omg, that's a good turkey!
I know everyone has already cooked their Thanksgiving turkey but some of us cook a turkey at Christmas as well so I thought I would post this recipe. I bought a 22 quart electric roaster this year because I wanted to make space in my oven for the many casseroles I make. I was so worried that the turkey would not turn out as well as a turkey cooked in the oven or deep fried because I have never used an electric roaster before. It turned out not only well, but to be the best turkey I ever put in my mouth!! Everyone at the table agreed that it was the moistest, juiciest turkey they had ever tasted and wanted to know how I had cooked it. It was one of the easiest turkeys I have ever cooked because it does not require basting. Deep fried turkeys are usually soaked in brine (a water and salt solution) and I decided to brine this turkey before roasting it. I wasn't sure if it was the right thing to do or not with an electric roaster but I took a gamble. It turned out divine and you know what, it's the first year I have not been left with dry leftover turkey for days and days! I did not take a picture of this bird but I should have as it was golden brown and beautiful! Everything I read about electric roasters said the the turkey would not be brown but it was! Maybe it's because I coated both the top and underneath the skin with butter, spices and olive oil. There is one thing I should point out. The instructions that came with the roaster said to cook the turkey at 4 and 1/2 hours for an 18 pound bird but I did not follow these instructions because the turkey had already been soaked in brine. If cooked as instructed, the turkey would have been completely overcooked. One other thing I would also like to point out that although the 24 and 1/2 hour prep time may seem cumbersome, the reason it takes so long is because the step of soaking the turkey in the brine overnight. An additional 3 and 1/2 hours of this time is the time the turkey spends in the roaster with no attention at all needed. The actual hands on prep time is closer to 45 minutes including preparing the brine and preparing the turkey with the oil and butter mixture.
Ingredients For omg, that's a good turkey!
-
1frozen, 18 pound butterball turkey, partially thawed for three days in the refrigerator
-
for the brine ( you need an 8 guart pot and 5 gallon bucket)
-
1orange, cut in half (or lemon or both)
-
2slices of fresh peeled ginger about the size of a quarter
-
3 Tbsppeppercorns
-
1 ckosher salt
-
26 inch sprigs of rosemary, left whole
-
2cloves of garlic, smashed
-
2 Tbspsoy sauce
-
1 Tbspworchestershire sauce
-
1 tsppoultry seasoning
-
33 inch sprigs of thyme, left whole
-
1 tspsage or several fresh sprigs of sage
-
to season the turkey
-
1stick of butter, melted
-
1/4 cextra virgin olive oil
-
1/2 cchopped fresh parsley
-
1/8 cthyme leaves
-
2fresh sage leaves, chopped
-
1/4 tspgreek seasoning
-
salt and fresh ground pepper
How To Make omg, that's a good turkey!
-
1For the brine, add all food ingredients from the orange to the sage with the exception of the turkey into an 8 quart pot and boil for 30 minutes. Let cool.
-
2Remove turkey from package and rinse well. Place breast down into the 5 gallon plastic pail.
-
3Pour brine over the turkey and add ice and water until the brine covers the turkey. Let the turkey sit in the brine for 24 hours. Over the next 24 hours, keep a check and add ice, if needed, to keep the turkey cold.
-
4After 24 hours, remove the turkey from the brine and place on counter.
-
5Loosen the skin from the bird by running your hand under the skin in all directions as far as you can.
-
6Melt one stick of butter in a bowl and add 1/4 Cup of extra virgin olive oil once the butter has been melted.
-
7Add chopped fresh parsley, thyme, Greek seasoning and sage leaves to the butter and olive oil mixture and stir until blended.
-
8Spoon butter mixture under the skin of the turkey and on the outside of the turkey and rub in well. Salt and pepper the turkey skin lightly.
-
9Place turkey, neck, liver and gizzard in roaster if making giblet gravy, put the lid on and set the dial for 350 degrees.
-
10Cook for 3 and 1/2 hours and do not remove the lid during this time because you will loose your steam and it will take a long time to build back up to the 350 temperature and this will mess up the amount of time it takes to cook the turkey. I know you will be tempted to peek but do not!!! This is very important!
-
11After three and one half hours, remove the lid and allow the steam to escape for a few minutes. Insert a meat thermometer into the fattest part of the breast and thigh and make sure that the turkey's temperature is at 180 degrees.
-
12Remove the turkey, carve the bird and enjoy!
- Last Step: Don't forget to share! Make all your friends drool by posting a picture of your finished recipe on your favorite social network. And don't forget to tag Just A Pinch and include #justapinchrecipes so we can see it too!