Recipe By : Martha Stewart and Guest
Serving Size : 20
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 20 pound turkey (approximately)
1/4 pound unsalted butter -- (1 stick) melted
1 recipe Stuffing (recipe follows)
1 recipe Glazing Paste (recipe follows)
1 recipe Basting Liquid (recipe follows)
[Stuffing: Makes 18 to 20 cups (enough
for an 18 to 22 pound turkey)]
1/4 pound unsalted butter
3/4 pound ground veal
1/2 pound ground pork
1/4 pound ground beef
2 packages bread crumbs or stuffing mix -- (32 ounces)
1 large apple -- peeled and diced
1 large orange -- peeled and diced
1 can crushed pineapple -- (20 ounce) drained
Zest of 1/2 lemon -- about 1 teaspoon
1 can water chestnuts -- (5 ounce) drained
and coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons preserved ginger -- chopped
3 teaspoons Colman’s mustard powder
2 teaspoons caraway seeds
3 teaspoons celery seeds
2 1/2 teaspoons oregano
1 bay leaf -- crushed
1/2 teaspoon mace
4 tablespoons parsley -- chopped
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
3 medium onions -- chopped
6 large celery stalks -- chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/2 teaspoon summer savory
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
[Glazing Paste: Makes 1/4 cup]
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon Colman’s mustard powder
1 clove garlic -- minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 Pinch cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon grated onion
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour -- more if needed
[Basting Liquid: Makes 6 cups]
1 turkey gizzard -- chopped
1 turkey neck -- chopped
1 turkey heart -- chopped
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1 clove garlic
To Taste Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
1 cup apple cider
1. Heat the oven to 500 degrees. Place a 15 x 10-1/4-roasting rack in
a heavy 16 x 13-inch roasting pan; alternatively, use two large
disposable aluminum roasting pans set inside one another for
added strength.
2. Stuff the turkey with the stuffing (recipe follows). Using a
trussing needle and butcher’s string, sew the sides of the body
cavity together, stitching from side to side, to enclose the
stuffing. To truss the turkey, tuck wings under body. Tuck neck
flap under body to secure; then center a 3-foot length of
butcher’s string over the neck flap. Bring the string ends of the
string under wings, over drumsticks, wrap each end around a
rumstick, pull drumsticks together, and tie then ends of the
string into a bow. (The bow makes it easier to remove the
trussing string after roasting.)
3. Brush the turkey breast with melted butter. Place the turkey
breast-side down on the rack, and brush with remaining melted
butter. Place breast-side down in the oven, and roast until
brown all over, about 30 minutes. Remove the turkey from the
oven, and reduce temperature to 325 degrees. While the oven
cools, brush the hot turkey with the paste, and allow it to set
until dry, 5 to 7 minutes; turn it over on the rack, and brush
the breast side with paste. Place the coated turkey in the oven.
Using a turkey baster, baste with basting liquid.
4. Continue basting the turkey every 15 minutes with basting liquid
throughout the roasting process, about 7 hours (allowing about 20
minutes per pound). Results yield a turkey with a dark, black
coating over the skin which can be removed with tweezers before
serving to reveal succulent moist skin and meat.
Stuffing Directions:
1. Melt the butter in a large sauté pan oven medium heat. Saute veal,
pork, and beef until brown and thoroughly cooked, about 5
minutes. Remove from the heat, and mix with the bread crumbs in a
large mixing bowl.
2. In another large bowl, combine apple, orange, pineapple, lemon
zest, water chestnuts, and ginger. Then add to the meat and
breadcrumbs.
3. Combine mustard, caraway seed, celery seed, oregano, bay leave,
mace, parsley, turmeric, onions, celery, marjoram, summer savory,
and poultry seasoning in a small bowl. Add to the large bowl
containing the fruit-meat-breadcrumb mixture.
4. Using your hands, combine all the ingredients well achieving a
consistent soft, moist texture throughout. Use immediately to
stuff the turkey; the stuffing can be made a day in advance, if
kept covered and refrigerated.
Glazing Paste Directions:
Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl, until you have the
consistency of a light paste; add additional flour if necessary.
Apply to browned turkey prepared according to step 3 of the
preceding Black-Lacquered Turkey recipe; proceed according to
recipe directions.
Basting Liquid Directions:
1. In a medium sauce pan, combine gizzard, neck, heart, bay leaf,
paprika, coriander, salt, and pepper with 4 cups water. Bring to
a simmer, and continue to simmer until the turkey pieces are
cooked through, about 20 to 25 minutes. Add apple cider, stir,
and remove from heat.
2. Using a turkey baster, baste the turkey with the liquid every 15
minutes according to step 4 of the Black-Lacquered Turkey recipe.
If you run out of basting liquid, you may use apple cider or the
roasting juices which accumulate in the roasting pan.
SOURCES: Special thanks to Jane Heller and Steve Gerrard
Preparing the perfect Thanksgiving turkey presents a challenge to
most home cooks. Recipes range from the simple to the
spectacular, often reflecting the cook’s personality. Martha
Stewart’s friend and banker Jane Heller cooks twice a year--once
for her summer rib party and again for Thanksgiving. Her guests
remember each experience, and eagerly anticipate the next.
For her Thanksgiving turkey, she uses precisely 39 ingredients and
precise culinary methodology that yields a succulent roasted bird
beneath a dramatic black-lacquered skin. To the uninitiated, its
appearance can be alarming at first sight, but the moist and
succulent results are well worth it. Remove the coating with
tweezers before serving, or allow each guest to remove it from
each portion to reveal the succulent mahogany skin beneath.
Inspiration for her technique came from an exacting recipe first
published in 1945 by newspaper columnist and writer Morton
Thompson in his memoirs, Joe, The Wounded Tennis Player. Jane
maintains, as did Thompson, that there are no shortcuts since the
perfect bird requires diligence, commitment, and fortitude. |
