Good day, dear friends and readers of my blog! Well, the long-awaited spring has come. Summer is just around the corner, and therefore, dietary food is now especially relevant. So is turkey meat. A large number of different, delicious dishes can be prepared from it. So, the topic of our article today: delicious turkey marinade and recipes.
According to nutritionists, such meat is very useful and easily absorbed by the body. For those looking to lose weight, low calorie turkey is the best option. There are only 114 kcal in turkey meat, 23.7 grams of protein, 1.5 grams of fat. In addition to being a valuable source of protein, it contains the following nutrients:
- B vitamins including niacin and pyridoxine. Niacin aids in digestion and the conversion of food into energy. And vitamin B6 is essential for the development of the baby's brain during pregnancy, maintaining immunity and metabolism.
- Selenium, which plays an important role in the metabolism of thyroid hormones and acts as an antioxidant. If you eat 100 grams of meat, you get 40% of the daily value.
- Phosphorus - This mineral is used in the building of healthy bones and teeth. In turkey meat, about 25% of the recommended rate per day.
Turkey thigh baked in orange marinade
Believe me, it is very tasty and aromatic. I hadn't worked with orange before, but now I began to add it to poultry meat.
Take the following ingredients:
- 1 kg turkey thighs;
- orange juice and its zest (can be replaced with lemon);
- 120 ml sour cream or yogurt;
- 1 teaspoon of mustard;
- small head of garlic
- 50 g butter (chilled);
- 50 ml olive oil;
- some thyme and rosemary;
- salt and spices to taste (e.g. black pepper and some chili).
Wash and dry turkey thighs. Make a shallow cut along the thigh bone. Rub with salt and pepper. Grind the spices (you can do this in a mortar). And mix thoroughly with orange juice, olive oil and mustard. Rub the turkey meat with the resulting marinade. We put hermetically in a bag and in the refrigerator. We forget about it for at least an hour, ideally 4-5 hours.
Then, we get rid of the package. We make punctures in the thigh with a knife and coat with sour cream or yogurt. We make the cuts so that the turkey is well saturated with the marinade. If this is not done, the fibrous structure of the bird will not be saturated from the inside.
We push small pieces of cold oil into the incisions. This will give the meat even more juiciness. Put the meat in the roasting sleeve. I used to make such dishes in foil, but now I like the sleeve more 🙂 We put it there too: rosemary, zest, thyme and garlic. I wanted to add some vegetables, and I put in eggplant and yellow bell peppers.
Close the sleeve and send to a preheated oven at 200 ° C. After 20 minutes, reduce the temperature to 160 ° C. Bake for another 35-50 minutes, depending on the size of the thigh. Open the sleeve ten minutes before readiness: for a golden brown crust.
As a side dish, anything you like can be: mashed potatoes, boiled potatoes, rice, baked vegetables. I just had boiled potatoes. Prepare to be patient to wait for the finished dish - during the entire bake. A divine aroma is carried through the house 🙂
Marinate turkey fillet for barbecue
If it's cold outside, but you really want to cook kebabs, make them at home. By the way, we will not add salt to this marinade. Add soy sauce instead. For a kilo fillet, you will need the following ingredients:
- large head of onions;
- 5 cloves of garlic;
- 2 tablespoons vinegar 9%;
- 100 ml of water;
- 1 tbsp smoked smoke;
- 3 tbsp soy sauce.
First of all, cut the meat into equal pieces, put in a saucepan. Grate the onion on a coarse grater. So the juice will stand out much more than if chopped. Send onion and minced garlic to the meat.
Dilute the vinegar with water, pour it over the turkey. We leave for 30 minutes. Add a spoonful of liquid smoke and soy sauce as it is marinated. Leave it on for another half hour.
String 3-4 pieces of meat on each skewer. Heat the oil and place the skewers in the skillet. As it turns brown, turn over to the other side.
If you are kebabbing outdoors, make a pickled onion salad. Take 1.5 large onion heads, chop into half rings. Put in a deep bowl, add salt and remember well with your hands. Then chop the green onion and add to the onion. Mix well with a spoon. From spices, add another 1 tablespoon of sugar and vinegar 9%. While the kebab is being prepared, the salad is marinated. Add some olive oil before serving.
Fillet on kefir with mint for the oven
This recipe, I found on one culinary forum. The girls praised it very much and it turned out not in vain. I slightly changed the composition to suit my taste, it turned out incredibly tasty!
Required Ingredients:
- 300-400 g turkey fillet;
- 250 ml of kefir (2.5% fat);
- lemon;
- a small handful of fresh chopped mint;
- salt.
Divide the turkey fillet into four parts, beat off a little and salt. Squeeze the juice from the lemon and remove the zest. Mix the juice, zest, mint and kefir. Spread the fillet liberally with this marinade and leave in the refrigerator for several hours.
Place in a baking dish and pour over the remaining marinade. Place in an oven preheated to 180 ° C for 40 minutes. The fillet turns out to be very tender, and the mint adds piquancy. Enjoy your meal!
Grilled turkey fillet
This marinating option is useful if you have a grill pan. For one fillet weighing 400 grams, you will need the following ingredients:
- half lemon
- 3 tbsp olive oil (or sunflower);
- 2-3 cloves of garlic;
- ¼ tsp cumin;
- ¼ tsp dry oregano;
- salt (or 2 tablespoons of soy sauce);
- pepper to taste.
The meat will be marinated for only 2 hours. First remove the tendons and cut the fillets into grill portions. Then beat each serving lightly. In a deep bowl, combine the marinade with the juice of half a lemon, minced garlic, oregano, cumin, and salt and pepper. Place the fillet pieces in the marinade and leave in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.
Set the heat to medium and preheat the grill pan. No additional oil is needed, because it is in the marinade. Lay out the steaks. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side. Although look at the appearance of the meat, what is the degree of roasting.
New Year's drumstick with soy sauce
Very soft and juicy legs. Will decorate any festive table!
For 2 turkey drumsticks you will need:
- 130 ml soy sauce;
- 1 liter of white wine (the simplest possible);
- 1 small head of garlic;
- red pepper or adjika - to taste;
- salt and allspice to taste.
Wash and dry the turkey drumsticks. Make punctures over the entire surface. Coat with garlic passed through a garlic press (try to get it into the holes).
Heat the wine (do not bring to a boil). Add half of the cooked norm: peppercorns, adjika, salt, soy sauce 130 ml. Cool down.
Soak the turkey in the resulting mixture for 6-10 hours, leave in the refrigerator. The longer the better. To reduce the consumption of wine, you can put the drumsticks in a bag, pour marinade and tie. Turn over periodically.
After the time has elapsed, remove from the marinade and rub with the remaining salt, adjika, pepper. Bake in an oven preheated to 200ËšC for about an hour. We check the readiness as follows: if, when punctured (with a knife, fork), clear juice is released, then it is ready. Turn once while baking: for a golden brown crust on both sides.
Chest in the sleeve
The recipe, although it seems complicated, is simple to prepare. Any hostess can handle it! For a 1 kg breast, you need the following ingredients:
- 2-3 st. l. olive oil;
- 1 PC. onions (chopped);
- 2 tbsp. l. balsamic vinegar;
- 2 p. Art. cream 30% fat;
- 1 tsp salt;
- pepper, dry garlic, chili - to taste;
- 1 tbsp. l. dry spices (for example, "Italian herbs");
- bouillon cube;
- 300 ml of water;
- 1 tbsp. l. potato starch.
We wash the turkey, dry it with a paper towel or napkin. Mix in a container: olive oil, herbs, salt, pepper, chili, garlic and chopped onion. We coat the breast well with the resulting mixture.
Put it in the sleeve, fill it with a bouillon cube dissolved in water. Tie the sleeve and make a couple of small punctures. We send it to an oven preheated to 180ËšC for 50 minutes.
After removing the turkey from the sleeve, strain the broth. Add balsamic vinegar, cream and starch to it. A very tasty addition will learn. Serve the breast with the vegetable cooked cream sauce. Delight!
From the point of view of meat cuisine, turkey is synonymous with the words "benefits" and "health". Its meat - contains a minimum of fat, has a low calorie content, ideal for a diet of therapeutic diets and voluntary weight loss. However, extreme usefulness does not mean a complete lack of taste, as is often the case with other valuable products for the human body.
Turkey meat is often prepared in a variety of ways: boiled, stewed, fried, grilled. In some countries of the world (USA, Canada), turkey stuffed and baked in the oven is an indispensable attribute of the Christmas table.
Turkey is especially good when roasted or roasted. Before that, it is usually marinated using a mixture of various ingredients. The marinade for turkey gives the meat excellent aromas, helps to form an appetizing crust on its surface, and additionally softens its fibers.
Thanksgiving
Mixing a suitable pickling brine begins, for example, the proper preparation of one of America's most important culinary symbols, the Christmas turkey.
The festive bird is most often stuffed, sometimes not, in order to quickly prepare and serve the dish to the table.
Turkey can be any garnish, and the sauce is almost always berry, lingonberry or cranberry
For the brine you will need:
- water;
- sea \u200b\u200bsalt;
- garlic;
- a small chilli pod;
- black peppercorns;
- bay leaf;
- dill seeds.
The first step in working with the brine is to determine the required amount of water. To do this, you need to place the turkey carcass in a spacious saucepan and fill it completely with water. Then drain the liquid, along the way measuring its volume.
Next, fill the pan with a measured amount of water. Chop and add here two cloves of garlic, a chili pepper pod, a tablespoon each of white and black peppercorns, one teaspoon of dill seeds, a couple of bay leaves. Pour in sea salt in the proportion - one tablespoon per liter of water. Bring the brine to a boil, cook for no more than 5 minutes.
Then remove the pickled turkey from the brine, dry thoroughly on all sides with paper napkins or towels. Now you can start stuffing poultry, stuffing with layers of cold oil and other procedures.
For frying in a pan
Turkey breast steaks combined with aromatic spices are a great option for a hearty and delicious dinner.
You will need:
- sweet paprika;
- curry powder;
- ground red pepper;
- freshly crushed black pepper;
- salt.
For the marinade, mix a teaspoon of all the spices. This amount is enough for a turkey fillet weighing just over one kilogram.
Cut the turkey breasts into 2 cm thick steaks. Grate them thoroughly on each side with the prepared mixture. Cover the meat in the dish with cling film.
Marinate for at least 15 minutes. Then you can start frying steaks.
Olive-soy
The aroma blend works well for grilled turkey.
The meat will turn out to be unusually juicy and tasty.
You will need (for four steaks):
- a quarter glass of olive oil;
- a quarter cup of soy sauce;
- dried basil, thyme, marjoram;
- black peppercorns;
- salt.
Combine soy sauce, olive oil, salt in a separate bowl. Crush the peppercorns, add half a teaspoon of dry herbs. Mix everything thoroughly.
Dip the poultry steaks into the bowl with the mixture, cover and marinate for up to six hours in the refrigerator. Turn meat occasionally to marinate evenly. Then you can start to reheat the grill for frying.
For turkey kebab
From the meat of this poultry, everyone's favorite kebab is also good. It is best combined with grilled vegetables - bell peppers, zucchini and eggplant - as well as mushrooms.
For marinating turkey skewers, you can use a complex mixture of lime juice, honey, olive oil and dried spices
You will need:
- a quarter glass of lime juice;
- 60 ml olive oil;
- 15 ml of honey;
- garlic clove;
- several arrows of green onions;
- dry mustard powder;
- oregano;
- hot red pepper;
- freshly crushed black pepper;
- salt.
This marinade recipe involves mixing all the ingredients until smooth. At the same time, the garlic must be chopped, the onion arrows, cut into rather large fragments, crush with a pestle from a mortar. Add each of the spices literally a pinch.
Place the turkey fillet cubes (about 3 cm side) in a container with marinade. Mix thoroughly and keep in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours. Then you can skewer the meat.
Georgian marinade mix
Turkeys have always been appreciated in Georgia. It is customary to feed the bird there for the New Year's table for the satsivi dish, which is mandatory in these parts. Other options for its use are khinkali with the appropriate filling or the original turkey fillet shashlik cooked on skewers.
You will need:
- 40 ml of olive oil per half a kilogram of meat;
- 15 ml lemon juice;
- ground Imeretian saffron;
- freshly crushed black pepper;
- salt.
The marinade is prepared as follows: in a separate bowl, mix lemon juice, olive oil, a couple of pinches of chopped Imeretian saffron. Crush a few black peppercorns.
Dice pieces of meat (side - 3 cm), mix with the marinade, cover with cling film, put in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.
During this time, soak the wooden skewers, and then start forming the kebabs.
Garlic and honey
Another proven marinade recipe for turkey skewers. Pieces of poultry on skewers should be harmoniously combined with slices of ripe pineapple and cherry tomatoes.
You will need (for a pair of turkey breasts):
- 60 ml of liquid honey;
- the same amount of olive oil;
- 30 ml lemon juice;
- lemon zest;
- sweet mustard;
- garlic;
- freshly crushed black pepper;
- salt.
First you need to do the garlic and crush a couple of cloves with a press. Remove the zest from one lemon with a grater, squeeze its juice. Then mix honey with olive oil, lemon juice. Add a couple of tablespoons of sweet mustard, crush a few black peppercorns, season with salt.
Pieces of poultry meat, previously chopped into cubes, pour the prepared mixture. Leave in the refrigerator for at least one hour. Next, you should start putting the kebab on wooden skewers or metal skewers.
The meat will turn out not only tasty, but it will also look very impressive.
Indian recipe
The best poultry cooks are Hindus. They make the most delicious marinade. Not only do they value chicken and other poultry most of all of all types of meat, they also cook so excellently that their recipes are copied by chefs from around the world.
One of the most delicious marinades for poultry is a mixture of natural yogurt or kefir with traditional Indian seasonings.
You will need:
- a glass of thick unsweetened yogurt (or kefir);
- ginger root;
- garlic;
- vegetable oil;
- lemon;
- zira, coriander;
- peas of white pepper;
- hot chili flakes;
- cardamom;
- turmeric;
- salt.
The first step is to heat the spices in a skillet. Take a couple of cardamom pods, remove the seeds and place in a heated, dry (!) Frying pan. Send there a teaspoon of white peppercorns, coriander seeds and cumin. Heat until a distinct spice aroma appears. Transfer the spices to the mortar. Add a pinch of ground turmeric, flaked chili peppers. Grind thoroughly to powder.
Peel 3–4 centimeters of fresh ginger root, then chop. Crush a couple of garlic cloves through a press.
Finally, mix the yogurt with ginger, garlic, all the spices, squeeze out a little lemon juice. To stir thoroughly.
Immerse pieces of turkey in a container with yoghurt (kefir) marinade. Keep in the refrigerator for a long time - at least 8 hours
Prepare wooden skewers, soak them in cool water. Skewer the marinated meat and start cooking.
In addition to these marinade recipes, there are many other great combinations. It is important not to be afraid of experiments and boldly create, good: cooking allows it.
Turkey meat is not only a dietary product, but also a source of protein and many useful substances. It is often served as a festive dish, in order to enjoy an incredibly tasty and juicy delicacy and there was no disappointment in the recipe, you need to know a few tricks of the chefs of the best restaurants - from the right choice of fresh carcass to its preliminary marinade.
Baked turkey with a golden crispy crust will decorate any table, both festive and everyday. As a symbol of Thanksgiving and Christmas, this bird, at least once, was on the table in every home. Freshly selected meat and minor culinary skills are the key to preparing not only delicious, but also healthy dishes.
The history of the turkey dates back to the time of the ancient Aztecs, who were the first to tame this unusual bird. But it is quite thermophilic, so not every country has the opportunity to grow it. Many regions of Russia are quite cool and local farmers are reluctant to take up turkey breeding.
Lean meat is a dietary product. Its value lies in the presence of a large amount of proteins, vitamins and other nutrients. Since turkey is difficult to grow in the climatic conditions of Russia, it is often necessary to use an imported product.
Everyone knows that fresh high-quality meat retains its properties for no more than two days, and if transported over long distances, there is a possibility of acquiring a low-quality and hazardous product. That is why it is necessary to carefully choose the carcass for cooking.
Turkey selection: what to look for
Among the many recipes, we often forget about the most important thing - to choose the right ingredients. To get a quality product and protect yourself and your family, it is worth remembering the basic rules regarding the choice of a turkey carcass:
- Where to buy, in the market or in the store? Experienced chefs unanimously choose the market. Many will say that it is unsafe and unhygienic, but very often the quality and freshness of the market product exceeds the industrial one. Also, sellers in supermarkets often resort to various methods of increasing the weight of meat and improving its appearance, using various chemical additives. The same can be encountered in the market, but the probability is much lower.
- If you are a non-vegetarian and eat meat regularly, it is a good idea to get a personal salesperson. When visiting the market, you can easily choose a butcher you like with a good product. Easy communication and regular visits will do the trick: over time, the seller will remember you and will offer the best and freshest, and possibly provide home delivery.
- When choosing a turkey, you should pay attention to the weight and size of the bird. Adults can reach 30 kg, but young birds weighing up to 10 kg have the most delicious and tender meat.
- Carcass skin must be clean and free of feathers. A faded pink or slightly reddish color is a sign of good fresh produce. There should be no stains or damage on the surface. If the bird has a head, pay attention to the scallop, it should be light, and the legs should be smooth and gray.
- It is very important to be able to choose by smell. Quality can be easily determined through the sense of smell. The smell should be pleasant and make you want to eat a juicy, cooked piece of meat. The cleaned abdominal cavity should also be free of extraneous musty aromas. The surest way to test the freshness is to sniff "from the inside" by piercing the breast with a heated knife, but neither the market nor the store will allow you to do this.
- Check the firmness of the carcass. It should not be flabby, but rather dense and taut. The fresher it is, the more it keeps its shape. Bend your index finger and press down on the breast with the cartilage, making a shallow dent. Within 60 seconds, the muscle should be completely aligned and the pressure marks should disappear. If the dent remains, then this meat is more than two days old.
- When buying a frozen turkey, you should knock on it - a dull sound (like a stone) indicates that the carcass is frozen correctly and completely. If this is a part of a bird, then the cut should be even and becomes bright when touched with a finger. It is important to properly defrost the carcass, this must be done as long as possible (for example, in the refrigerator). Although it will take more than a day, the meat will retain its quality and benefits.
- When purchasing a fresh cut, pay attention to the cut: its color should not differ much from the outside, and the meat should be slightly moist to the touch.
- Take a close look at the fat: it is white in industrial poultry, and yellow in domestic poultry. This is due to the difference in feed. But a darker color also indicates the age of the animal: the older, the more yellow.
As you know, these birds begin to lay eggs in early spring. Thus, chicks hatch from May to June. The term for rearing to young individuals takes from 20 to 26 weeks (5-6 months). That is why the period of active clogging falls on October-December. During these months, you can be sure that you are buying a young quality carcass.
Wild turkey
On the territory of Russia, it was not possible to acclimatize the wild turkey, which could become an excellent resource for hunting.
- A wild turkey is several times smaller than an industrial one, an adult individual reaches no more than 6 kg in weight;
- The bird looks thin compared to the domestic one, and its pectoral muscles are very poorly developed.
Turkey storage rules: how to keep meat fresh before cooking
An important factor in the preparation of a festive dish is the correct storage of meat:
- The shelf life of the carcass is no more than two days, so you need to pay attention to the label and the tightness of the package;
- On the market, you should not buy a product that lies in the sun. The carcass must be chilled and show all signs of freshness;
- Due to its short shelf life, it is advisable to buy meat just before cooking. But if this is not possible, then you can store the carcass in the refrigerator for up to 5-7 days, after removing excess moisture with a napkin and wrapping it in foil;
- Frozen turkey is suitable for consumption for 12 months if stored at temperatures below -20 degrees;
- Smoked poultry can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 30 days and has a particularly pleasant taste.
Such simple storage tips will eliminate the possibility of meat spoilage and preserve the quality, taste and benefits of the product.
Choosing a marinade and preparing the turkey for cooking
Before cooking a turkey, many treat it like meat: marinate it in onions and their own juice or pour it with spiced water, but this is not correct. Soaking poultry in brine is an important cooking step. Should I carry out this procedure? You can do without this and go directly to baking, but the meat soaked in saline will turn out to be more juicy and tender.
How to cook a juicy turkey
The familiar pickle for canning vegetables differs from the one needed for cooking meat, and the processes are different. When a turkey is soaked, the presence of salt causes the fibers and cells to be filled with liquid (diffusion), and then denaturation (unwinding) of the proteins occurs, which prevents moisture from returning and adds juiciness to the bird.
Pickling in brine takes a long time, so you need to do this in advance (for example, soak in the evening for cooking the next day).
In order to marinate a turkey you will need:
- Poultry carcass;
- Large capacity (bucket or basin);
- Water;
- Salt;
- Sugar and black allspice peas (optional).
For 1 liter of liquid, use a quarter cup of salt, a tablespoon of black pepper, 100 grams of granulated sugar. After dissolving all the ingredients in cold water, pour the turkey with the prepared brine. The duration of marinating depends on the weight of the bird: for each kilogram of meat, 2 hours of time are needed. Thus, if the weight is 10 kg, it should be soaked for almost a day.
Before cooking the turkey in the oven, rinse the surface of the deposited salt. After this procedure, muscle fibers retain a large amount of moisture, even during thermal treatment. But if the dish is burnt, then it is unlikely to be saved.
How to cook a soft turkey
The recipe for soft meat is quite simple: just beat it off and it becomes much softer. But these are not all methods, since this method is not suitable for a whole piece of meat, legs or wings. For lovers of soft meat, it is recommended to add one of the following ingredients to the marinade:
- dry white wine;
- lemon juice or acid;
- apple cider vinegar;
- crushed cranberries or currants;
- apple juice.
There are a lot of recipes for what can be made from turkey, the most important thing is not to overdo it with ingredients.
Turkey is a unique product. It can be cooked in parts: stew, boil, fry; make minced meat for cutlets or filling for baking from tender fillet, and bake the whole carcass in the oven and smoke.
Many people wonder how to cook turkey fillets. The best method is charcoal cooking. The cut turkey is grilled like any other poultry. Also, the bird can be cooked: when digested, a low-fat, but very tasty dietary broth is obtained. It is also used for making jellied meat and aspic. Often housewives are faced with the question: how to cook turkey fillets deliciously, the meat turns out to be dry and loses its taste despite the fatty and tasty broth. The secret is simple: soak it in salt brine and beat off the fillet a little.
This bird is a symbol of Thanksgiving, there are many recipes for how to cook an entire turkey in the oven, but one of the best is baking with prunes. It is customary to accompany the dish with fried or baked potatoes and cranberry sweet and sour sauce, and of course dessert:
How to diversify the taste and aroma of meat
Any part of the turkey can be cooked according to the recipes indicated, adding or changing the ingredients to your taste. Poultry can be baked in whole or in parts. When cooking the wings and thighs, you should soak them for at least four hours, and it is better to keep the fillets in the solution for a day. To diversify the taste and aroma, you can experiment with these ingredients:
- add apple juice, cider or vinegar, dark or light beer to the marinade (30% of the water is replaced by the drink);
- rub with dried herbs and spices before baking (sage, oregano, thyme, basil, cloves, cinnamon);
- add ground black pepper inside the carcass;
- rub with grated garlic for spiciness or stuff with cloves for flavor;
- stuff the carcass or fillet with lemon, lime and orange slices;
- granular, brown sugar, or maple syrup.
Don't limit yourself to experimenting with fragrances. Add whatever herbs and spices you like and use for other meat dishes. Please note that sweet ingredients such as honey, sugar, syrup can absorb the salinity of the solution, so the meat will have to be salted before baking or during cutting. You can also increase the amount of salt added when preparing the marinade.
The most popular turkey dish is baking in the oven, but you can cook it deliciously in a skillet or multicooker. Many housewives prefer to use a sleeve or foil to preserve juiciness, but if you have previously marinated the carcass in brine, then you should not worry about the dryness of the meat, the dish will turn out to be very tasty.
Most baking recipes differ only in ingredients. You can cook a turkey with vegetables, spices and fruits to give the meat a special flavor and extraordinary flavor.
Due to its large size, it is very popular to stuff the carcass with liver, rice, mushrooms, dried fruits, nuts and many other ingredients for every taste.
It is best to cook the turkey in foil so that it does not burn. The process consists of the following steps:
- If you've marinated turkey, rinse and dry with paper towels;
- Mix your favorite spices with a small amount of olive oil and rub the carcass inside and out (you don't need to add salt after the brine), thanks to this, a crisp crust forms during the cooking process;
- Find out the exact weight of the bird. If there is no filling, then the dish will cook faster, the required time will be 13 minutes for every 0.45 kg of weight. If the turkey is stuffed and sewn up - 18 minutes;
- Preheat the oven to 230 degrees Celsius, and before cooking, reset the heat to 180-190;
- You must use the bottom third of the oven;
- Place the turkey breast side down on a baking sheet and pour in a little water or stock to avoid burning, send to the oven;
- During cooking, check the dish two or three times, turn it over and pour the fat that has dripped onto the baking sheet;
- Finally, you need to check the readiness of the meat. You can pierce the old way with a special villa or use a special kitchen thermometer.
It is necessary to measure the temperature of the bird in three places: on the breast, in the inner side of the thigh and the outer, it should be 75 degrees. If in some place below, cook for another 20 minutes, and cover the rest of the poultry with foil to prevent drying out.
Another surefire way to check readiness is to break off a leg, if you managed to do this easily, then the bird is completely ready. After cooking, do not rush to serve the dish to the table: take out the baking sheet and place the turkey on a cutting board, cover with foil and leave for half an hour.
For an unforgettable aroma, place a few cloves of garlic and a sliced \u200b\u200blemon inside the turkey before cooking. An exquisite dish with a crispy crust will not leave any guest indifferent, and you can feed up to 15 people with one bird.
The following drinks are perfect for baked meat and poultry:
How to cook a turkey video
Outcome
The secret to making a delicious and juicy turkey is not only good culinary skills, but also the ability to choose the foods. The freshness and quality of the meat will guarantee you an unforgettable holiday meal. Enjoy your meal!
Slightly forgotten in times of total scarcity, turkey again more and more often becomes the main dish of a good festive table, and in our usual daily menu turkey dishes are again beginning to take their rightful place. Indeed, despite the fact that thanks to American cinema today turkey is most often associated with the American holiday Thanksgiving, this tasty bird was known in Russia long before the appearance of American films. Already at the beginning of the 13th century, a variety of recipes for the preparation of "Indian chicken" appeared in Russian cookbooks. Even today, juicy, soft, fragrant roasted turkey becomes a real source of pride for the hostess who managed to cook it. But, unfortunately, expectations do not always correspond to the reality in which an improperly cooked turkey turns out to be dry and tasteless. To save you from unnecessary troubles and disappointments, today we invite you to figure out and remember how to cook a soft and juicy turkey with us.
A well-cooked turkey is not only delicious and flavorful, but also very healthy. No wonder the meat of this bird is considered one of the most dietary among all meat products. The low fat content, and therefore the very low cholesterol content, makes turkey an indispensable food for those on a weight loss diet. In addition, the protein of turkey meat is absorbed much better than the protein of chicken and even rabbit meat, which means that the turkey saturates much faster. Of course, turkey meat is an excellent source of many micronutrients. Among them, almost all B vitamins, vitamins A, E and K, sodium, magnesium, phosphorus, etc. But more importantly, turkey meat is hypoallergenic, which means it is perfect for baby food, and for feeding pregnant and nursing mothers. and even for the nutrition of patients undergoing chemotherapy or radiotherapy.
However, you and I are much more interested in the culinary qualities of this delicious bird. A wide variety of dishes are prepared from turkey. It is fried and baked, boiled and stewed, turkey is cooked in batter and deep-fried; turkey makes excellent kebabs and grilled dishes. And yet the main, most widespread and favorite way of cooking a festive turkey, of course, was and remains the whole poultry baking. And this is where the catch often arises when an improperly cooked bird comes out too dry and tough. For many housewives who are not too confident in the kitchen, such a failure is disappointing and even forces them to completely exclude the turkey from their menu. And completely in vain. After all, cooking a delicious, juicy and soft turkey is not at all as difficult as it might seem at first glance. It is enough just to understand the intricacies of the choice and small culinary tricks of the preparation of this bird.
Today the site "Culinary Eden" has collected and written down for you the most important tips and culinary secrets that will surely help you and tell you how to cook a soft and juicy turkey.
1. When choosing a turkey, try whenever possible to turn your attention to chilled poultry, not frozen. A steamed chilled turkey is always more flavorful and juicy. If in your store you can buy only frozen carcass, then defrost it correctly: thaw the turkey as slowly as possible by placing it in the lower compartment of the refrigerator. This slow defrosting will allow you to retain most of the moisture, making the bird more juicy and tender. In addition, when buying a turkey, choose a smaller carcass: the simplest rule for choosing any bird works great here - the younger the bird you choose, the more tender and softer its meat will be, and therefore the dish prepared from it. By the way, it will take much less time to cook a turkey of a small size and weight.
2. Of course, be sure to check the freshness of your chosen bird before buying. A good fresh turkey has moist, delicate skin of a light, slightly yellowish tint. The windy skin of a turkey will tell you about its improper storage and is far from the first freshness; excessively rough skin, its excessive yellowness will tell you that the seller is cunning, trying to sell you an old bird. The meat of such a turkey will be tough and dry. Remember to sniff the bird of your choice before purchasing. A good fresh turkey has a pleasant sweet aroma. Any extraneous odors, the smell of ammonia or mustiness will tell you that the bird offered to you is no longer fresh - nothing tasty can be cooked from spoiled turkey. Be sure to inspect your turkey carcass before purchasing. Good fresh poultry will delight you with plump breasts and legs with firm and firm meat. Press your finger down on the meaty part of the turkey - the hole left by your finger should disappear immediately. If the fossa remains for a long time after pressing, there is a high probability that you are being offered a stale or frozen turkey and thawed again more than once.
3. Make sure to soak the turkey in salted water before cooking. This culinary technique will not only saturate the poultry carcass with additional moisture, but also allow the turkey meat to evenly salt inside. Here it is only important to correctly calculate the amount of salt in the brine and the soaking time. For a whole turkey carcass for four liters of water, you need to take 400 grams. coarse salt, soak a whole turkey carcass in this brine for 12 hours. If you want to cook only a part of the turkey, for example, only the breasts or wings, then prepare the brine at the rate of 50 grams. salt per liter of water, and the soaking time of individual parts is calculated based on two to three hours for every 500 grams. bird weight. The brine is prepared as follows: the water is brought to a boil, all the salt is dissolved in hot water, and then the brine is cooled to room temperature. Soak the turkey in chilled brine. In addition to salt, you can add your favorite herbs and spices to the brine when preparing the brine, which will make your turkey even more delicious and aromatic. Instead of water for making brine, you can use carbonated mineral water, beer or apple cider to give poultry meat special tenderness. Of course, in this case, the salt will have to be diluted without heating the liquid.
4. Remove the well-soaked turkey from the brine and thoroughly blot excess moisture inside and out. The next step in preparing poultry for baking or frying is oiling. You can use regular butter warmed to room temperature or pre-prepared herbal butter. In order to keep the turkey meat juicy, you will need to generously grease the whole bird with a generous layer of butter, and in the breast area, be sure to put a few pieces of butter directly under the skin. Also, be sure to put a 100-gram stick of butter inside the bird. Butter is a great way to keep most of the juices inside the turkey meat, and also gives the finished dish a delicious flavor and aroma. If you decide to use spiced oil, then your bird will turn out to be even more delicious and aromatic.
5. By the way, cooking turkey butter is not difficult at all. Wash and dry thoroughly each bunch of thyme, basil and rosemary. Remove all coarse twigs and finely chop the remaining tender leaves. Remove from the refrigerator in advance and warm up to room temperature 300 gr. butter. Cut the butter into small pieces and place in a blender bowl, add herbs and scroll all together for literally a few seconds. Transfer the oil to plastic wrap, wrap it in the form of a sausage and put it in the refrigerator for a day. If you haven't got a blender or food processor yet, simply mix the oil and herbs and then thoroughly crush everything together with a potato grinder. In winter, instead of fresh herbs, you can use the same herbs in dried form, adding one tablespoon of each type of herbs to the oil. Such a spicy oil will perfectly set off the taste of turkey meat, without clogging it, but only complementing it with new notes of aroma.
6. If you want your turkey to be truly juicy and tender, skip stuffing the carcass. Even if your mom or grandmother insists that this is an absolutely necessary tradition - refuse! The thing is that during baking, the heat of the oven roasts the stuffed turkey only on the outside, and by the time the poultry is well done on the inside, its meat is completely dry and tough. This is why traditional stuffed turkey is always either too dry on the outside or half-baked on the inside. If the turkey is not stuffed from the inside with anything other than a small piece of butter, then it simultaneously and evenly warms up both inside and out, which shortens the cooking time, thereby preserving the tenderness and juiciness of poultry meat.
7. Temperature conditions are very important when roasting turkey. It is easiest for those who own a culinary thermometer: the turkey is ready when the temperature inside its fleshy part reaches 70 ° C. However, an excellent juicy turkey can be cooked without using a thermometer. Calculate roasting time for poultry based on 20 minutes for every pound of turkey weight at 200 ° C. Better yet, roast the turkey by gradually lowering the oven temperature. Start roasting the turkey at 250 ° C for the first 20 minutes. Then lower the temperature to 200 ° and roast the turkey for 15 minutes for every pound of poultry. Then lower the temperature to 170 ° and roast the turkey until tender for another 20 to 30 minutes. This temperature-graded roast of poultry will allow you to get a perfectly cooked, juicy, tender and at the same time well-baked turkey.
8. Traditionally, turkey is cooked by placing breast-side up on a baking sheet. However, most modern chefs agree that the traditional method is not at all as good as it seemed before. The turkey is much more juicy if you begin to bake it breast-side down, and then, after about 30 to 40 minutes, gently turn it breast-side up and continue baking. Thus, it turns out that all the juices that abundantly flowing out of the poultry at the first stage of baking do not flow out of the breast, but on the contrary - soak it, making the driest dietary white meat of the turkey breast especially juicy and tender. To prevent the turkey breast from sticking to the baking sheet and to prevent the delicate skin from being damaged when turning over, it is recommended to use a turkey rack. However, you can do without it at home. Simply crumple up a large piece of foil with your hands so that you get reliable ribs on which the bird will rest. In addition, a baking stand or an impromptu foil stand will allow the heat to evenly cover the entire surface of the bird, which means it will bake much more evenly than a turkey just laid on a baking sheet.
9. Another way to make a deliciously juicy whole turkey is to deep-fry it. This method is suitable only for those who have their own garden plot. It is not worth repeating this procedure in a city apartment. You need a deep saucepan, deep enough to fit the whole bird of your choice and leave at least 20 centimeters of free space on top. Fill a saucepan halfway with vegetable oil and heat the oil over high heat for 20 minutes. Dry the turkey carcass well soaked in brine as thoroughly as possible on the outside and inside. Using a long skewer, gently dip the turkey into the boiling oil. Be extremely careful - even a small amount of water can cause severe boiling and splashing of the boiling oil! Dry your turkey as thoroughly as possible! Deep-fry the turkey over low heat until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Carefully remove the cooked turkey from the pan with oil and place on the wire rack to drain off excess oil. Of course, this method of cooking turkey is quite dangerous and not suitable for everyone, but as a result, you will get an excellent fried bird - tender and juicy inside with a bright, aromatic crispy crust. However, you don't have to take risks. If you try very hard, you can purchase a special electric deep fryer designed just for cooking large whole poultry. You probably won't be able to find such a deep fryer at your nearest electrical store, but it is quite possible to purchase one online.
10. There is another relatively simple way to cook a whole turkey so that it is juicy and soft. To do this, you need a special baking bag or sleeve. The only tricky part is finding a roasting bag that is large enough to fit a large bird like a turkey. The rest is very simple. Soak the turkey carcass in the herb brine, rub with the spices and a little butter. You will need very little oil to bake in a bag. Place the prepared carcass in a bag or roasting sleeve and carefully tie the open ends of the bag. Place the turkey on a baking sheet, make a couple of small holes in the top of the bag and bake the turkey in an oven preheated to 200 ° for 20 minutes for every half kilogram of poultry. The turkey cooked in a roasting bag is soft and tender. The only downside to this cooking method is that your bird won't have that delicious crispy crust like a traditional turkey. However, this can be easily fixed by roasting the finished turkey under the top grill of the oven for 10 minutes on each side.
And on the pages of "Culinary Eden" you can always find even more useful tips and proven recipes that will definitely tell you how to cook a soft and juicy turkey.
The tradition of cooking a turkey in the oven for the holidays has come to us entirely since ancient pagan times. Turkey meat, baked according to all the rules, is tasty, juicy and tender; it is classified as a dietary and low-calorie meal. But in order for the turkey to become the main dish of your holiday table, it must be properly marinated before baking. The most delicious turkey marinade recipes are from America, where marinated, baked turkey with a crust is a traditional Thanksgiving dish.
To make a delicious 5-6 kg turkey marinade, you will need:- Water - about 6 liters;
- Salt - 120 g;
- Cinnamon, cumin, cloves;
- Black pepper - 1 tablespoon;
- Onions - 2 pcs.;
- Sugar 125 g;
- Ginger root is about 6 cm long;
- Orange;
- Garlic - 4 slices;
- Greens.
Get creative with the marinade making process, you can add your favorite spices to taste. Marinated, baked turkey is an incredibly tasty, tender, aromatic and nutritious dish. The turkey is well suited for both holiday feasts and family dinners.
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