Tuesday, January 15, 2013

JD is a KS on duty for Tasty Tuesday.



Do you see him? He is serious about his job. He is a bonafide, certified, registered, licensed and qualified KS.  Kitchen Supervisor, sir, to you!


Supervising the prep and cooking and service of the big chicken named after a country is a very important job, and one we do not entrust to just anyone.


Diced big chicken named after a country- aka turkey- is one of our fav meals! 

For us, it is roasted without adding all the junk. [grasses and stinkies....herbs and seasonings]


For now ...watching it cool down. Anticipation.

'vie and JD and the Wendy too.




How does it get done? As I see it, this is how momma does it:

Take raw turkey out of the fridge. [ I assume, the hoomans brought the beastie home from some sort of store, but at my house it comes out of the garage fridge.... hmmm wonder what else is in there...] 


 Pre heat the oven at 400 F  degrees.

Let the turkey sit out for about an hour to bring it to room temperature.

Wash it under running water and remove any plastic rings or temperature pop up gauges... they never work anyway. At this point momma is muttering "Why bother?"

Lightly salt the turkey inside the cavity and out.

Rub a tiny bit of olive oil on the skin.

Tie up your turkey so that the wings and legs are close to the body. This makes more even cooking. And if you ask me, given how hot that oven is, tying up the thing makes sense.  I would be inclined to get up and leave...

For a 15 lb turkey start the cooking at 400 F for the first 1/2 hour. Then reduce the heat to 350 F for the next 2 hours. Then reduce the heat further to 225 F for the next hour to hour and a half.
If you want the breast to be browned as well, you can turn the bird over so that the breast is on top, and put it in a 500°F oven or under the broiler for 4-5 minutes, just enough to brown the breast. Note that if you do this, you will have a higher risk of overcooking the turkey breast.
Start taking temperature readings with a meat thermometer, inserted deep into the thickest part of the turkey breast and thigh, an hour before the turkey should be done. You want a resulting temperature of 175°F for the dark meat (thighs and legs) and 165°F for the white meat. Or ask me.  I know when it is ready.  My nose never fails me. And once it is done... it has to sit. Just sit. Literally, just sit for about a half hour... doing nothing , but smelling up the house.
Then momma will carve it, and serve to us with some veggies. Oh it is wonderful.




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