removed the turkey and then rinsed and dried it with paper towels. Now I lightly oiled the turkey and then salted and peppered the skin. We all like the crispy skin right? In the past I have then placed some "aromatics" such as lemons, onions, apples, cinnamon sticks, and sage leaves but this recipe called for nothing. In the past I have also topped the skin with cayenne pepper which makes for a yummy and spicy skin. 
While working on the turkey I cranked up the oven to 500 degrees!!!!! I then placed the whole turkey into the oven and closed the door. DON'T OPEN THE DOOR NO MATTER WHAT!!! We want that high heat so we can get that crispy skin right? You will hear sizzling, cracking and popping which are all awesome sounds but don't be afraid. DONT OPEN THE DOOR FOR 30 minutes!!!!!! After 30 minutes remove the turkey and turn the oven down to 350 degrees. Look at the skin after just 30 minutes.
Now doesn't that skin look yummy and crispy. DON'T TOUCH IT!!! It is not cooked in the inside. Now we move to the low and slow portion of this turkey party. I created a triangle shaped tin foil cover for the breast of the turkey. I do not like dry turkey and this protects if from getting dried out and the skin becoming burnt. Don't forget the temperature probe in the deepest part of the breast and back in the oven until the temp reaches 161 degrees.
It took my 20lb tukey about 3 hours. :) After the turkey was at reached 161 degrees I removed the bird and placed more foil over the turkey at let it sit for 30 minutes. I wanted to ensure that the turkey stays moist and that when I cut the turkey, all the flavor and moistness (not sure if that is a word) stays in the meat and doesn't run all over the board. :) 
And here is the finished product!!! Isn't it make you want it to be Thanksgiving today!!!!
Now for the carving. At my house, I carve the turkey. Thats right, I worked my butt of the make this thing, I want the job of carving it. Not only do I do it because I worked for it but I truly believe that if you don't carve the turkey properly, all of the brining is pointless. Now I know most people start at the breast and just start shaving small pieces of the side. NO NO NO!!! Take the whole breast off of one side. Then slice it the opposite way that our fathers did it when we were kids. (Sorry dad) I am not sure why, (I am sure there is some science to it but I have already had 2 drinks tonight so I am a little tired) but trust me. It is soooooo much better. Here is what it looks like.
And the finished plate with of course.... mash potatoes. I know, no veggies but it is the first day of football which at our house is basically another holiday!!!!
So here are the keys to "roasting" a perfect bird...1. Brine!!!!!!
2. High heat first to make the skin crispy
3. Low and slow WITH a temp probe.
4. Let sit for at least 30 minutes prior to touching. (this includes taking a little bit of skin off Symon)
5. Carve correctly.
Have you ever made a turkey not during thanksgiving? After this experience and the amount of yummy turkey sandwich leftovers I have had I am planning on doing it again soon. I want to hear about your horror turkey stories so we all can learn from them!!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment