The most important food at Thanksgiving is of course the turkey. My kids always use the term WAA-LAA.
What is WAA-LAA you ask? Well, when the kids were younger the best part of thanksgiving meal was the unveiling of the turkey. You will see in my recipe that my method of preparing and unveiling the turkey feast can only be put into the words of “WAA-LAA!”
I invite you all to make this Thanksgiving holiday special with a WAA-LAA Turkey. Call old friends and remind them that it is time to sit and break bread (virtually, perhaps); time to laugh and toast and most of all, embrace old memories …From our table to yours I send heartfelt appreciation to YOUR Thanksgiving table!
Thanksgiving Turkey WAA-LAA
This recipe will appear long and tedious, but I assure you it is well worth the effort. Please read over and prepare your ingredients and pots. Have lots of patience and it will be the best turkey you serve!
Let’s Begin:
1) Find the best source for your turkey. A local farm or your local market is a good starting point. I recommend a fresh turkey if available.
2) Find a large pot that will accommodate the size of turkey.
3) Wash turkey several times with cold water.
4) Set turkey upright and set aside let it drain.
5) Additional prep:
- Cut up 6 lemons in thick slices.
- Cut up 6 oranges in thick slices.
- Cut up a few garlic heads.
- Peel 4 large onions and into thick slices.
- You will need plenty of coarse kosher salt.
- Some white wine.
- Cold tap water.
- A large pot that turkey can be submerged into (make sure that this container fits in your fridge!) If you find that your fridge is not large enough, your other choice is to use a pot that does fit and turn the turkey every 8 hours so that the brining can be balanced throughout the entire bird.
6) Several packages of cheesecloth for cooking.
7) 3 lbs. of salted or unsalted butter
8) I use all the small amounts of liqueurs left in my cabinet from cooking all year and I add a smooth whiskey (about 2 bottles total).
9) Peel and cut into thick slices 5 large onions, set aside.
10) Wash and core 6 Granny Smith apples.
Method of brining – up to 2 days before dinner
Place the turkey onto the cutting board and wrap a towel around the cutting board to catch any drips. Put a handful of lemon and orange slices into the cavity of the turkey. Add some chunks of onions and a little salt and pepper in there, too. Place the rest of the lemon and orange slices on the bottom of the turkey pot. Put the turkey into a large container in an upright position, if possible. Pour white wine and a ½ cup of kosher salt, then fill with cold water. Make sure the turkey is submerged. Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Getting ready to cook the WAA-LAA! – the day before
The day before Thanksgiving remove the turkey from the fridge. You will see that liquid brine has become cloudy. That is a good thing. Place your turkey in your sink and let it drain for about 1 hour. Remove everything from the cavity of the turkey and discard. Be sure to have something in the sink that will let turkey to drain into.
Once turkey has drained, place it in the pan that you will be cooking it in.
Sprinkle it with some salt and pepper, patting it so it sticks.
Cut into cubes 1 pound of cold butter.
The top of the turkey breast has some skin that is flappy and it will easily separate from the flesh of the turkey. Being careful not to break the turkey skin, gently place pieces of butter in-between each side of the turkey breast (you can fit your hand in this area, but be careful not to break the skin). Once this is done, pat the skin so that it bonds with the butter.
You can now place your turkey in the fridge and cover with plastic wrap and kiss it goodnight.
Thanksgiving Day!
In a pot that will hold your liqueur and or whiskey add all remaining butter. Let this come to a slow simmer.
Preheat your oven to 350degrees. Estimate that the bird takes approximately 15 minutes per pound at 350 degrees to cook.
Remove your turkey from fridge. Make sure this pan has some collar on it so that juices do not overflow (this is why it is very important for the turkey to drain at least 24 hours before cooking).
In the pan, place your sliced onions and Granny Smith apples on bottom. Place your dressed turkey on top and drizzle small amount of olive oil onto it, then massage the bird. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. I also sprinkle some granulated garlic on it, too.
Cheesecloth Draping 101 – Take the cheesecloth and drape over the entire body of the bird from the top. Do not cover the bottom of course, but do be sure to cover the legs and wings. Drape and layer several times so that it has at least two or three layers of cheesecloth.
Once your brew of butter and liqueur has cooled down to room temperature, carefully begin to drizzle until the mixture is gone. If you prefer not to use liqueur, then you may use the best orange juice – with pulp- that you can find. The only drawback to using just orange juice is that the gravy does not come out as one expects, and you will need to use another pound of butter. I know it sounds like an awful lot of butter, but I assure you that when you are cooking a large bird of 20-25 pounds, it does require proper saturation to keep the bird moist.
Your turkey will look silly and possibly ugly, and by the time it is done cooking it will look even worse, but I promise that in the end it will be magnificent. Remember the magic rule – cook the bird 15 minutes per pound at 350 degrees.
Once it is cooked, let the turkey stand for at least 10 minutes. Do not remove the cheesecloth until you are ready to present at the table. Place the turkey on a serving platter and bring it to the table. On the count of three, get everyone to say, “WAA-LAA!”
1…2…3 WAA-LAA!
You will not believe how beautiful your turkey looks and how juicy and flavorful it will taste. Brining in citrus gives a clean taste to the meat. The citrus you placed in the cavity will present an aromatic balance in the flavor. The bed of sweet onions and tart apples will flavor the gravy that will soon coat the tender meat. Your added effort of padding butter under the skin will result in a moist, tender piece of feasting.
Gravy:
You know gravy is one of those things that is very personal. I usually drain the liquid from my turkey pan and place in a medium size pot. I like to whisk my gravy as it cooks and I tend to splash, so height works for me in a pot.
I sprinkle in some wondra flour or some cornstarch. If I find that it requires additional flavoring, I add some seasonings of salt, pepper and garlic.
Keep it simple and the natural flavors of everything you have cooked with become the harvest of all the flavors in your gravy. If you add too many new seasonings, it will take away from where you started in the recipe. Keep it simple and the food will do the rest.
I realize this recipe looks complicated, but if you read in-between the lines, it is simple. Most of the verbiage is the explanation of the method of preparing and cooking the turkey. You need a little time and patience and I promise that your Thanksgiving WAA-LAA will be a new tradition.
Enjoy and feast on the Thanksgiving of Family and Friends!
With heartfelt holiday feasting,
Rosa