Whole roast turkey with bread stuffing and roasted root vegetables
Binging with Babish · ♥ 99.1K likes · 6.8M views · 11 min video
Read about whole bird in the BrightCulinary Book
Timestamp
Ingredients
Method
Techniques
- 1 whole whole fresh turkey
Loosen the skin from the body of the turkey with gloved hands.
- ¼ cup kosher salt
- 1 tbsp freshly ground black pepper
Combine the kosher salt and black pepper and season the cavity and the meat under the skin, using about three quarters of the mixture.
- 1½ tsp baking powder
Add the baking powder to the remaining seasoning and use it on the skin; it lowers the temperature at which the Maillard reaction occurs for browner skin.
- ¾ loaf white sandwich bread
Bake the cut bread at 225F for one hour, tossing occasionally, until completely dry.
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 whole Spanish onion
Melt the butter in a high-walled saute pan until foamy, add the chopped onion and cook a few minutes until soft and translucent.
- 2 ribs celery
- 1 tbsp fresh sage
- 1 tsp thyme
- 1 tsp rosemary
Add the celery and cook one more minute, then add the sage, thyme and rosemary and cook two to three minutes.
- 1 tbsp parsley
- ⅔ cup fresh turkey stock
Combine the dried bread cubes with the parsley, the onion celery herb mixture and the turkey stock; season with kosher salt and pepper and toss until it sticks together but the cubes stay separate.
Line the cavity with a couple of layers of cheesecloth, pack in as much stuffing as fits, tie the cheesecloth shut and tie the legs with butcher's twine.
Set the bird breast side down on rolled cylinders of aluminium foil in the roasting pan and lay bacon over it.
- bacon
- turnips
- parsnips
- carrots
- pearl red onions
Roast at 325F for two to two and a half hours until the thickest part of the breast reads 160F.
- vegetable oil
Season the turnips, parsnips, carrots and pearl red onions with kosher salt and pepper, drizzle with vegetable oil and toss to coat.
Root vegetables and flipping the bird
Pull the turkey when it reaches 130F, remove the bacon, and set it breast side up on a wire rack over the root vegetables on a rimmed baking sheet.
- clarified butter
Cut open the legs, lift the cheesecloth parcel of stuffing out, and brush the whole bird with clarified butter.
- ¼ cup turkey stock
- 1 whole egg
Combine the cavity stuffing with the refrigerated stuffing, add the egg beaten into the quarter cup of turkey stock, mix, and spread into a buttered casserole.
Take the turkey out once the thickest part of the breast reads 160F and rest 30 minutes at room temperature, uncovered, never tented with foil.
Return the vegetables and the stuffing to the oven for about 20 minutes until fully cooked.
To carve, take off the drumsticks, remove the wishbone, cut down the side of the breastbone and under the breast to lift it off whole, then slice; remove the whole thigh and shred the dark meat.