On Day 23 of #churchhouseadvent our Head Chef shares his top 5 tips for cooking the perfect turkey.
- For a really succulent turkey, brine it overnight in a salt and water solution. Add 250ml of water with 200g salt, cinnamon sticks, bay leaves, coriander seeds and black peppercorns. Heat up to dissolve the salt and then add 2.75 litres of cold water. Make sure the brine is COLD, then add the turkey, leave overnight in the brine for it to be cooked the next day.
- The turkey needs flavour so use lots of herbs like thyme, rosemary, sage and garlic. Marinate around and inside the meat and leave overnight.
- Turkey can be a winner as long as you cook it to perfection. It can go from being really moist and succulent to really dry in a matter of minutes if left too long in the oven. Make sure the temperature doesn’t exceed 72C cooking at 180C.
- It’s key that you don’t stuff the turkey with too much filling as it needs the heat to cook the breast from the inside and can result in being dry and overcooked.
- I usually cook the turkey crown and legs separately as they cook at different times. The legs usually take longer and at a lower heat around 150C for 3 hours is very good.