Turkey can be one of the more virtuous foodson our plate: Plain-roastedand skinless, it’s a low-fat, high-protein meat that partners up nicely witha modestkalesalad, say, orsome grilled asparagus with a twist of lemon.But that’s not quite the kind of turkey we’re talking here. When it’s time to set the table for a family get-togetheror a holiday feast, you’ve got to bring the flavor witha whole bird, skin-on, that’s been brined, rubbed, glazed, and/or bastedinto glistening deliciousness and readyto be surrounded byequally mouthwatering sidedishes. And we’ve put together a collection of our favorite Thanksgiving turkey recipestohelp you do just that.
FAVORITE TURKEY RECIPES FOR THANKSGIVING
Brined Bourbon-Pecan Turkey and Gravy
This recipe was inspired by a November 1980 Yankee food feature on Arilla St. Laurent, a Navy wife then livingin Bath, Maine. She and her husband and two children had spent years stationedon the Atlantic and Pacificcoastsas well as in Japan, and that steady exposure to new cuisines hadled to some inspired cooking in herkitchen. We love the richSouthern flavors in this turkey recipeas well as itstouch of New England — maple syrup in the basting liquid — that brings everything together.
Roast Turkey with Cornbread and Sausage Stuffing
As far as handling the bird goes, this has all the basics you’ll find inmost turkey recipes. The real star of this recipe is the stuffing: an extra-meaty versionthat balances sweet cornbread against spicy, savory sausage. Further uppingthe flavor intensity is the use of fresh herbs —sage, rosemary, and thyme — that can stand up to all that richness.
Roast Brined Turkey
Portland, Maine, culinary pro Sam Hayward, a James Beard Award winner who made his nameas chef-partner at Fore Street,strongly recommends brining turkey because no other method does such a good job of creating moist and flavorful meat. If you haven’t brined before, make this the one new thing you try for your holiday meal this year.
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Dry-Cured Turkey
Even thoughbrining is a great technique in turkey recipes, it admittedly can be messy, what with a huge turkey and all that brine. Also, soaking the turkey for hours in salted, seasoned water can sometimes make the breast meat a wee bitspongy. As an alternative, you can try “dry curing” or “dry brining,” a technique that was first popularized in California by chef Judy Rogers of San Francisco’s Zuni Café. Yousimplyput salt, herbs, and spices directly onto the skin of the bird, then wrap it in plastic and let it sit. The downside? It takes time. While you can fully wet-brine a turkey in 12 to 24 hours, the dry method often takes up tothreedays (you can cut thatdown a little, but the results aren’t as tasty).
Maple-Sage Dry-Brined Turkey
If you try your hand at dry-brining, remember that many frozen and kosher turkeys come pre-brined; what you need instead is a“natural,” untreated turkey.Another take on dry-brining, this recipe is a celebration of warming, autumnal spices, especially thatThanksgiving classic, sage. Here it’s used two ways: freshsprigsand dried. The lattercomes in whole leaves, rubbed, and powdered.We like the flavor and ease-of-use of rubbed sage, but you can substitute powdered sage if you prefer.
Classic Roast Turkey with Giblet Gravy
Giblets are the turkey’s neck, heart, gizzard, and liver, which are usually found tucked, like a prize, inside the cavity. Be sure to remove before brining and certainly before roasting. Giblets make a terrific gravy, but you may want toomitthe liver, as it adds a bitter flavor; instead,save it in the freezer for another use.
“NEW” TURKEY RECIPES FOR THANKSGIVING
Grill-Roasted Turkey
Try this method and youmay neveruse your oven again. The turkey cooks in half the time recommended for oven roasting, and it remains moist and juicy with just one basting. But stifle the impulse to open the grill lid for a peek — the heat in the grill will drop significantly and slow your cooking.
Gobble Olé (Mexican Turkey)
Turkey doesn’t figure into Mexican cuisine the way that pork, beef, and chicken do, but the same spices and cheeses that elevate the better-known proteins can do wonders forthe traditional American Thanksgiving bird. Arecipe sure to please unconventional cooks (and their hungry guests), Gobble Olé is aboned turkey stuffed with corn tortillas and enchilada sauce that draws on the heat of green chilies and the creamy dairy flavors of Monterey Jack, cheddar, and sour cream.
What are your favorite Thanksgiving turkeyrecipes?
This post was first published in 2017 and has been updated.
