Baking Delights: Baking breads and treats for your family

Thanksgiving Preparation: Yes Really

by Marye on October 17th, 2007

I would just like to say that there is  now a mere five weeks until Thanksgiving, and nine until Christmas.  And I know that you are going to think I am even more weird than you did a minute ago but sometime this week I will be cooking the Thanksgiving turkey.  I bet you want to know why.

It is really simple, actually.   Cleaning up on Thanksgiving is awful. I hate it. One year I decided to try roasting the turkey in October to see what happened.  I was amazed.

You see, after the turkey is done you carve it up and lay it in a large baking dish, and then pour the juices over it.  Then you seal it up and freeze it. It sits in those juices for a month, you thaw it and warm it up…and the breast meat is tender and juicy, the flavor is better, the cleanup is non existent….I buy several during the holidays when the prices are around 39 cents a pound….and freeze for later  use..I just make sure to save a couple for the holidays.

I am hooked.  If you like the crispy skin on your turkey this is not going to work for you.

Thanksgiving Turkey:

1 turkey, thawed. I always suggest you get the biggest you can find.  The bigger turkeys are a better deal price wise and you can always freeze the extras for easy meals later on. I try for 25 lbs.  Make sure your oven can handle a big bird.

 Stuffing of choice. mine is traditional Midwestern Bread & Sage.  Marc like the pork filling from tourtiere used as a stuffing. Whatever you like go for it.  You can even stuff the abdominal cavity with one kind and the chest cavity with another.

Seasoning: 1/2 cup melted butter, salt, pepper, sage, and cranberry sauce.  The bought kind. In a can. Trust me.

Wash the turkey well.

Mix the salt, pepper and sage and rub the inside of the bird. Stuff loosely with the stuffing of choice, or if you are not stuffing it toss a chopped onion, 3 stalks of celery with leaves, 1 carrot, 4 cloves of garlic, and a little chipotle in the cavity for flavor.

Loosen the skin from the meat gently with your hands. Try not to break the skin.

Mix the butter (reserve at least 2 tablespoons) and 1/2 can of the cranberry sauce until smooth. Or as smooth as it gets.  Now, rub some of the melted butter mixture on your hands and rub over the meat.  Lay some raw onion rings between the skin and the meat if desired.  Use last 2 tablespoons of butter to grease the turkey.

Prepare a roasting bag according to instruction on the package.  Put the turkey in the prepared bag and put the whole thing in a large baking pan.  Seal the roasting bag with the tie provided and slash the top 4 times.

Bake at 325F  until done. About 20 minutes per pound. 6-8 hours. The leg will get very loose and probably fall off or be close to it when it is done. You will be able to move it easily.

Let turkey sit for a few minutes, no more than 15 or so because you need to get the stuffing out.   Slash the bag and empty the juice from the meat into a bowl. Set aside.

Empty the stuffing out carefully, preferably into a freezer to oven type of dish.  Pour a little of the juice over the stuffing. Seal and Cover. Label.  Freeze.

 Remove the turkey completely from the bag, if you haven’t. Carve as you normally would, laying the slices of meat into a baking dish. Cover with the remaining juice, seal, label, and freeze.

Deal with the carcass.  At this point you can roll everything that is left up in the bag and toss it.

OR

You can dump it in a big stock pot with an onion, bay leaf, carrot, full head of garlic, 1 inch piece of dried chipotle, a bunch of fresh cilantro, and salt and pepper and simmer it for 12 hours or so on low heat. A crockpot works great for this if you have one big enough.  Strain the broth from everything else, pick the pieces of meat out, and enjoy the best turkey broth in the world…ready to be made into the best turkey soup in the world..

Now…you  can look forward to enjoying the holidays with your family. Your house smells awesome, you have soup ready for dinner… Go read a book, and sip some coffee. You deserve it, you organized Holiday Diva, you.

 Make a note  for the day before Thanksgiving. Remove the turkey from the freezer and thaw in the refrigerator.  On Thanksgiving Day you can warm it in a crockpot, a microwave, or oven… which ever you find most convenient.

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POSTED IN: Inspiration, Make ahead, Tips and Techniques