Turkey sales skyrocketed as we prepared to enter the new year. What should be considered when buying turkey? How to choose Hindi? Here is the answer to all the questions in this article….
A healthy turkey needs to be fed naturally. The skin under the wings should be yellow. Yellow under the skin indicates that the turkey is oily. A yellow color under the wing indicates that the turkey is well fed. A healthy turkey's feathers should be shiny.
Points to consider when buying turkey
- Packaged turkey; place of manufacture, packaging and expiry dates should be observed.
- It is important that the color, odor and appearance of the turkey are normal.
- Turkey, which is sold in the open and without product information, should not be purchased.
15 suggestions for the perfect turkey!
1- The most delicious in our country is the black and silver colored American turkey known as the Kandıra Turkey. White turkey turkey is cheaper but not as tasty.
2- The male of the turkey is acceptable. Because male turkeys are usually over 10 kilos. The weight of the females does not exceed 5-6 kilograms. Choose the one that fits your budget, but the turkey you buy should not be less than three kilos.
3- The color should not be too light, and the flesh should be fresh.
4- The 'dry plucking' process should be applied to the turkey. It takes some time to clean up but the result is worth it.
5- If you are going to bake it whole in the oven, salt it on all sides three hours before and let it sit.
6- Oven temperature should be 160 degrees at most.
7- If you are going to make stuffed turkey, after salting and baking the turkey, apply a coloring sauce such as tomato paste or ketchup on it.
8- Take the turkey out of the oven 30 minutes before it is fully cooked and fill it with the rice you have cooked to your taste. Leave this stuffed rice more watery than usual because it will dry out while cooking.
9- You can boil vegetables in salted water to serve as a side dish.
10-Bake the turkey in the oven for 30 minutes per kilo. So a three-pound turkey should not be cooked for less than 1.5 hours.
11-Place a container with water in the oven during cooking. This way you prevent the turkey from drying out.
12-If you are going to cook the turkey like a tandoori, first cut it into a few large pieces and boil it for two hours with little water.
13- Bake the boiled turkey at 30 degrees for at least 180 minutes until it becomes crispy.
14- If you are going to make a turkey wrap, ask your butcher to make the whole turkey boneless. It is not easy to separate the meat of the turkey from the bone, remind me...
15- Stuff the ingredients you want into the opened turkey. I recommend the bechamel sauce made with cornmeal, spinach and cheese. After rolling the turkey, tie it tightly by wrapping it with linen thread.
Tips for Cooking Turkey
Whether it is for 2 or 12 people, turkey is an unchanging taste of the New Year's table. In turkey dishes, where different cooking techniques are applied according to every taste, first of all, it is necessary to make sure that the right marinades are used to cook the turkey meat softly. In addition, being patient and not rushing while the turkey is cooking is also a factor in the taste of your meal.
Just a few days before the new year, the details of your New Year's table have begun to emerge. When you say your appetizers, salads, Christmas desserts, hot starters, table decoration, you started to go through the most special pages of the recipe book for turkey, which will take place in the corner. Next is “How can I cook turkey meat softer? What should I do to make the turkey turn brown like a pomegranate? What are the ingredients for the stuffing?” Here are the tricks of cooking turkey for you.
Determine your recipe
Shutdown? Or a whole turkey in the oven with a stuffing of rice? If you have decided how to cook your turkey for your New Year's table, check out the following tips that we recommend for you:
size of turkey
When it comes to shopping for turkey in the preparations for the New Year, it is desirable to choose the best and most satisfying for the guests. For a Christmas menu for 12 people, a turkey in the range of 6-8 kg is quite satisfying when considered together with other appetizers, salads and hot starters. But for a turkey this size, you'll need to be sure of the size of your oven.
If you are planning to prepare turkey stuffing with stuffed rice on the New Year's menu, you need to calculate the thighs, which is the fattiest and tastiest part of the turkey. A whole turkey leg is hearty for 2 people, but considering the other varieties on the table, you can serve a hearty main course plate from a whole turkey leg for a maximum of 3 people.
Suggestion: When deciding what size turkey to buy for your New Year's table; In addition to the number of people, we recommend that you make a list of starters, appetizers and salads that will make your table rich.
How to clean turkey?
Wash whole or sliced turkey in plenty of water until it bleeds and drain. Dry the remaining water with a paper towel when you remove it from the strainer. Because if you leave the turkey juicy, the marinade will not stand on it. Also, although you do not prefer to eat the skin of the turkey, you should not discard the skin while cleaning. Because the skin gives flavor to the turkey broth when boiled and prevents the meat from drying out when baked.
How to marinate a turkey?
All turkey meat needs to be marinated in the right sauce to make it softer, more flavorful, and browned like a pomegranate. The marinade methods you can use to make the turkey appeal to the eyes and then the stomach are as follows:
- If you leave the whole turkey in a mixture of olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice and vinegar for at least 6 hours, you will ensure that the meat is cooked softly without falling apart. You can add flavor to the turkey meat by using black pepper and bay leaves in the marinade.
- If it's time to bake the turkey you've removed from the marinade, apply a mixture of honey and melted butter to the skin of the turkey.
- Honey, olive oil, tomato paste, mustard, lemon juice and salt is one of the ideal marinades for cooking a whole turkey.
- If you like the flavor of thyme and basil on your turkey, remember that these spices can burn during the long cooking time. Sprinkle the spices 10 minutes before removing from the oven.
You can keep the whole turkey in the refrigerator for up to a day in plenty of water with olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice and vinegar, as well as spices such as black pepper, bay leaf, sage tea. This mixture, which contains acid-containing compounds such as lemon juice and vinegar in its decision, will ensure that the spice flavor is processed into the turkey meat and the meat can be sliced properly without falling apart.
Do I need to boil the turkey?
You don't need to boil the whole turkey after soaking it in the marinades we mentioned above, but if you say "guaranteed, let it cook softly", you can boil the turkey in a large pot by leaving the marinade aside. To boil the turkey, we recommend:
- After cleaning the turkey, take it to the counter.
- Tie the turkey thighs together with heat resistant string.
- While the turkey is boiling, add bay leaves, sage and black peppercorns to the water.
- Boil the turkey on low heat.
- Do not cut the threads that you tied the turkey until it is your turn to serve. Thus, the boiled turkey will take its place on the Christmas table perfectly.
- Seal the shredded turkey before poaching it.
You can also boil the turkey in the oven.
If you say "it takes a long time to boil the turkey", put the marinade sauce on the tray before baking and cover it with baking paper and then aluminum foil. Bake in this way for at least 200 hour in the oven at 1 degrees. Then apply the honey and butter sauce to brown it and don't cover it anymore. Roasted turkey meat, like pomegranate, will be tender this way too.
Tips for stuffed turkey and turkey cover
If you are thinking of preparing a traditional stuffed turkey for your New Year's table or a turkey wrap with a different recipe, you should not skip the stuffing rice. How will the stuffed turkey pilaf be grainy? What ingredients will be in the stuffed rice? How to cook turkey wrap? We list the most frequently asked questions such as:
- A real stuffed rice contains finely chopped turkey liver or chicken liver.
- Stuffed turkey and stuffed turkey with rice; There are currants, chestnuts, turkey liver, parsley, cinnamon, and the rice should be cooked with the juice of the turkey.
- In turkey cover and turkey stuffing, the stuffed rice should be cooked in a separate pot until it remains slightly firm and juicy. The rice completes its cooking time in the oven.
- Serving spoons should be used for the turkey wrapping, and a serving fork, service knife and serving spoon should be used for the stuffed turkey service.
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