Cider Glazed Roast Turkey
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inspiration: This Thanksgiving, we were delighted and terrified when we got our turkey and discovered it was 35 pounds. It was like getting an elephant into a teacup - the turkey barely fit into our awesome new oven (the "Cadillac of ovens" as we like to call it!) but with lots of careful attention it turned out to be the best one we've ever done in our 10 years of Thanksgivings together!
ingredients:
- 1 fresh turkey (ours was 35 pounds but this will work for any size)
- 8 medium carrots, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 8 celery stalks, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 4 onions, quartered
- 20 cloves garlic, peeled and whole
- 20 sprigs of thyme
- 10 sprigs of rosemary
- 1 cup parsley
- 20 leaves of sage
- 1 navel orange, quartered
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- kosher salt
- pepper
- garlic powder
- 3 cups water
- 1 large cheesecloth
- butchers twine
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, melted
- heavy duty tin foil
method: The turkey was done in a few steps, but we think they were all necessary and worth the effort when it was all said and done. First we brined the turkey, then roasted it, and then glazed it. See below for brine recipe and glaze recipe.
1. BRINE One day before the dinner, brine your turkey (see below for recipe). Make sure to remove the neck and giblets from inside the cavity and save for gravy the next day. Also if your bird has one of those automatic thermometer thingys leave it in.
2. PREP the BIRD Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and make room in your oven for the bird by removing all racks except the bottom one.
In a large roasting pan, place half of the carrots, celery, onions, garlic, thyme, rosemary, parsley, and sage in the bottom of the pan to form a "vegetable raft." This will be what the turkey sits on while roasting and absorbing all those wonderful aromatic flavors. Pour the water in the bottom of the pan to keep the vegetable raft moist during the cooking process.
Remove your turkey from the brine and pat dry inside and out. Season the inside of the bird with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. This will help season the meat from inside out. Fill the cavity with the remaining carrots, celery, onions, garlic, thyme, rosemary, parsley, sage, and orange. If your bird has plastic around the legs holding them together leave in tact. If your bird does not, then tie the legs together with the butchers twine. Also, take the wings and fold them in back of the bird to keep them tight to the body. Place your turkey in the roasting pan on the vegetable raft. Drizzle olive oil on the bird to coat and massage into the skin. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Your bird is now ready to roast.
3. ROAST Place the turkey in the oven and roast for 20-30 minutes until the skin in nice and golden brown. Remove the turkey from the oven and drop the temperature down to 350 degrees. Take the cheesecloth and place in the melted butter to saturate. Completely cover the turkey breast and legs with the cheesecloth and pour any remaining butter on top to saturate. Next, form a "breast plate" with the tin foil to cover the breast but leave the legs exposed. Place the turkey back in the oven. Cook the turkey 15 minutes per pound while checking and basting the cheese clothed bird every half hour (each time you will need to remove the tin foil to baste and place back on when in the oven).
4. GLAZE About 30 minutes before the turkey should be done, take the bird out of the oven and remove the foil and cheese cloth. Take the cider glaze and brush the turkey to coat - make sure you get all nooks and crannies. Put the turkey back in the oven for 15 minutes and repeat glazing. Put back in the oven to finish for the last 15 minutes and glaze one last time.
5. REST Now that the turkey is glazed and has reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees, place on the back of the oven, cover with more tin foil and let rest for about 1 hour till you're ready to serve.
6. CARVE and SERVE Transfer the turkey to a large cutting board. Carve off the breasts, legs, thighs, and wings and plate and enjoy!
entertaining notes: Brine can be made a few days ahead and stored in an air-tight container in the refrigerator. Vegetables for turkey can be prepped the day ahead and stored in zip lock bags. The glaze can be made up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated till ready to use.
Yields: Enough for an army!
Brine for Turkey
- 2 cups kosher salt
- 2.5 cups brown sugar
- 1 quart apple cider
- 1 tablespoon whole peppercorns
- 1 tablespoon juniper berries
- 4 bay leaves
- 20 cloves garlic, whole
- 2 onions, halved
- 1 bouquet garni of rosemary and thyme
Place all the ingredients in a large stock pot and bring to a boil. Simmer till all the sugar and salt has dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool completely. Place your turkey in a large cooler or your brining vessel of choice, pour the brine over the turkey, add ice and cold water to completely cover. Let sit for 6-12 hours. Remove turkey from brine and begin prepping him for the oven.
Cider Glaze
- 1 cup apple cider
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1/2 stick of butter
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Place all ingredients except butter in a saucepan and reduce on high till about 1/4 cup. Once reduced, slowly add the butter, and whisk to emulsify. Set aside till turkey is ready.
