Turkey

A gravy is made by thickening juices from a roast with flour. Making a generous amount of well-flavored turkey jus or gravy involves a paradox; if the turkey is properly cooked or if it is stuffed, it will release little in the way of juices. When overcooked, as most turkeys are, it will provide plenty of juices for your gravy. If the turkey has released an abundance of juices—a couple of cups (500 milliliters) or more—serving the jus is a simple matter of skimming off the fat and serving the juices as they are, as a "jus." To convert them to gravy, make a roux and add the juices to that. To make giblet gravy, roast the giblets in the pan along with the turkey, chop them fine, and add them to the gravy.
If you've cooked your turkey just right, you won't see much in the bottom of the pan and what there is won't have a whole lot of flavor. To get the most flavor out of a small amount of juices, boil down the juices until they caramelize on the bottom of the pan, pour out the fat (or leave a few tablespoons in the pan if you're making a roux), and deglaze the pan with water or broth. Use only as much broth as you need to serve the guests at hand—about 3 tablespoons (45 milliliters) per person—because the more broth you add, the less flavorful the juice will be. If you're a fanatic, you can bring up the flavor of the jus by adding a little broth at a time and caramelizing after each addition. To stretch a small amount of jus without diluting its flavor, consider swirling in 1/2 ounce (15 grams) of butter per serving.

Order your turkey far enough in advance to make sure you get a fresh, rather than frozen, bird. Buy it from someone whom you trust, as lying about whether a bird has ever been frozen is common. It makes sense to buy a bird that's larger than you need so you'll have plenty left over for sandwiches, creamed turkey, soup, and the like. Take the bird out of the refrigerator 3 to 4 hours before it is scheduled to go in the oven. A room-temperature turkey will roast more quickly and evenly.

Editor's note: This recipe is part of a special Thanksgiving menu created by chefs Allison Vines-Rushing and Slade Rushing of MiLa restaurant in New Orleans. Fried turkey is the answer to a Thankgiving under the gun. There is no need to wake up at the crack of dawn to put the turkey in the oven. Let that bird brine for 36 hours then pop it in a cauldron of hot fat (outside, of course). And you've got turkey on the table in under 2 hours. It's not just any turkey. It has juicy meat all over, even the breasts. Don't feel guilty about the frying, you probably only eat turkey once a year. Serve it with a healthy array of sides if that makes you feel better. You'll need to invest in an outdoor turkey frying kit.

One look at these meatball subs and you might be inclined to bypass an entire summer's worth of burgers and dogs. Heroes, hoagies, subs, grinders—regardless of what you call them, we guarantee this recipe will be an instant crowd favorite thanks to toasted garlic-butter buns piled high with tender meatballs and tangy tomato sauce. Although you may be tempted to head for the grill, opt for your oven broiler instead and avoid the need for skewers or special grill baskets. Editor's Note: This recipe is part of Gourmet's Modern Menu for Summer Fair Favorites. Menu also includes Fried Onion Dippers with Balsamic Ketchup and Frozen Chocolate-Dipped Bananas with Peanut Brittle.

Tomatoes are a top plant source of umami, and the riper they are, the better: The fruit's umami components increase during maturation. What's more, whole-wheat pasta has triple the fiber of regular pasta for more fill-you-up power.

When Todd and I are craving the flavors of Thanksgiving—or when we’re spending the holiday alone and I’m not in the mood to cook a whole turkey just for the two of us—I make these holiday-worthy ravioli. They look and taste festive, and there are never any leftovers!

These meatballs are inspired by a turkey meatloaf that I wrap in pancetta before baking. Everyone loves spaghetti and meatballs, though, so I decided to put the pancetta directly into the meatball mixture and bake rather than fry them. The salty pancetta and the sweet sun-dried tomatoes make these meatballs that people will rave about for a long time.

Todd and I both love stuffed shells, so I’m always thinking of fun new fillings to try. This one is a real home run. The first time I made it I used leftover dark meat from our Thanksgiving turkey and chopped it fine, but we liked it so much that I’ve adapted the recipe for ground raw turkey. Now we can have it any night of the year! We like it with the slightly spicy arrabbiata sauce, because turkey can be a bit on the bland side (especially if you can only get ground white-meat turkey), but if you want to use your favorite jarred marinara sauce instead, it’s still a great dish.

When we’re hosting game night and have lots of my husband’s friends coming over, I make this salad. It’s hearty and colorful, and because it holds very well at room temperature, I can make it ahead of time so I can take part in game night, too!

These patties are inspired by the Middle Eastern dish kibbe, most often made of ground lamb and bulgur wheat. The combination of turkey and quinoa is particularly rich in protein, with a chewy texture that contrasts nicely with the crisp cucumber and red-onion slices, and the creamy tahini dressing served alongside.

Lower in saturated fat than chicken, turkey provides one of the leanest sources of animal protein. The nutrient-dense poultry also contains heart-healthy B vitamins and selenium. Round out this simple preparation with a side of steamed green beans.

Before the development of canning, pickling was one of the most important preserving methods, along with salting, drying, and smoking. Particularly in warm countries, pickling was favored for the way it used acid to stop or retard the growth of bacteria. Some historians credit the Egyptians and Romans for developing this technique, which was brought into Spain and then to Mexico. Turkeys, especially ones raised naturally, have a rich, dense flesh and dark, meaty flavor that can stand up to—and are improved by—heartier, more complex flavors like this escabeche. My favorite garnish for each taco serving is a slim feathery frond—no more than two inches long—from the top of a small stalk of fennel. It looks pretty, has good flavor, and is delicious with this filling.

Native to North America, turkey has always been a celebratory bird (or at least it was celebrated by those who dined on it). Turkey (guajolote, in Spanish) was used for special feasts in pre-Columbian times and was a favorite food of the American Indians. In Mexico today, turkey in mole is still the preferred holiday dish. For Thanksgiving dinner one year at Coyote Café, we raised almost thirty wild turkeys (so much better than the modern domesticated turkey) on open ranchland so they were free to go anywhere and eat anything. The flavor of those turkeys was magnificent! This recipe is a tempting taste of what awaits any traveler to Oaxaca or Puebla, two of the great Mexican mole capitals. Commercially produced mole sauces are widely available throughout most major grocery store chains in the United States. We have used turkey breast for this recipe, but any part of the turkey will work. Note that the turkey must marinate overnight before cooking.

Instead of stuffing and roasting a whole turkey, you can use the same two components to create an equally delicious—and arguably more elegant—dish that cooks in less time. This recipe borrows a method commonly used with a breast of veal or leg of lamb (it can be applied to a whole chicken, as well). First, the meat is boned and butterflied, then slathered with a flavorful filling, rolled up into a log (called a ballotine in French culinary terminology), and roasted in the oven. This technique actually helps avoid some common roasting pitfalls. Butterflying the meat first makes it an even thickness throughout, and rolling it around a savory filling helps compensate for the lack of bone (bones hold on to moistness during cooking, as well as impart flavor). The ballotine is still quite dense, however, so there is a risk of drying out the outer layer before the inside is cooked through. That’s why it gets covered in the (first removed and then replaced) layer of skin, then wrapped and tied in a tight cheesecloth bundle and rubbed with a generous amount of butter before roasting. Removing the bird at 155°F and letting it rise to 165°F upon resting is one last step that keeps it from overcooking. The end result? Tender turkey meat surrounded by crisp, brown skin, and a perfect portion of stuffing in each neat slice. The Italian-inspired stuffing is made with sausage, rosemary, and dried sour cherries, a refreshing alternative to cranberries but with a similar sweet-tart flavor.

It’s a safe bet that every cook will be called upon to roast a turkey at some point in his or her life. Since it’s usually a once-a-year endeavor, there’s not much room for practice. Instead, rely on proven methods and plan carefully. This is one instance where making sure you have the right equipment (a pot large enough to hold the brining turkey, plus a spot in the refrigerator to place it; a heavy roasting pan; cheesecloth for “basting” the bird as it cooks; and an instant-read thermometer) and sufficient time (a day for brining and then at least 5 hours for bringing the bird to room temperature and cooking it) is crucial. Also, take care of as much as possible in advance, such as preparing the stuffing the day before and refrigerating it overnight, while the turkey is brining. Then it will be much easier when the time comes to focus on the task at hand: roasting the perfect turkey. Brining the meat ensures that the turkey will be tender and juicy. The brining solution contains aromatics for more flavor, but you could forgo those and simply use a mixture of salt, sugar, and water. For food safety reasons, it’s essential that you let the brine cool completely before adding the turkey. Before being put in the oven, the brined bird should sit at room temperature for 2 hours; once it’s out of the oven, let it rest for 20 minutes. For a moister bird, cook to 165°F; when taking the temperature, remember that the roast will continue to cook after being removed from the oven. One more safety note: Never stuff a turkey ahead of time. Warm stuffing should not be put into a turkey until just before roasting. If the stuffing contains warm ingredients, such as sautéed onions or celery, get it into the bird and into the oven as soon as possible. Chilling warm stuffing before cooking it in a turkey is not as safe because the stuffing will, through cooling and heating, spend too much time at temperatures at which bacteria thrive (between 40 and 140°F).

For the best poultry gravy, do not roast the turkey or chicken in a nonstick roasting pan: It keeps the flavorful bits of meat and skin from cooking onto the pan.

For indirect cooking on a charcoal grill, rake hot coals onto opposite sides before grilling; place a foil pan in the center to catch drippings. Set the turkey on the grates over the pan; grill, covered but with the vents partially opened.