Ingredients: |
Ingredients: 1 - 15 to 18 lb. turkey (completely thawed)
1/4 cup mustard
Pinch of salt and pepper
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup vinegar (to tenderize turkey)
2 slices raw bacon
4 celery stalks (with leaves), chopped
1 onion, quartered
1 bell pepper, halved
4 parsley sprigs
Olive oil
Cheesecloth
Butter
2 cups turkey broth
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Directions: |
Directions:Begin the day before Thanksgiving or Christmas. Combine mustard, salt, pepper, Worcestershire, olive oil, and vinegar then rub mixture inside and outside of turkey. Place two slices of bacon on both sides of turkey breast (keeps moist and adds flavor). Place celery, onion, bell pepper, and parsley into cavity of turkey. Saturate a cheese cloth with olive oil and lay carefully and completely, being sure all of turkey is covered, and tuck into crevices of breast and drumstick so that all is absorbing flavors. Add chunks of butter in crevice areas. Place in roaster and refrigerate overnight (make a light foil tent to cover).
Next day: Get up early in the morning! Remove turkey from refrigerator. Bring to room temperature. Preheat oven to 300º. Roasting time is based on the size of turkey. The larger the turkey, the less time is required for roasting per pound. Here is a guide (or follow the directions that came with the turkey): a 7 to 10 pound turkey cooks 30 minutes per pound, 10 to 15 pound cooks 20 minutes, 15 to 18 pound cooks 18 minutes, 20 to 23 pound cooks 13 minutes.
Approximately 45 minutes into roasting, add two cups of turkey broth to the pan, then increase oven temperature to 325º. Baste turkey about three or four times at equal intervals. Check for doneness; juices should run clear.
Note: it is always reassuring for me to take extra peeks during the roast-in-progress. At this point, enjoy a little smug satisfaction for achieving this much along the way! Sit down, slip off your shoes and have a little glass of wine. |
Personal
Notes: |
Personal
Notes: I may not have known the yolk from the white of an egg, but I certainly watched my mother and that cheesecloth. That was attention getting! I always used that cheesecloth and it took years for me to know why! (I finally learned that the saturated cheesecloth allows you to limit your basting to three or four times while roasting.) I am sure I helped invent the line, "Because my mother always did it!" That is also how I learned to place bacon on poultry and many other things like meatloaf ... because my mother always did it.
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