Braised Turkey with Gravy

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Why this recipe works:

Braising turkey parts can be a great way to keep them from drying out—simmering the meat in a covered pot is an inherently gentle cooking method, which helps ensure the delicate breast meat won’t dry out. But braising doesn’t necessarily guarantee moist meat; first, we’d have to find just the right temperature and cooking time. Braising the turkey parts in a roasting pan (rather than a Dutch oven) ensured they would all fit in a single layer. After trying higher and lower temperatures, we settled on cooking the parts at 325 degrees, which took a reasonable two hours. Brining the turkey seasoned the meat and helped it stay moist. Searing the pieces before adding the liquid added rich flavor to the stock. Adding some white wine, aromatics, and porcini mushrooms deepened the flavor of the stock further, which then allowed us to create a rich gravy.

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Ingredients

  • 10 to 12 12
  • Ingredients
  • Turkey
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 1cup 1cup sugar
  • 1 1 to 7-pound) to 7-pound) whole bone-in turkey breast, trimmed
  • 4 4pounds 4pounds turkey drumsticks and thighs, trimmed
  • 3 3 3 onions, chopped
  • 3 3 3 celery ribs, chopped
  • 2 2 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
  • 6 6 6 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
  • 2 2 2 bay leaves
  • 6 6sprigs 6sprigs fresh thyme
  • 6 6sprigs 6sprigs fresh parsley
  • 1/2 1/2ounce 1/2ounce dried porcini mushrooms, rinsed
  • 4 4tablespoons 4tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 4 4cups 4cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 1cup 1cup dry white wine
  • Gravy
  • 3 3tablespoons 3tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • Salt and pepper

Preparation

Step 1


1. FOR THE TURKEY: Dissolve 1 cup salt and sugar in 2 gallons cold water in large container. Submerge turkey pieces in brine, cover, and refrigerate for 3 to 6 hours.
2. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 500 degrees. Remove turkey from brine and pat dry with paper towels. Toss onions, celery, carrots, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, parsley, porcini, and 2 tablespoons butter in large roasting pan; arrange in even layer. Brush turkey pieces with remaining 2 tablespoons butter and season with pepper. Place turkey pieces, skin side up, over vegetables, leaving at least ¼ inch between pieces. Roast until skin is lightly browned, about 20 minutes.
3. Remove pan from oven and reduce temperature to 325 degrees. Pour broth and wine around turkey pieces (it should come about three-quarters of way up legs and thighs). Place 12 by 16-inch piece of parchment paper over turkey pieces. Cover roasting pan tightly with aluminum foil. Return covered roasting pan to oven and cook until breasts register 160 degrees and thighs register 175 degrees, 1¾ to 2¼ hours. Transfer turkey to carving board, tent loosely with foil, and let rest for 20 minutes.
4. FOR THE GRAVY: Strain vegetables and liquid from roasting pan through fine-mesh strainer set in large bowl. Press solids with back of spatula to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard vegetables. Transfer liquid to fat separator; allow to settle, 5 minutes. Reserve 3 tablespoons fat and measure out 3 cups braising liquid (reserve any remaining broth for another use).
5. Heat reserved fat in medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour and cook, stirring constantly, until flour is dark golden brown and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Whisk in 3 cups braising liquid and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until gravy is thick and reduced to 2 cups, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove gravy from heat and season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Carve turkey and serve, passing gravy separately.

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