Christmas or Anytime Turkey
Christmas or Anytime Turkey
4 hours
10 Serves
We can't go past this roast turkey recipe perfect for Christmas day or a family feast.
Credit source: Tobie Puttock's Daily Italian.
Ingredients
- 1 large onion, sliced
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 2 good splashes of olive oil
- 1 good splash of balsamic vinegar
- 400g ciabatta in bite sized pieces
- 100g minced pork
- 1 apple, grated
- Small handful dried apricots, roughly chopped
- 10 dired prunes, soaked in warm water, stoned and chopped
- A good pinch of nutmeg and cinnamon
- 80g prosciutto, chopped
- 8 sage leaves, finely sliced
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- A splash of brandy
- Sea salt
- Sea salt & black pepper
- 1 x 4kg turkey, boned and butterflied
- 1\/4 cup fine-grained salt
- 6 slices of bacon
- 4 large potatoes, each chopped into 6 pieces
- 1 cup white wine
- 1 cup chicken stock
Method
- Preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius. Put the onion, garlic and splash olive oil in a frying pan and saute over low heat without colouring the vegetables. Once the onion starts to soften, add the balsamic vinegar and allow it to almost evaporate before taking pan off the heat.
- To make the stuffing, place the onion and balsamic mixture into a bowl, along with the bread, minced pork, apricots, prunes, nutmeg, cinnamon, prosciutto, sage, egg and brandy. Give it a good mix and season with salt and pepper.
- Lay your boned turkey out on a clean bench or a big chopping board. Mould the stuffing into a cylinder shape and place it in the middle of the bird. Bring the sides of the bird together around the stuffing, so that the bird resembles its original shape. Secure with string and rub the flesh with salt to help the skin to crisp. Finally, drape the bacon slices over the bird.
- Splash some olive oil into large baking dish and scatter the potatoes around the base. Place turkey on the potatoes, pour in white wine and stock, and put the tray in the oven. The potatoes serve as a bed to rest the turkey on - they won't be suitable for eating.
- Cook for 3 hours. Baste the bird as often as possible with the juices from the tray. If you find the skin has browned too quickly, cover it with foil to prevent burning. Remove bacon after about 1 hour.
- Remove the turkey from oven and allow to stand for 10 minutes. Slice using serrated knife. Serve immediately with a Salsa Dragoncella or Salsa Verde or good old-fashioned gravy, as well as an assortment of roast vegetables.