Turkey is a necessary attribute of the Christmas table in Europe and America. There are also several secrets to cooking this bird.
First, calculate the weight of the bird you need for your party table (a 5kg turkey is enough for 10 people). Next, decide whether you are going to purchase fresh or frozen poultry. If you decide to purchase fresh poultry, buy it no earlier than two days before cooking.
Wipe the outside and inside of the purchased turkey with a paper towel, put it on a dish, cover with foil and put it in the refrigerator. If you have a frozen turkey, then keep in mind that it will take a long time to thaw it, about a day, or even longer. Place the thawed turkey in the refrigerator as well.
There are several ways to cook a turkey, this applies to fillers. Here we present the recipe for the traditional and most popular topping with pork, onions, sage and apples.
To prepare the filler, you need 30 g of butter, an onion, a pound of minced pork, an egg, 60 grams of white bread rusks, two tablespoons of fresh sage, 200 g of fried and chopped chestnuts and two sour apples, which are pre-peeled and chopped into small pieces.
• Melt butter in a skillet, add chopped onion and simmer for 5-7 minutes. Then cool it down.
• Combine minced meat, crackers, egg, apples and sage. Add cooled onions to the same mixture
• Add the chestnuts to the mixture. Stir the mixture gently so that the chestnuts do not fall apart, but remain intact.
Now, having made the filling, you can cook the turkey:
• Rinse the turkey carcass under running water, brush well inside and outside with butter.
• Calculate the cooking time so that every 500g of meat requires at least 20 minutes to cook.
• Stuff the turkey carcass with the filling and place on a baking sheet. Cover the skin of the turkey with smoked bacon to prevent scalding, then cover the entire turkey with foil and place in the oven preheated to 190 degrees.
• You can bake potatoes as a side dish for the turkey. One large potato per person. Cut the potatoes into 4 pieces, season with salt, place in a greased baking dish, and send to the oven until tender. You can also serve boiled vegetables as a side dish to your taste.
• Remove the cooked turkey from the oven, remove the bacon, cut into portions, starting with the brisket. Divide the meat into prepared large plates that can be preheated, add potatoes and vegetables. And don't forget to serve a variety of sauces.
