Maple Bourbon Glazed Turkey And Giblet Gravy Food

MAPLE-BOURBON GLAZED TURKEY AND GIBLET GRAVY

Steps:

• Remove giblets and neck from the turkey cavity, and set aside.
• 12 - 48 hours ahead of time, brine the turkey. In a large saucepan, bring 2 quarts water to a boil. Add salt and stir until dissolved. Set the thawed turkey in a vessel large enough to accommodate it, such as a large stockpot or a spotless plastic bucket, and pour in the remaining 1 1/2 gallons of cold water and the saltwater solution. Set in the fridge and brine 12 - 24 hours. When finished, carefully remove turkey from brine, drain cavity, and pat dry all over, including inside the cavity. Set turkey in roasting pan and set back in the fridge to dry at least 1 hour, or as long as 24 hours. The longer it dries, the crispier the skin.
• When ready to roast the turkey, preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Truss turkey by tying feet together and tying wings down with butcher's twine. (More on trussing here.) https://firstwefeast.com/eat/2013/11/how-to-truss-turkey-thanksgiving
• Place turkey breast side down in roasting pan and slide into oven. Cook 1 hour (1 1/2 hours for a larger bird).
• While bird roasts, combine glaze ingredients in a medium saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring often, until mixture reduces by two-thirds. Once reduced, keep glaze warm over very low heat
• After 1 hour, brush maple-bourbon glaze all over the turkey's back and then flip turkey. To flip, set out two dishtowels and wear two oven mitts. Grab turkey on both sides using dishtowels and carefully flip end over end, rotating it so that the juices inside pour out the bottom of the cavity and not the neck. Keep hands, arms, and other body parts clear, because the liquid is scalding hot. After you've flipped the turkey, brush the breast, wings, and legs generously with the glaze. Slide into oven and roast 1 hour, brushing on additional glaze after 30 minutes.
• At the 2 hour mark, lower heat to 325 degrees F. Brush glaze over turkey every 30 minutes. Place a loose foil tent over any parts that are darkening too quickly.
• After 3 hours total cook time, check the temperature by inserting an instant-read thermometer deeply into the space between the leg and the bottom of the breast. Cook until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F, 3 1/2 - 5 hours total (the larger the bird, the longer the cook time).
• Once up to temperature, pull turkey from oven and rest 30 minutes. Carefully remove to a cutting board, grasping turkey from below so as not to disturb the glaze on the breast and legs.
• Meanwhile, make gravy. While turkey roasts, melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Sauté shallots in butter until tender, about 5 minutes. Add liver and heart, and cook 5 minutes more. Stir in flour. Turn heat to low and add broth, a splash at a time, allowing gravy to re-thicken between additions. When the turkey moves to the roasting pan, carefully tip pan and carefully funnel pan juices into a tall jar. After a few minutes, the fat will settle on the top. Pour that off (as best you can), and gradually add 1 cup pan drippings to the gravy. Taste, and add salt, pepper, or a splash of white wine as needed. Gravy will thicken as it cools.
• To carve turkey, first remove trussing twine. Remove drumsticks and thighs by slicing through the skin that joins the thigh to the breast and cutting downward until you reach the joint. Push down on thigh to expose joint and then cut through it. Separate drumstick from thigh cutting at joint. Cut thigh meat away from bone and slice into serving portions.
• Next, remove wings by slicing through the joint, and then set them aside. To carve breast, cut slices from the sides roughly parallel to the center of the breast. Place meat on a platter and serve immediately.

MAPLE-WHISKEY TURKEY AND GRAVY

Steps:

• Make the brine: Combine 2 quarts water, the whiskey, maple syrup, salt, peppercorns, bay leaves, garlic, orange and apple peels and rosemary sprigs in a large pot. Bring to a gentle boil, stirring to dissolve the salt, then turn off the heat and cover. Allow to cool completely, then place in the fridge to chill.
• Brine the turkey: Remove the turkey from its packaging and remove the bags inside that hold the neck and giblets. Rinse the neck and giblets and put them in a plastic bag in the fridge; you'll need them for the gravy. Rinse the turkey thoroughly with cold water. Place the turkey in a large brining bag or pot. Pour in the maple-whiskey brine and refrigerate 16 to 18 hours so the brine can work its magic.
• Roast the turkey: Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F. After the turkey has brined, remove it from the brining bag and rinse it thoroughly again, inside and out. Pat dry.
• Truss the turkey or tuck the legs and wings, whichever you like. Place breast-side up on a rack in a large shallow roasting pan. Cover the pan with heavy-duty foil so that it's well sealed. Roast 7 to 8 minutes per pound (about 1 hour 50 minutes for a 15-pound turkey and about 2 1/2 hours for a 20-pound turkey).
• Remove the turkey from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 375 degrees F. Remove the foil. (Put stuffing in the bird if you wish at this point.) Brush the butter all over the skin of the turkey, getting in the crevices. Insert a probe thermometer into the thigh, near the hip joint. Place the turkey, uncovered, back in the oven. Continue roasting, basting or brushing with the juices in the pan every 30 minutes, until the thermometer registers 165 degrees F and the juices are no longer pink. This will take about another 10 minutes per pound (about 2 1/2 hours for a 15-pound turkey and 3 to 3 1/2 hours for a 20-pound turkey). Remove the turkey from the oven and cover lightly with foil until you are ready to carve. Pour the pan drippings into a fat separator and set aside for gravy.
• Maple-Whiskey Gravy
• Place the giblets and neck in a small saucepan of water over medium heat and bring to a boil. Turn the heat to medium low and simmer 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the giblets are cooked. Remove the giblets, set aside and keep the water in the saucepan.
• In the turkey roasting pan (which should not have been cleaned!), add the turkey fat. Sprinkle in the flour and whisk into the fat to form a paste. If the paste is too thick or clumpy, add a little more fat. If it's too greasy, sprinkle in more flour. Whisk and cook the roux over medium-low heat until it is deep golden brown.
• Pour in the chicken broth, whiskey and maple syrup, whisking the whole time. Allow the gravy to cook and thicken for several minutes, whisking occasionally. If it gets too thick or if it's too salty, thin it with a little giblet water. If the gravy is too thin, keep cooking it until it thickens up.
• Taste, then add salt and plenty of pepper. Chop the giblets and add them in, if you like. Remove as much of the neck meat as you can and add it to the gravy. Serve immediately!

MAPLE BOURBON TURKEY GLAZE

Steps:

• Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate, covered, overnight. Brush the glaze over the turkey during the last 15 minutes of roasting @ 5 minute intervals.

MAPLE-GLAZED TURKEY WITH GRAVY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Pat turkey dry with paper towels. Transfer to a rack set in a large roasting pan. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour. Fill body cavity with 6 cups stuffing. Fill neck cavity with 4 cups stuffing; secure skin flap with skewers. Tie drumsticks with kitchen twine. Tuck wings under turkey. Rub turkey with butter, and season generously with salt and pepper. Pour broth into pan; roast 30 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees; roast 45 minutes. Brush with pan juices, and tent pan with foil. Roast 45 minutes more, then remove foil, and baste. (If liquid evaporates, add 1 to 2 cups water to pan.)
• Meanwhile, bring maple syrup to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat, and simmer until syrup is reduced to 3/4 cup.
• After removing foil tent from turkey and basting with pan juices, brush turkey with some of maple glaze (reheat if solidified). Roast, uncovered, 30 minutes, and brush with glaze. Continue to roast turkey until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh reads 165 degrees, about 30 minutes more. (Take temperature of stuffing as well; if it has not reached 165 degrees, remove it from turkey, then transfer to a baking dish. Cover with foil, and bake until it reaches 165 degrees.) Brush turkey with maple glaze, and transfer to a platter; let rest 45 minutes before carving. Meanwhile, using drippings in pan, make maple gravy.

MAPLE-GLAZED TURKEY WITH GRAVY

Steps:

• Make turkey:
• Preheat oven to 425°F with rack in lowest position.
• Rinse turkey inside and out, then pat dry. Put turkey on rack in roasting pan and sprinkle turkey cavities and skin with 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Fold neck skin under body, then tie drumsticks together with kitchen string and tuck wings under body.
• Add 1 cup water to pan and roast, without basting, 1 hour.
• Make glaze when turkey goes in oven:
• Place peppercorns in a small sealable bag or wrap securely in a kitchen towel, then crack with a rolling pin or bottom of a heavy skillet. Transfer to a small heavy saucepan and add syrup, then cook over medium-low heat until heated through. Remove from heat and let syrup steep until ready to glaze turkey.
• Glaze turkey:
• After turkey has roasted 1 hour, rotate pan and add 1 cup water to pan. Roast, without basting, 45 minutes more.
• Just before 45 minutes is up, pour syrup through a small fine-mesh sieve into a small bowl, discarding peppercorns.
• Brush turkey all over with syrup and continue to roast (if bottom of pan is completely dry, add remaining cup water) until an instant-read thermometer inserted into fleshy part of thighs (test both; close to but not touching bone) registers 170°F, 15 to 20 minutes more (total roasting time: about 2 hours).
• Carefully tilt turkey so juices from inside large cavity run into roasting pan, then transfer turkey to a platter, reserving juices in roasting pan. Let turkey stand, uncovered, 30 minutes (temperature of thigh meat will rise to 175°F).
• Make gravy while turkey stands:
• Straddle roasting pan across 2 burners, then add vinegar and deglaze pan by boiling over high heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, 2 minutes. Strain through cleaned fine-mesh sieve into measuring cup and let stand until fat rises to top. Skim off and reserve fat. (If using a fat separator, strain pan juices through sieve into separator and let stand until fat rises to top, 1 to 2 minutes. Carefully pour pan juices from separator into measuring cup, reserving fat.)
• Heat 6 tablespoons reserved fat (if you don't have enough fat, substitute butter) in a heavy medium saucepan and whisk in flour. Cook roux over medium heat, whisking, 5 minutes. Add pan juices and stock in a fast stream, whisking constantly to prevent lumps, then bring to a boil, whisking. Stir in any turkey juices from platter and briskly simmer, whisking occasionally, until gravy is thickened, 10 to 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

APPLE-BOURBON TURKEY AND GRAVY

Steps:

• Stir together apple juice, bourbon, and brown sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves.
• Remove the giblets and neck from the turkey, and rinse the turkey with cold water. Drain the cavity and pat dry. Place the turkey in a large roasting pan. Dip the cheesecloth into the apple juice mixture. Wring dry. Cover the turkey with the cheesecloth. Pour the apple juice mixture over the cheesecloth, coating completely. Cover and chill for 12 to 24 hours, basting occasionally with the marrinade.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Remove the turkey from the pan, discarding cheesecloth and reserving 3 cups of the marinade. Sprinkle the cavity with your desired amount of salt; rub into the cavity. Sprinkle your desired amount of salt and pepper on the skin. Rub it into the skin. Tie the legs together with string; tuck the wingtips underneath.
• Arrange the celery, carrots, apples, and onion in a single layer on a roasting pan. Place the turkey, breast side up on the celery mixture. Pour the reserved marinade over the turkey in the pan.
• Bake at 325 degrees for 3 hours and 15 minutes to 4 hours or until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest portion of the thigh reads 165 degrees, basting every 30 minutes with the pan juices and shielding with aluminum foil after 2 hours 30 minutes to prevent excessive browning, if necessary. Remove from the oven, and let stand for 30 minutes.
• Transfer the turkey to a serving platter. Reserve 2 1/2 cups pan drippings. Pour the drippings through a fine wire mesh stainer into a large measuring cup, discarding solids.
• Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook, whisking constantly, 1 to 2 minutes or until smooth. Gradually add the drippings, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer, stirring the mixture occasionally, 5 minutes or until the gravy thickens. Add up to 1/2 cup chicken broth to achieve the desired consistency. Sir in salt and pepper to taste. Serve the turkey with the warm gravy.

BOURBON TURKEY GRAVY

Steps:

• Pour roasting pan drippings in measuring cup and allow to separate.
• Reserve 3 tablespoons of the fat.
• Discard remaining fat and add drippings to turkey stock.
• Heat reserved fat in roasting pan over medium-high heat.
• Add garlic, shallot, rosemary, and bay leaf.
• Cook and stir until shallot is tender, about 5 minutes.
• Make a paste with butter and flour in a small bowl and reserve.
• Add broth to roasting pan and scrape up any brown bits from bottom of pan.
• Bring to boil.
• Slowly whisk in flour mixture, continuing to boil, until thickened.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Stir in one capful of good bourbon just before serving.