Step-by-step Turkey, Dressing and Gravy - from Tony’s!
Preparing a Thanksgiving feast can be a challenge, even for the most experienced cook! Here is a step-by-step plan of exactly how I plan to cook my turkey, dressing and gravy this year. Use it as a general guide or follow it step-by-step; just remember conditions vary and there is no substitution for your good judgment! You can get more turkey tips and recipes at www.TonysMarket.com. Buon Appetito Salùte! - Chef Mick Rosacci, Tony’s Meats & Specialty Foods
The night before
Brine Your Bird
For a moister and more flavorful bird, try brining your fresh turkey. Remove giblets, neck and the tail; reserving for homemade stock.
On Thanksgiving Day
1) Start Turkey
Estimate roasting time for your bird, allowing 15 minutes per pound. 1 hour before it’s time to start cooking, remove turkey from brine, rinse, drain and pat dry. Chop enough onion, carrots and celery to cover the bottom of your roasting pan. Toss with olive oil and a pinch of salt. Scatter into the bottom of your roasting pan – this will help protect pan from scorching and enhance gravy. Place roasting rack into pan and place turkey in rack. For the best turkey, roast without stuffing. This helps the turkey cook more evenly, which translates into moister breast meat. Cooking un-stuffed also allows fat to drain, rather than collecting in the dressing. To get that ‘roasted in the bird’ flavor, make a simple batch of turkey stock and use it in your dressing recipe and to drizzle over your dressing just before serving. If you want to stuff your turkey, skip ahead to the dressing recipe in section two, stuff bird and continue. Rub turkey with oil and season inside and out with Tony’s Turkey Seasoning, or salt and pepper. Note: Be stingy with salt, it tends to collect in the bottom of your roasting pan which can make your gravy too salty. Position rack in center of oven and set to 325 degrees. Place turkey in the middle of oven and close door. Roast uncovered for approximately 15 min / pound, adding 40-60 minutes for stuffed birds. If breast is browning too much, tent loosely with foil near the end of cooking time. Baste regularly with Tony’s Basting sauce or a combination of butter and low sodium stock – this has two functions, it enhances color, and the moisture helps protect the roasting pan and vegetables from scorching.
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Turkey Brine One fresh turkey, 10-16 pounds 2 cup Kosher salt 1 1/4 c. brown sugar 4 bay leaves 5 cloves garlic, crushed 18 peppercorns 6 sprigs fresh thyme Bring 2 quarts of water to boil, add salt and sugar, remove from heat and stir to dissolve. Add remaining spices and cool. Pour into a plastic bag lined 5-gallon bucket, adding 2 gallons of ice water. Place bucket of brine in refrigerator, iced cooler, or in garage below 40 degrees (but not freezing). Submerge turkey into cold brine, adding more water if needed. Leave in brine for 8-10 hours. Rinse, pat dry, season and roast as usual.
Courtesy of Tonys Meats & Specialty Foods
E Dry Creek Road W Mineral Ave W Bowles Ave Catering & Gift Baskets
Tony’s - Feeding Denver well since 1978
Recipes, tips and e-newsletter @
www.TonysMarket.com
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Step-by-step Turkey, Dressing and Gravy - from Tony’s!
2) Start Stock and Dressing
Begin by chopping a total of 8 cups of carrots, onions and celery; set these aside for your dressing. Save the ends of the carrot, celery and onions for your stock. Here is the recipe. Homemade Turkey Stock 1 stick butter Turkey neck, tail & giblets 3-4 cups celery, carrots and onions, rough chop 5 ea fresh thyme & parsley sprigs 2 bay leaves 6 whole cloves 12 peppercorns 1/2 tsp salt Directions: As soon as the turkey is in the oven, set a large stockpot over medium-high heat and melt butter. Add the turkey neck and tail, along with the chopped heart and gizzard - cook to brown. Discard liver or sauté for the cook (or the family pet). Add carrots, onion and celery. Sauté and stir to loosen brown bits in pan. Add 16 cups water and remaining ingredients, bring to a boil and reduce to medium. Simmer uncovered until the liquid is reduced to about one-third its original volume and the taste is rich, about 3 hours. Adjust as desired but do not over salt! Strain into a measuring cup, pressing on the solids to extract all the liquid. Discard solids and skim fats. Yields approximately 4 cups.
Turkey Dressing
Now that your turkey is cooking and your stock is simmering it’s time to clean and sanitize the kitchen. Fill a sink with hot soapy water and add 1 cap full of chlorine bleach – no more! Allow all turkey contact surfaces one full minute contact in sanitizing solution (towels, knives, cutting boards, countertop, even the faucet, telephone and any cupboard handles you may have touched) Wash and rinse well, drop all the towels in the laundry. Now it’s time to proceed with your dressing. Recipe follows.
The Ultimate Turkey Dressing 1 pound loaf of bread (ciabatta or Challah pref) 1 pound bulk pork breakfast sausage 1 stick butter (8 TBS) 8 cups chopped medley of celery, carrots and onion 4-8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced 2 cups roasted pecans, chopped 1 large apple, chopped 1 cup dried apricots, chopped 1 cup dried cranberries 1 TBS rubbed sage 2 tsp dried marjoram 1 tsp dry or 1 TBS fresh thyme 1 tsp salt, separated 1/8 tsp freshly ground nutmeg 4 eggs, lightly beaten 1.5 cups turkey (or chicken) stock plus extra stock for serving.
Directions: Cut bread into 1/2-inch cubes and toast lightly under broiler. Place in a large bowl. Brown sausage in a large skillet, remove with a slotted spoon and add to bread. Melt butter along with sausage drippings in the same skillet, adding 8 cups veggie medley along with 1/2 tsp salt and sauté for 15 minutes. Add to bread along with sliced mushrooms, pecans, fruit and seasonings and toss to combine. Stir eggs in well, and then stir in stock. Place dressing into two large buttered casserole dishes and roast along with your turkey during the last 45–60 minutes (cover for moister dressing, dot with butter and cook uncovered for crispier dressing). Or stuff gently into turkey and place remaining dressing in a casserole to roast on the side. To get that ‘roasted in the bird flavor’, douse dressing with homemade turkey stock just before serving. * Dressing Notes: This recipe makes a lot of dressing and your oven may be full – if so, squeeze one pan in with your turkey and refrigerate the other pan, roasting it after your turkey comes out of the oven. If it just won’t fit, place dressing in smaller pans and warm gently with medium heat in your microwave just before your turkey comes out of the oven. Once the turkey is out, roast smaller pans of dressing a hot 375degree oven while your turkey rests and is being carved. Dressing is done at 160 degrees internal.
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Step-by-step Turkey, Dressing and Gravy - from Tony’s!
Finishing your Turkey As your turkey nears it’s estimated cooking time, start taking temperature readings in the deepest part of the thigh. Note: quick read thermometers have a plastic lens that will melt, do not roast them in the oven. Your turkey is fully cooked when the temperature in the thigh is 180 degrees and the stuffing (if used) is 165 degrees. Remove turkey from oven; draining drippings from the body cavity into your roasting pan and transfer bird to a serving platter. Cover well with aluminum foil and rest 15-20 minutes before carving. Resting allows carryover cooking to settle juices naturally, making for a juicier bird. Note: the meat may have a slightly pink hue but the juices will run clear. With the turkey resting, you can use your oven for any final heating and start your gravy.
4) Make your gravy
Now that the turkey is out of the oven and resting, it’s time to make your gravy. This is a good time to ask for volunteers to give you a hand putting the final touch on your side dishes, setting the table, heating the rolls and helping with a little clean up. Gravy recipe follows.
Classic Turkey Gravy Pan drippings from roasted turkey Madeira Wine (or dry white wine) low sodium Turkey or Chicken Stock Milk and flour slurry Strain pan drippings into a measuring cup, pressing to release all of the juice, when fats rise, remove with a bulb baster. Place roasting pan directly over two burners with a medium flame. Immediately add a hearty splash of Madeira or wine (up to one cup for a large turkey) simmer and loosen brown bits from the pan with a spatula. Strain wine and pan drippings into a saucepan, adding your defatted drippings and homemade stock - to taste (usually 2-4 cups depending on stock and drippings). Bring to a simmer. Allow 1 to 1.5 TBS flour for every cup of liquid. Whisk flour into 1 cup cold milk, removing all lumps. Slowly whisk 1/2 cup hot stock into milk slurry, then slowly whisk slurry into simmering stock. Simmer to thicken, stirring regularly. Taste, adjust, strain if desired, and serve hot. Note: To produce a full-flavored gravy, it is critical not to burn the drippings in the roasting pan. Avoid this by using a heavy roasting pan in the middle of your oven. Line the pan with minced carrots, onions and celery and baste turkey regularly with a blend of 1 part butter and 3 parts stock.
Supper’s ready! Buon Appetito – Salùte! Chef Mick Rosacci, Tony’s Meats and Specialty Foods
Tony’s - Feeding Denver well since 1978
Recipes, tips and e-newsletter @
www.TonysMarket.com
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