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Traditional Roast Turkey
Traditional roast turkey with chestnut stuffing and homemade gravy - yum!
Ingredients:
For the Stuffing:
½ cup whole chestnuts (use dried if you can’t find whole)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, peeled and minced
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1 teaspoon dried sage
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 cooking apple, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1 egg, lightly beaten
5 cups stale bread, cubed
1 ¼ cups chicken broth (stock)
¼ cup butter, melted
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 10lb. turkey
For the Gravy:
2 carrots, roughly chopped
1 onion, diced
2 celery stalks, roughly chopped
Corn flour
Chicken broth (stock)
Butter (if necessary)
Directions:
The Night Before:
If possible prepare your turkey the previous night. If not possible, do so at
least one hour before cooking! Remove any giblets and rinse well (inside and
out) with cold water, then pat dry with paper towels. Generously rub turkey with
olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover and place back in
refrigerator until time to cook.
The Next Morning:
1. Preparing the Stuffing:
To roast the chestnuts, cut an "X" on the flat side of each chestnut and bake
15-20 minutes in 375F (190C, Gas Mark 5) oven. Let cool for 10 minutes and then
peel and chop.
Do not turn the oven off as it will need to be preheated for cooking the turkey!
In a large pot over low heat, heat the olive oil and then add the onions and
celery. Sauté for about 3 minutes or until soft. Stir in crushed garlic, sage,
rosemary, thyme and apple and sauté for a further 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat
and stir in egg, then add chestnuts and bread. Toss mixture well. Stir in warm
broth and season with salt and pepper. Set aside to cool.
2. Preparing the Turkey:
Remove turkey from fridge and loosely stuff the neck cavity with chestnut
stuffing, folding the skin under and securing in place with a toothpick. Then
loosely stuff the main cavity, making sure to leave room for expansion and the
air to flow through.
Then prepare your roasting pan. Use a large roasting pan and at the bottom add
two roughly chopped carrots, onion and celery. Place the rack over the
vegetables. Now place your turkey, breast side up, on the rack. Drizzle with
melted butter.
Bake, uncovered, at 375F (190C, Gas Mark 4) for the first 30 minutes, then baste
and reduce oven temperature to 325F (170C, Gas Mark 3). Continue basting turkey
every 25-30 minutes. The cooking time should be approximately 20 minutes per
pound of turkey, which would be about 3.5 hours for a 10b turkey. To check if
the turkey is cooked pierce the thigh bone: juices should run clear without any
pink. Also use a meat thermometer on the thickest part of the thigh. The
temperature should show 180F. The turkey should be golden and crispy on the
outside too.
Remove the turkey from roasting tray and reserve juices for gravy.
Tip: For extra added safety, I like to remove the stuffing from turkey once the
turkey is cooked and bake in a separate dish for approximately 10 extra minutes.
3. For the Gravy:
Mash the vegetables in the roasting tray, then push all ingredients through a
sieve. Discard any remaining vegetables or fat. Place the sieved liquid in a
saucepan and simmer over low heat. If you don’t have enough liquid then add 1
cup or more (depending on how much gravy you need) of chicken stock; you can
also add a couple of tablespoons of butter.
In a small bowl add two tablespoons of corn flour and mix with cold water (about
½ cup) until all lumps dissolve. Slowly add a little of this mixture (tablespoon
by tablespoon) to the saucepan, stirring well after each addition and allowing
time for gravy to thicken. Keep adding corn flour/water mixture until gravy
thickens.
Tip: You can also add a couple of tablespoons of red wine or madeira to the
gravy for a richer taste. The alcohol will dissolve during the cooking process
and children will be able to have the gravy.
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