I hate turkey.
Well, I should amend that -- I used to hate turkey. Every Thanksgiving, my mom would go through all this trouble to thaw and cook a massive bird that always turned out flavorless and dry, no matter what. ALWAYS. And we'd all smother it in gravy and choke it down because it's Thanksgiving, you know? But in reality, we couldn't wait until the leftovers would pass into the trashcan.
Last year, Dill and I took on the task of hosting Thanksgiving for my family. I strongly considered skipping the turkey altogether, but I knew my dad would never go for that (he's big on the turkey tradition). I figured, in this age of Google, I should be able to find the best way to cook a turkey. And it probably wouldn't be too hard. I mean, I got through AP Physics in high school and there's no way baking a turkey could be any more complicated than some of the labs I completed for that class.
I scoured the Internet and read everything I could about basting, not basting, brining, not brining, deep-frying, smoking ... and I was two seconds from placing an order with Honeybaked Ham when Dill located this blessed YouTube video from renowned chef Gordon Ramsey.
We watched Gordon do his thing. It didn't seem too difficult, honestly. I had been really concerned about brining the dang bird in a bucket and failing miserably. So, anything that didn't require a brine was a winner in my book. Once the video was over, we decided to proceed with Gordon's method.
You guys. YOU GUYS. First of all, butter. Lots of butter. That is a sure sign your turkey is going to be delicious beyond your wildest imagination. Second, garlic. And onions. And lemon. And parsley. And BACON. YES, BACON.
The bird smelled divine as it cooked. I had high hopes it would taste as delectable as the scent wafting on the air. Maybe, for once, I would actually LIKE turkey!
It looked picture perfect when we took it out of the oven. Once we started carving it, it became apparent it was going to be so moist and delicious. And holy cow, it really was! The butter on the outside gave the skin a crispy texture, yet the inside was perfectly supple and oh so flavorful. I couldn't wait to dig into those leftovers!
If you're still unsure about how to do your turkey and you're tired of bland, dried-out meat every Thanksgiving, give this method a try. You really won't be disappointed, I promise!
Here's the link to his site where the full recipe can be found. Bear in mind he uses English measurements for temperature -- the Fahrenheit conversion is 420 degrees for the initial roasting and 350 degrees for baking. It's also 30 minutes of baking for every 2 pounds, roughly.
Get to it!
UPDATE: I've had a few complaints the above link isn't working all the time. Try this one if you can't get the one from Gordon's site to work: http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/510522/gordon-ramsay-s-roast-turkey-with-lemon-parsley-and-garlic
You guys. YOU GUYS. First of all, butter. Lots of butter. That is a sure sign your turkey is going to be delicious beyond your wildest imagination. Second, garlic. And onions. And lemon. And parsley. And BACON. YES, BACON.
The bird smelled divine as it cooked. I had high hopes it would taste as delectable as the scent wafting on the air. Maybe, for once, I would actually LIKE turkey!
It looked picture perfect when we took it out of the oven. Once we started carving it, it became apparent it was going to be so moist and delicious. And holy cow, it really was! The butter on the outside gave the skin a crispy texture, yet the inside was perfectly supple and oh so flavorful. I couldn't wait to dig into those leftovers!
If you're still unsure about how to do your turkey and you're tired of bland, dried-out meat every Thanksgiving, give this method a try. You really won't be disappointed, I promise!
Here's the link to his site where the full recipe can be found. Bear in mind he uses English measurements for temperature -- the Fahrenheit conversion is 420 degrees for the initial roasting and 350 degrees for baking. It's also 30 minutes of baking for every 2 pounds, roughly.
Get to it!
UPDATE: I've had a few complaints the above link isn't working all the time. Try this one if you can't get the one from Gordon's site to work: http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/510522/gordon-ramsay-s-roast-turkey-with-lemon-parsley-and-garlic
You are so brave. The only thing I've done with a turkey was put it in a browning bag and hope for the best. It did turn out fine, but nothing amazing. I don't know if I have it in me to try this... I'm thinking about it.
ReplyDeleteYou should really try it! I was surprised at how easy it was. Really not bad at all and totally worth a little extra effort.
DeleteLast year we used Alton Brown's recipe. It required brining, but it worked out well, and wasn't very hard. This year I'm going to go with the America's Test Kitchen recipe (I love science based cooking shows). It once again requires brining, but maybe I'll add extra butter, because why not?
ReplyDeleteOh yes! I looked at Alton's and it was interesting. If I ever get sick of Chef Ramsay's, I'll have to try out this one. And yes, rub some butter under the skin because it is AMAZING!
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