Straight Talk Easy Turkey #WeekdaySupper
Author: Lucinda Scala Quinn
Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 1 hour 30 mins
Total time: 1 hour 40 mins
Straight Talk Easy Turkey #WeekdaySupper Author: www.familyfoodierecipes.com Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 1 hour 30 mins Total time: 1 hour 40 mins Serves: 10-12 No brining or babysitting is needed for this recipe—just a good bird, started from room temperature, cooked in a calibrated oven (meaning you know the exact inside temperature—ask at the hardware store for the $4 oven thermometer that hooks onto a rack) for the amount of time needed for your size bird (see below), and finished when an instant-read thermometer reaches 165°F. This turkey can be cooked stuffed with Fig and Pancetta Stuffing or Basic Bread Stuffing. Or it does not have to be stuffed at all.
Ingredients
  • One whole turkey, patted dry
  • 2 tablespoons coarse salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 6 cups Fig and Pancetta Stuffing or Basic Bread Stuffing (page 220), optional
  • If unstuffed
  • 1 orange, halved
  • 1 lemon, halved
  • 1 small yellow onion, quartered
  • 1 head garlic, halved
  • 6 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 2 sprigs fresh sage
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 4 cups chicken broth or water, warmed
  • ½ cup milk
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 425°F with the rack in the lower third of the oven. Season the cavity of
  2. the turkey with 1 tablespoon of the salt and ½ teaspoon of the pepper. Stuff the cavity with
  3. stuffing or the orange, lemon, onion, garlic, and herbs. Tie the legs with twine and transfer the
  4. turkey to a rack set inside a roasting pan. Rub the skin with the oil and season with the
  5. remaining 1 tablespoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper.
  6. Pour 2 cups of the broth into the roasting pan and transfer to the oven. Roast the turkey for
  7. minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 350°F. After the first hour of roasting, baste
  8. the turkey every 30 minutes. (Tent the turkey with foil if the skin becomes a deep golden brown
  9. before the turkey is cooked.) Roast until a meat thermometer inserted into the thigh joint
  10. registers 160°F. (If roasting a 12-pound bird, check the temperature after 1½ hours. A
  11. -pounder should take 2½ to 3 hours; a 20-pounder 4½ to 5. A stuffed bird will be on the
  12. longer side.) Remove the turkey from the oven and transfer to a carving board. Let the turkey
  13. rest for at least 20 minutes.
  14. Meanwhile, place the roasting pan on the stovetop over medium-high heat. Add the
  15. remaining broth to the pan drippings and bring to a simmer. Combine the milk and flour in a jar
  16. with a tight-fitting lid and shake vigorously to combine. Whisk the milk mixture into the gravy
  17. and simmer, whisking continuously, until the gravy thickens slightly, about 2 minutes.
  18. Carve the turkey and serve with gravy.
Recipe by Family Foodie at https://familyfoodierecipes.com/straight-talk-easy-turkey-weekdaysupper/