After you have carved all the meat off the carcass (don't worry if you leave
some, it won't go to waste) and served and entertained your guests, and
eaten some side dishes (somehow, I eat most of my turkey while carving),
here's what you can do:
Place the carcass in a stock pot (break it up if necessary), with some cut
up carrots, onions, and celery as leafy as possible - parsley too if you
like, bay leaves maybe, etc. and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and
turn down to a simmer. Add black pepper, but taste before adding more salt
(remember the brine?). Simmer 2-3 hours until the broth has absorbed all
the flavor from the carcass and the veggies.
Strain it through your fine-mesh chinois, or, lacking one, line your
colander with a double layer of cheesecloth and put the colander over a pot.
Save the strained turkey stock and discard the veggies and carcass; or, make
your dog sit-stay and give him/her the cooked veggies as a treat.
If you BBQ'd your turkey, you'll have a wonderful smoky turkey stock you can
use on Friday (refrigerate the stock and skim any congealed fat off before
you use it). Use the stock for your favorite soup ( try pasta e fagioli
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/reci..._17692,00.html if
you are already tired of turkey), or make a turkey gumbo with the stock and
some leftover meat
http://www.gumbopages.com/food/soups/turk-gumbo.html.
Any leftover gumbo (big turkey and not everyone showed up), can become the
filling of a turkey pot pie, which you can freeze and eat when you're not
sick of turkey any more.
--
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Louis Cohen
Living la vida loca at N37° 43' 7.9" W122° 8' 42.8"
"Louis Cohen" > wrote in message
...
> To cook a tasty, moist turkey, brine it first. The brine will keep it
> moist, deliver seasonings to the meat inside, speed cooking, and even the
> cooking time between the breasts and thighs. The basic brine is:
>
> Per gallon of water:
> 1 cup kosher salt (of 1/2 cup table salt)
> 1 cup sugar or brown sugar or molasses or corn syrup or maple syrup (i.e.,
> your favorite sweetener)
> Seasonings you like, e.g., garlic powder, onion powder, sage, chile, etc.
>
> Mix well so that the salt and sugar dissolve
>
> Remove the turkey innards, and immerse the bird in the brine. Use a
> non-reactive pot that will fit in your 'fridge, or one of those oven
> cooking bags (useless for cooking) that will fit in a pot that will fit in
> the 'fridge. If the bird/pot won't fit, you can use a cooler - add plenty
> of ice to the brine. I have even brined a large turkey in the
> stainless-steel kitchen sink, with lots of ice, but I don't recommend it.
>
> Brine a large turkey 24 hours at least; 2 - 3 days is even better.
>
> Here are some other more elaborate brines:
>
>> Hound's Citrus Brine
>> 2 gallons water
>> 2 cups kosher salt
>> 3/4 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
>> 1 each juice of 3 oranges
>> 1 each juice of 3 limes
>> 1 each juice of 3 lemons
>> 1 each rinds from oranges, limes and lemon;
>> 1 sliced white onion
>> 1 head of garlic, crushed
>> 1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
>> 4 serranos to taste
>> 2 tbs rough ground cumin
>> 2 tbs rough ground coriander
>> 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
>
>
>> The Fat Man's Chicken Kickin' Brine
>> 1 gallons water
>> 5/8 cups pickling salt.
>> 1 1/2 tbs light brown sugar
>> 1 1/2 tbs garlic powder
>> 1/2 tbs chili powder
>> 1/2 tbs ground sage
>> 1 tbs crushed red pepper
>> 1/2 tbs fresh black pepper
>> 2 whole bay leaves
>> 1/2 tbs old bay seasoning
>> 1 tbs italian seasoning
>>
>> Combine all the ingredients in a stock pot. Bring to a boil, turn heat
>> down to a simmer. Simmer and stir frequently until all the ingredients
>> are dissolved. Allow to cool to room temperature before immersing the
>> meat.
>
>
> When you're ready to cook, drain and rinse the bird thoroughly; pat dry.
> If you have time and like crispy skin, put the dry bird back in the
> 'fridge for a while, uncovered. Season again (no more salt please!) - you
> won't need butter or oil under the skin to keep it moist, but if you like
> the flavor, by all means. Slices of citrus under the skin, especially
> with the citrus brine above, are good.
>
> The best way to roast the bird is in your BBQ with indirect heat: here are
> instructions from Sunset Magazine:
> On a charcoal barbecue (20 to 22 in. wide) with a lid, mound and ignite 40
> charcoal briquets on firegrate. When coals are spotted with gray ash, in
> about 20 minutes, push equal portions to opposite sides of firegrate.
> Place a foil drip pan between mounds of coals. To each mound, add 5
> briquets and 1/2 cup drained soaked wood chips now and every 30 minutes
> (until all chips are used). Set grill in place. Set turkey, breast up, on
> grill over drip pan. Cover barbecue and open vents.
>
> On a gas barbecue (with at least 11 in. between indirect-heat burners),
> place 1 cup drained soaked wood chips in the metal smoking box or in a
> foil pan directly on heat in a corner. Turn heat to high, close lid, and
> heat for about 10 minutes. Adjust gas for indirect cooking (heat parallel
> to sides of bird and not beneath) and set a metal or foil drip pan in
> center (not over direct heat). Set grill in place. Set turkey, breast up,
> on grill over drip pan. Close barbecue lid. Add another cup of wood chips
> (sprinkle through or lift grill) every 30 minutes until all are used. If
> edges of turkey close to heat begin to get too dark, slide folded strips
> of foil between bird and grill. Fat in drippings may flare when barbecue
> lid is opened; quench by pouring a little water into the pan.
>
> If your BBQ or oven will accommodate it, cook your turkey on a vertical
> stand, preferably neck down. The vertical stand seems to promote even
> cooking, and you get more usable dark meat - the fat drips off instead of
> innundating the dark meat.
>
> Here are cooking temps and times recommend by Sunset for unstuffed,
> unbrined turkeys - measure the internal temperature _in the breast
> touching bone_.
>
> TURKEY WEIGHT
> WITH GIBLETS OVEN TEMP. INTERNAL TEMP.* COOKING TIME**
> 10-13 lb. 350° 160° 1 1/2-2 1/4 hr.
> 14-23 lb. 325° 160° 2-3 hr.
> 24-27 lb. 325° 160° 3-3 3/4 hr.
> 28-30 lb. 325° 160° 3 1/2-4 1/2 hr.
>
>
> You can cook the brined bird at a hotter temperature, say, 375 - 400°, for
> crisper skin and more internal juice. Even at the same oven temperature,
> the brined bird will cook faster.
>
> After the bird comes out of the BBQ/oven, let it rest 30-45 minutes before
> carving - you'll have a juicier result.
>
> Have a great holiday.
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Louis Cohen
> Living la vida loca at N37° 43' 7.9" W122° 8' 42.8"
>
>