Christmas Turkey: AIBU to ask for your tips

[PinkSyCo]

on cooking the turkey? This year will be only the second time in my 50 years of being on this earth that will have cooked a Turkey, and although my first attempt last year turned out fine I think it might have been more beginners luck so want to make sure it turns out as good, or preferably better this year. How do you makes yours flavoursome and moist? Also the gravy. My mum’s gravy was the best. How do you make yours?

Sage butter under the skin, streaky bacon on top. Hers, onion and an orange in the main cavity and only stuff the neck end, otherwise air can't circulate and you risk an undercooked turkey. Rest for at least an hour and a half after cooking. I always make Jamie Oliver get ahead gravy and freeze it so you don't have to faff about on the day.

Roast on bed of veg,Lots of butter under skin, first half cook upside down, then flip over and cover in streaky bacon.
When finished foil and towels for least an house, will be so juicy.
Wizz up veg in blender add turkey juices and couple stock cubes and thicken if needed

Lots of great tips on here. Thanks everyone! caringcarer I have never heard of using milk in gravy! Sounds delicious though. 😋

I make Jamie’s gravy a week out and then brine the turkey for a couple of days. Add the turkey juices to the defrosted gravy - perfect every time.

I make Jamie’s gravy a week out and then brine the turkey for a couple of days. Add the turkey juices to the defrosted gravy - perfect every time.

I’ve just looked up the recipe. Bloody hell that’s a meal in itself isn’t it?!! I could not be faffed with all that but I bet it tastes divine.

I have cooked Christmas Dinner almost every year for the last 35 years.

I still follow the way of St Delia of Norwich blessed be her name.

Sausage meat under the skin on the breast. Run butter all over and cover with streaky bacon. Enclose in a tent of foil with enough space for the air to get all round. Give it a blast at 200 fan for 40 minutes then turn down to 160 for the next 3 and a half hours. Then remove foil, turn up to 180 and give it another 45 minutes basting occasionally. Finally remove from oven and cover and keep warm for about 30 minutes.

Just checked all that on my Christmas Dinner time plan which I have on a spreadsheet and follow every year!

Oh and for the gravy I make giblet stock the day before (Delia again of course) then make the gravy using juices from the roasting tin after the bird has been removed, work in some flour then the hot stock

I do it in a roasting bag. Butter under the skin and bacon on, tho tbh I don't think that matters, and it cooks UNBELIEVABLY fast-two hours or less - and is moist. The juice gets poured into the roasting tin onto a roux of some turkey juice/grease and flour. This year, though, I need to keep things simple and I’ve bought a carton of turkey gravy!

Delia all the way. Smother with butter, season and coat with streaky rashers.

Entomb in a criss cross envelope of foil. Then, after a fast blast cook low and slow.

Baste for the last 40 minutes out of the foil.

Rest for an hour.

Foolproof

I stole this from Facebook

Anybody get stressed about Christmas Dinner ? Read this from a Sheffield butchers .

I’ve pinched this, but it’s fab!!

Patterson’s Butchers Sheffield

😂Just in case anyone is stressing about Christmas Day..............! 😂

Here's my top tips:-

🎄Christmas Dinner....
I have concluded that the inevitable stress of Christmas dinner is created by adverts, supermarkets and TV chefs...
It's a Sunday dinner for goodness sake!!!
The only difference is that you are allowed to open a bottle of wine before you open the kitchen curtains. 🍷🍷🍷

🙄We do it quite happily 51 weeks of the year but can we the consumers be trusted to manage by ourselves on one day of the year...apparently not!
Here goes...💓

1. Turkey... It's a big fecking chicken that's all, 20 minutes per lb plus 20 minutes at 180 degrees - jobs a good un! Get yourselves a meat thermometer £3 off the Internet poke it in the offending bird if it says 75 degrees or over its cooked!👏🏼

1. Stuffing - regardless of what Jamie Oliver says you do NOT need 2lbs of shoulder of pork, onions breadcrumbs,pine nuts and a shit load of fresh herbs to make stuffing....( no fecking wonder he's bankrupt if thats what he spends to make stuffing!)😜

What you need is Paxo and a kettle!! If you wanna liven it up squeeze 3 sausages out of their skins and mix that in with your Paxo before cooking 😉.

1. Gravy - Jamie Oliver is copping for this one aswell....

Bisto Jamie.... All you need is Bisto! I ( nor anyone else I know) has got time on Christmas Eve to piss about roasting chicken wings and vegetables, adding stock and flour,cooking it for another half hour, mashing it all up with a potato masher and then straining the whole sorry mess to make gravy 😠😠😠

1. Vegetables...🍆 Never mind faffing round shredding sprouts and frying them with bacon and chestnuts to make them more palatable... If you don't like them don't buy and cook the fecking things!! If your family only eats frozen peas then that's good enough!

1. Roast potatoes... Yes I par boil mine then roast them in goose fat but Aunt Bessie also does the same 😉.

1. Trimmings /Christmas pudding and the like.... Aldi or Lidl!

(oh and while we're on the subject of pudding- if birds custard is what your family likes on the wretched thing then that's fine - you do not need brandy butter /rum sauce etc or anything else that costs a fecking fortune and takes 2 hours to make!)

1. Family....

Children.. Feed the little blighters first separately, if they only want turkey with tomato sauce - fine leave em to it, it doesn't matter. Once they are fed bugger them off to play with their Christmas presents so that YOU can enjoy your dinner in Peace!

Adults... Anyone that can manage to get their sorry arse to your dinner table is also capable of helping to serve up/ sort the kids out/ clear the table /wash up /dry up etc.

And Finally.....
NO ONE.... And I mean no one APART FROM THE COOK IS ALLOWED TO GET PISSED AND FALL ASLEEP BEFORE THE WASHING UP IS DONE!!!

Rant over 😂

              🎄Merry Christmas!🎄

Cheers 🍷🍷🍷

Haha MajorCarolDanvers I love that, especially as after reading Jamie’s recipe for gravy I was like wtf but was worried that that was just me and maybe most people DO go to that much trouble for each and every component of the meal.
I’m going to stop fretting now, and just be happy if get food on the table without having to call out the fire brigade and am able to avoid poisoning everyone. Wish me luck!