Traditional Roast Turkey with Celery, Apricot and Grand Marnier stuffing
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| Preparation time: |
30
min
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| Cooking time: |
min
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Ingredients
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5kg fresh turkey, or frozen turkey fully defrosted
6 streaky bacon rashers
butter or oil
for the stuffing:
turkey liver from giblets
75g (3oz)dried apricots, diced
150ml (1/4 pt)Grand marnier
4 tablespoons cooking oil
2 celery sticks, chopped
1 small onion chopped
225g (8oz)pork sausagemeat
225g (8oz)herb stuffing mix
225ml(8fl oz) chicken stock
50g (2oz) butter, melted
1/4 level teaspoon dried thyme
salt and pepper |
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Preparing the turkey: Remove the giblets from the neck flap and main cavity. Wash the turkey inside out and pat dry with a kitchen towel. Loosen the skin at the neck end and remove the wishbone with a small sharp knife to make carving easier
To Make the stuffing: In a tefal saucepan, simmer the liver for 5 minutes in enough water to cover and set aside. Put the apricots and 75ml (5 tablespoons) Grand Marnier in a Tefal saucepan. Heat until boiling and then set aside. Heat the oil in a tefal frying pan snd gently fry the celery and onion for about 7 minutes until softened.Put in a mixing bowl. Cook the sausagemeat in the same pan until just coloured breaking it up with a spatula. Add to the celery mixture with the stuffing mix, apricots and their liquid, diced turkey liver and thyme. Mix well. Add the melted butter, stock and reamining 75 ml (5 tablespoons)Grand Marnier. Season with salt and pepper.
To Stuff the turkey: Stuff the turkey just before cooking. Never put the stuffing into the main body cavity. Spoon the stuffing loosely into the neck end, between the skin and the breast , then tidy the neck skin by tucking it under the turkey to form a tight seal. Sew up the cavity or secure with cocktail sticks. Any left over stuffing can be shaped into balls and cooked separately. Bake the stuffing balls in a roasting dish along with the turkey, for 30 minutes.
To roast the turkey: Weigh the turkey with stuffing and calculate the cooking time based on 45 minutes per kg, plus 20 minutes. Place the turkey into the tefal roaster. Brush generously with melted butter or oil, then cover the breast with bacon and seaon with salt and pepper. Cover loosely with foil. Place in a preheated oven at 190*c, 375*F, Gas mark 5 and roast for the calculated time. Baste the turkey during cooking. Remove the foil for the last 45 minutes of cooking. Check that it has cooked by inserting a skewer into the thickest part of the thigh. If the juices run clear the turkey is ready.If there are any traces of blood, return to the oven for further cooking without the foil.
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The stuffing can be made up without the turkey liver the day before and stored in the fridge. Then add the cooked turkey liver just before stuffing the turkey. If the turkey does not come with giblets, 75g (3oz) chicken livers can be substituted.
Defrosting a frozen turkey: if using a frozen bird, remember to take it out in time to completely thaw before you start coooking. Check the packaging for defrosting detail. If there are no details, deforst in the fridge allowing 18kg per kg, or in a cool room such as a larder, allowing 7 hours per kg. A frozen turkey is fully defrosted when the main cavity is free from any ice crystals.
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