Cooking
/ Roasting free range farm fresh Xmas Turkeys.
Bronze
or White Turkey - what's the difference ?
Like
red and white wine or brown and white eggs the choice
between Bronze or White turkey is a matter of personal
taste. The meat from Bronze turkeys is a shade darker
than White and has a slight "gamey" taste with
lots of natural juices. Not only are Bronze turkeys prettier
to look at when grazing in the field, they are much rarer
and not bred for mass production.
On
the other hand John Wright's White turkeys are also free
range and have a delicate flavour more suited to those
who always prefer the white turkey meat on Christmas day.
John
is always ready to give advice on storing, preparing and
cooking your turkey. Alternatively a variety of delicious
recipes and oven roasting information supplied by the Traditional Farmfresh Turkey Association, are shown below for main meals or for turkey left overs.
| Turkey
Tetrazzini |
|
2½
oz butter
Juice of half a lemon
8oz sliced button mushrooms
2oz flour
1pt turkey or chicken stock
10fl oz single cream
2tblsp dry sherry
1lb cooked green tagliatelle
12oz chopped cooked turkey
1oz fresh breadcrumbs
1oz Parmesan cheese |
Melt
1oz of butter, add lemon juice and fry mushrooms for
5 minutes. Melt remaining butter in a pan, stir in
flour and the stock. Cook for 2 minutes. Take off
the heat, fold in cream, sherry and seasoning. Add
15fl oz of the sauce with the mushrooms to the tagliatelle.
Pour into an ovenproof dish. Mix the turkey into remaining
sauce and spoon over. Sprinkle with crumbs and cheese.
Bake at Gas Mark 5 / 190°C / 375°F for 30/40 minutes.
|
| Turkey
Puff Parcels |
|
|
½
lb chopped cooked turkey
4tbsp chestnut puree
3oz chopped button mushrooms
1½ oz butter
1lb puff pastry
beaten egg
salt and freshly ground pepper
|
Mix
turkey, puree and seasoning. Fry mushrooms in butter
until soft and add to mixture. Allow to cool. Roll
out pastry thinly and cut into twelve 4 inch squares.
Divide mixture amongst squares, dampen pastry edges
and fold to form triangles. Pinch edges to seal and
glaze with egg. Bake at 205°C / 400°F / Gas Mark 6
for 15-20 minutes until golden. - Serves 4 |
| Turkey
& Vegetable Gratin |
|
2lb
potatoes peeled and cubed
½ lb leeks sliced
1lb small Brussels sprouts halved
1 onion sliced
1 tbsp olive oil
½ lb cooked turkey cut into chunks 2oz butter
4oz Stilton cheese
Salt and pepper |
Par-boil
the potatoes for 10-12 minutes, then add the leeks
and Brussels sprouts, boiling for a further 5 minutes
until tender. Fry the onion in olive oil until golden,
then add the turkey and heat through. Set aside in
a warm place. Drain and roughly mash the vegetables
using half the butter, and season to taste. Grease
a shallow oven proof dish with the remaining butter
and spread the mashed vegetables in an even layer.
Cover this with the turkey and onion, before topping
with the crumbled Stilton. Place under a pre-heated
grill until the cheese melts and the topping just
browns a little. |
| Turkey
& Avocado Salad |
|
3
ripe avocados
orange juice
2 small peppers (1 red and 1 green) 1tbsp Worcester
sauce
½ lb diced cooked turkey
2tbsps mayonnaise
salt,
freshly ground black pepper paprika watercress |
Halve
avocados lengthways, remove stones and brush flesh
with orange juice.
Mix turkey meat, Worcester sauce, mayonnaise, a small
amount of finely chopped peppers and seasoning.
Use the mixture to fill avocados and garnish with
the remaining peppers, cut into strips.
Serve chilled on a bed of watercress. |
| Oriental
Turkey |
|
1
dstsp sweet chilli sauce
2 tblsps hoisin sauce
2 tblsps sesame seed oil
1 dstsp grated fresh root ginger 450g (1lb) cooked
turkey meat cut into strips
2 tblsps light soy sauce
2 tblsps sunflower oil
6 spring onions cut into short lengths 2 tblsps sherry
175g (6oz) mange tout
1 red and 1 yellow pepper cut into thin strips
100g (4oz) bean sprouts |
Mix
chilli sauce, hoisin sauce, sherry, sesame seed oil
and ginger together and combine with the turkey.
Leave to marinate for 30 minutes.
Heat the sunflower oil in a wok or frying pan and,
when it is almost smoking, stir-fry the vegetables
for about 2 minutes.
Add the turkey with the marinade and stir-fry for
another 2 minutes. .
Add the soy sauce, mix well and serve with rice. |
| Turkey
Pasta Salad |
|
Diced
Cooked turkey
Pasta bows (cooked and cooled)
Tin pineapple (drained and cut into chunks)
Seedless green grapes (halved)
Few chopped spring onions
Cashew nuts (best to use raw ones and fry in a saucepan
with a very little oil turning all the time as they
burn easily!)
Dressing: Mayonnaise (about 1 tablespoon per person)
Reduced fat creme fraiche (about 1 dessertspoon per
person)
Wholegrain mustard to taste (although you can use
horseradish mustard)
Cajun seasoning to taste |
Mix
all the dressing ingredients together.
Add turkey, fruit, onions and pasta.
Serve on salad leaves with nuts and extra cajun seasoning
sprinkled on top. |
'Ordinary'
TURKEYS
The
majority of birds are killed as ‘teenagers’ (about 8-12
weeks), having been grown very quickly and cheaply. As
a result, the flesh is effectively ‘stretched’ and has
no fat cover, resulting in meat that is often dry and
coarse. John Wright's Golden Promise Turkeys live 3 times
longer, to full adult maturity, and are never given anti-biotics
or additives for growth promotion.
• The majority of fresh turkeys will taste no better than
a standard frozen or fresh-frozen turkey as they are usually
the same age and produced in the same way. The only difference
is the way they have been stored. To ensure you get a
great tasting turkey, look out for the Golden Promise
logo, which guarantees traditional production methods.
COOKING
a TURKEY
•
The breast meat of a turkey cooks quicker than the darker
(leg and wing) meat. It is better to cook turkeys breast
side down for the first half to three quarters of the
cooking time, which will help to keep the juices in the
breast and stop it drying out.
• If the turkey is tightly trussed with string, this will
make it difficult to cook evenly. A loosely trussed bird
is best for cooking. Therefore, although it doesn’t look
as attractive, it is better to cut the string if it appears
to be too tight.
• Do not stuff the cavity as this will stop the turkey
cooking properly. Instead, place an onion and an apple,
both quartered, inside.
• Gravy always tastes better if the turkey giblets are
used to make it. However it is recommended that the liver
is not used as it may give the gravy a slightly bitter
flavour. Instead, lightly sauté the liver in butter, chop
it up and add to the stuffing.
• It is very important not to overcook a turkey – many
people do and are then disappointed when it is dry. This
can be avoided by either using ‘pop rite' cooking timers
that detect when the turkey is cooked, or alternatively
you can test the bird by ensuring that clear juice comes
out of the leg when you pierce the cooked bird.
• After removing the turkey from the oven and before carving,
allow it to rest for a few minutes.
Enjoy
your Roast Christmas Turkey
|
