Cooking Christmas Roast Turkey

Before we get started let's think about the actual bird itself. Turkey has a great flavour, slightly stronger than chicken and mildy gamey especially in the dark meat on the legs and wings. Remember this is Christmas and your main meal centrepiece so if you want a great flavour you really must go for a Free Range bird and to get a good one you will need to order in advance from a good butcher or failing that a last minute purchase at the supermarket but look for the quality birds. Organic may be healthier but in the flavour stakes it is the move to free range which makes the difference. Avoid frozen turkey like the plague! If you're Christmas dinner is a smaller party say 4 guests you might want to consider opting for a Guinea Fowl which is chicken sized but has that slightly gamey turkey flavour. Most people, especially so nowadays, seem to prefer the breast meat which is what makes turkey such a great, big family meal option. There will always be a few of us that realise the true flavour is in the dark meat and happily devour the legs and wings and give the breast a wide berth!

How big a turkey do you need? Typically 1lb/454g per person of whole bone in turkey, but as it get's bigger the meat proportion increases so take a look at the table below:

Turkey Cooking - the science

Don't be scared this is junior school science. There is a bit of a challenge cooking a whole roast bird, be it a turkey or tiny ortolan, namely this: the breast meat and the wing/leg meat are best cooked differently! So if you want perfect meat from each you need to chop your turkey up before cooking it and cook the bits separately. But that's impractical especially at Christmas and it doesn't look as impressive on the table as a whole bird. Into the science facts: The breast meat gets dry and tough if heated above 68 degrees centigrade (155 farenheit). The leg meat is chewy if cooked to less than 73 degrees centigrade (165 farenheit). Sounds like a dilemma but actually the legs and the wings are smaller than the breast and will cook to a higher temperature anyway, secondly most people prefer the breast so let's ensure the breast is the priority. If you want perfection (and remember what we said on our home page about 'perfect moment syndrome') then get a probe thermometer to check the temperature, serve when the breast is spot on and if the legs have not quite got to their needed temperature, pop them back in the oven after carving and serving. The dark meat lovers will get an after main course treat: perfectly cooked dark meat!

Turkey Cooking - The chefs tips!

Ok, enough of the science let's hear the chefs tips for cooking the bird!

• Don't overcook the turkey! - Boy this is a hard one, Nigella Lawson got slated a couple of years ago for suggesting people cook turkey's properly and not overcook them. She was right, the PC brigade will have us overcook everything to be 100% sure all bacteria are killed. Well that means producers cooking guidelines will now err on the side of complete caution therefore you have dried out turkey you can hardly swallow with little taste. Remember we have recommended a free range bird not subjected to the close confinement of factory raise birds (nor being used as a baseball - you know who we mean!) this reduces the risk considerably, so lets reduce it to zero without incinerating our turkey:
  1. Buy a probe thermometer to check internal temperatures!
  2. Buy a probe thermometer to check internal temperatures!
  3. I was going to say it again but you get the point.
  4. Cook to 160 degrees farenheit will kill salmonella instantly!
  5. Cook to 140 degrees for 5 minutes or more will kill any bacteria present!
  So, if we get to the 155 farenheit for the breast as suggested above it will have take more than 5 minutes to go from 140 to 155 and it will sit when taken out of the oven so we should be safe. If you are concerned about young children or the elderly give them the outermost slices and to be really safe chuck them in the microwave first. You have the facts and have to make your own decisions.
• Cover the turkey in streaky bacon and wrap loosely in foil until the last hour of cooking
• Baste the turkey at least once an hour until the last hour then baste every 20 minutes
• Let the turkey rest out of the oven for at least 30 minutes and up to an hour. Covered in foil it will stay hot and even continue to cook. This also allows you time to finish all the trimmings and takes that last minute preperation stress away!
• Use butter and olive oil to baste the turkey. Rub warm butter all over the bird then drizzle some olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper before covering with streaky bacon
• Use dry cured traditional bacon. Cheap modern bacon is saline injected and will leach disgusting salt water on your prize turkey!
• Cook the bird breast side down for the first half of the cooking period
• Do not stuff the bird with a meat based stuffing, cook it separately. The stuffing will take extra time to cook in the centre of the bird meaing you risk a dried out bird or potentially under cooked stuffing. If you want to add some flavour chuck in a few crushed bulbs of garlic, and/or an onion and maybe some herbs (fresh - not dried!).

Delegate the carving!

When serving, put the bird centre piece on the dining table, it will look magnificent. Delegate someone to carve who you trust and is happy and confident to do the job. Let them carve the meat with a warm holding plate while you plate up the rest of the dinner

Gravy

If you have premade your gravy (and you should!) you will be advised to try and get those extra flavours from the roasting pan. Heat on a hob with a little liquid (water or wine) and scrape everything up, add it to your gravy and blend if needed. This may well be one of the days to have pre-made your gravy and just leave those tasty bits in the pan for once as you will have a lot going on at the hob in the final stages, but if you can get them in the gravy!
More on making gravy...

Phew! That's a lot of info and there's loads more available, don't forget: you are the chef at the helm of your own oven and know it best so you will need to trust your own judgements, but don't forget that probe thermometer - seriously. I reckon I used to overcook all my food bt 5-10 degrees to err on the side of caution before getting a probe, now my meats and fish are moister and tastier.

Leftover Turkey

Leftover turkey can dry out a lot and I don't think you can beat making a Turkey curry on boxing day. The sauce offsets the dry turkey.

Finally