Turkey and Gravy

I really have to remember to take pictures of food.

Making turkey with all the trimmings was a first for me, but I took it on, mostly to have full control over dinner. When I'd first sent out the invite to my friends for dinner here on Christmas Eve, the idea of my making the turkey and their bringing the sides was bandied about, but in the end, I figured if I made everything, the chances of having a massive amount of leftovers would be greatly lessened.

And I was right. (Yay! ^^) The only thing left in great quantities is the mashed potato, but that's due more to my poor spatial skills than anything else. I can also blame Eddie for having such a late lunch so as to eat like a bird when he got here. I'll forgive him, though, since he's always so nice about my cooking.


Ingredients (Serves 8-12):
14lb turkey
celery tops leftover from the stuffing
rosemary
parsley
sage
olive oil
salt
pepper


Method:
Preheat oven to 325F.
Rinse the turkey and pat dry, inside and out.
Drizzle on olive oil and spread around the skin.
Season generously inside and out.
Set the bird breast up on a roasting rack in a pan.
Place celery leaves and herbs inside the cavity.
Put some lukewarm water into the pan.
Bake for 3 hours.
Check the meat temperature. If it is almost at 165F, broil at 450F to crisp the skin (if it isn't already).
Remove from oven and let rest for 20-30 minutes before carving.


Gravy:
Use drippings, anything from the cavity of the bird and the crusty brown stuff scraped off the bottom of the pan.
Simmer together with giblets and leftover stock from the stuffing for as long as you can. Depending on the quantity of gravy needed, you may need to simmer with more water.
Remove from heat.
To reduce the amount of fat in the gravy, use a baster to pipe out the liquid under the layer of fat, into the gravy container.
Season to taste.
Whisk in flour until the right consistency.


Comments:
If I had an onion, I would've stuffed it into the bird for extra flavour.

I added water to the pan in hopes that it would help keep the bird from drying out. I am not sure how well it worked. Some people tent the bird in foil, but I try not to use disposable things if I don't have to.

I read that some people roast it breast down. The reasoning was that the juices would drip into the breast, rather than away. I'm a bit skeptical about this. I noticed that juices collected in the cavity. Had I roasted it breast down, it would've gone directly to the pan.

There was considerably less liquid in the cavity after resting, prior to getting drippings for the gravy. Whether this was due to evaporation, or re-uptake by the meat is unknown. I should've covered the turkey while it was resting.

I generally try to do things in as few steps and with as few items to wash as possible, so I skipped the brining. (We didn't have a container large enough, anyway). The turkey, while not too dry, was not juicy, either. I do admit to losing track of the bake time, so it could very well have been fine had it not been in the oven as long.


Verdict:
Yummy with the cranberry sauce!