Cook’s Notes
Talking Turkey
It’s a hot topic of conversation among all cooks in the
run up to the big day. Get our expert Russell Brown’s
top ten tips for cooking your best ever bird
1. As with any meat or poultry, buy
the best you can. A good free range
turkey will have a better texture and
flavour.
Michelinstarred chef and
restaurateur
Russell Brown
heads up Creative
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2. Remove the bird from the fridge
an hour before roasting to let it come
up towards room temperature. If the
bird has been frozen it is essential to
make sure it is completely defrosted.
3. Remove the giblets and roast them
separately for making a turkey stock
for the gravy. This could be done the
day before and the stock chilled.
4. Roast the bird on some sort of
trivet. This could be a metal rack but
my preference is for a bed of onion
wedges, garlic and some sage leaves.
5. The breast will cook more quickly
than the legs, one option if you don’t
want to present the turkey whole is to
remove the legs and return them to
the oven when the breast is perfectly
done. This is relatively easy on a
small bird but care should be taken
with the handling.
6. If roasting whole, a triangular piece
of foil, a couple of layers thick, will
help to stop the breast overcooking.
Cover the breast after the first 20
minutes and uncover for the last 30.
7. A digital temperature probe is
ideal for checking the doneness,
a temperature of 70°c in the
thickest part of the meat should
be maintained for two minutes.
Alternatively when a knife is inserted
into the t hickest part of the thigh the
juices should run clear.
8. A guide to cooking time is 20
minutes per 500g in weight but keep
checking and if possible use the
digital temperature probe. If you
are stuffing the Turkey, calculate the
cooking time based on the weight
with the stuffing.
9. Resting the bird is one of the most
important aspects of the cooking.
Once the turkey is done remove it
from the roasting tin allowing any
juices to run out, place on a wire
rack and leave somewhere warm but
not hot. Cover loosely with silicon
parchment and then a clean cloth
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rather than wrapping in foil. The
foil retains too much heat causing
the bird to overcook and the steam
condensing can make for a soggy skin.
Rest for at least an hour. Don’t even
think about roasting the potatoes until
the bird is out, that way you will leave
it to rest for plenty of time!
10. There are as many ways to roast a
turkey as there are cooks in kitchens
and it will come down to preference
at the end of the day. If I was roasting
a turkey I would place the bird on a
bed of onion wedges, sage and garlic,
add 2cm of water to the tin, drizzle
olive oil over the bird and season
heavily with Maldon sea salt, rubbing
in well. Roast at 220°c for 20 minutes
and then lower the temperature
to 160°c and cook according to
the weight. Keep checking the tin
and adding a little more water if
necessary. Just enough to stop the
onions burning. Once done remove
the bird to rest. Drain any excess fat
from the tin and purée the onion mix
to give a flavoursome side dish to
serve with the bird. Add any juices
that have come from the resting bird
to your gravy.