• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
She's Cookin' | food and travel

She's Cookin' | food and travel

culinary travel with a side of heart healthy recipes and libations

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers
    • Baking + Sweets
    • Breakfast-Brunch
    • Drinks
    • Heart Healthy
    • Main Dish
    • Meatless Monday
    • Pasta
    • Salads
    • Seafood
    • Sides
    • Soups
    • Veggies
  • Drinks
  • Low Sodium Tips
  • Travel
    • Belize
    • CHINA
      • Beijing
      • Hong Kong
      • Shanghai
    • EUROPE
      • Amsterdam
      • Brussels
      • Cannes
      • Paris
      • Ireland
    • JAPAN
      • Osaka
    • U.S.
      • Central Coast, CA
      • Chicago
      • Eureka Springs, AR
      • Gulf Coast, MS
      • Huntington Beach, CA
      • Idaho
      • Little Saigon, CA
      • Louisville, KY
      • Malibu, CA
      • Napa Valley
      • North Carolina
    • Tours – Food and Farm
    • Travel Guides
  • OC Dining & Events
    • Anaheim
    • Brea
    • Costa Mesa
    • Dana Point
    • Huntington Beach
    • Irvine
    • Laguna Beach
    • Newport Beach
    • Orange
    • Santa Ana
    • Sushi restaurants
    • Tustin
    • Westminster
  • Lifestyle
  • About
    • Let’s Work Together
    • General Disclaimer
    • Privacy Policy

Turkey Time!

November 19 by Priscilla 2 Comments

Share
Tweet
Pin
Yum
Email
Buffer
Reddit
Share

Brown Sugar-cured Turkey

Cooking Thanksgiving dinner can be stressful and in my previous post I shared TWO TIPS to help the day go smoother:

1. Read your recipes and directions carefully.

2. Cook side dishes in advance (esp. if you’re like me and have only ONE oven).

I considered adding a third tip: don’t do anything different, but you might take that the wrong way. One of the aspects of cooking that I enjoy the most is trying new recipes. And every year I’ve gazed upon the mouth-watering November issues of all the cooking magazines I have, past and current, and select a new dessert or side dish to change things up a bit. I learned years ago that I can’t mess with the traditional line-up too much. The Don insists upon jellied cranberry sauce and by all means, DON’T mess with the mashed potatoes!

So what I’m getting at is, to quote an old adage, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. Instead of stuffing the turkey this year, I baked the stuffing separately. Savory stuffing is what I anticipate most about Thanksgiving dinner and I was sorely disappointed because my traditional bread dressing lacked the moistness and full flavor that the turkey juices add. (When “stuffing” is baked separately, rather than stuffed in the turkey, is when it’s called “dressing”.)


On to the main attraction, the centerpiece of your Thanksgiving table, Roast Turkey. Most importantly, it takes 3-4 days to defrost a turkey in the refrigerator (recommended). For tips on all things turkey, from defrosting to carving, visit Butterball.com or you can call the Butterball Talk Line at 1-800-BUTTERBALL. If you haven’t done your grocery shopping, here’s a list of supermarket specials from DealsDiva.


The Brown Sugar-cured Turkey has been a family favorite since 1997. This recipe, as well as the Roasted Vegetables with Balsamic-Lemon Vinaigrette, were featured in a collection highlighting the best-loved ingredients of the Pacific Northwest, so naturally, an Oregon Pinot Noir is the perfect wine pairing.

Brown Sugar-cured Turkey

(from Bon Appétit)

Because it is cooked slowly at a low temperature, the turkey is extremely moist and flavorful. Apply the spice rub ONE DAY AHEAD. Then bask in the praise on Thanksgiving Day! This recipe, as well as the Roasted Vegetables with Balsamic-Lemon Vinaigrette, were featured in a collection highlighting the best-loved ingredients of the Pacific Northwest, so naturally, an Oregon Pinot Noir is the perfect wine pairing.

Serves 10

1 20-lb. turkey

½ c. (packed) golden brown sugar

¼ c. coarse salt (such as Kosher salt)

2 t. onion powder

1 t. garlic powder

1 t. ground allspice

1 t. ground cloves

1 t. ground mace (nutmeg may be substituted)

2 large onions quartered

2 c. low-salt chicken broth

Defrost turkey. Remove the neck and giblets from the body and neck cavities. Rinse turkey inside and out, drain juices. Pat dry with paper towels. Place turkey on a platter or in a roasting pan.

Mix brown sugar, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, allspice, cloves, and mace in a small bowl and blend well. Rub brown sugar mixture all over outside of turkey. Refrigerate UNCOVERED for 24 hours.

Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 300 degrees F. Arrange onion quarters in large roasting pan. Place turkey on top of onions. Tie turkey legs together and tuck wings under turkey (this is already done on a lot of turkeys). Sprinkle turkey with pepper. Cover loosely with foil. Roast turkey for 2 hours.

Uncover; roast for 30 minutes. Add 1 cup broth to roasting pan; baste turkey with broth. Roast turkey 1 hour, basting occasionally. Add another cup of broth to roasting pan; continue to roast turkey until dark brown, basting with broth every 20 minutes, about 1 hour. Cover turkey loosely with foil; continue roasting until meat thermometer inserted into innermost part of thigh registers 180 ?F, about 1 hour and 30 minutes longer.

Remove from oven, transfer turkey to platter. Tent with oil and let stand 30 minutes.

Note: Total roasting time is 5 hours, but remember this is for a 20 lb. turkey. The rule of thumb is 15 minutes for every pound of turkey when baked at 325 degrees F.

3. Enjoy sharing this day with your family and friends.

Champagne


Related

You Might Also Like:

  • Pork Tenderloin with Orange Chipotle Sauce
    Bon Appétit Challenge

    It's been quite awhile since I posted a Bon Appétit challenge recipe - I've been…

  • Mario Batali's Chicken Parmesan
    Bon Appétit Challenge: Mario Batali's Chicken Parmesan

    A mouthwatering, cheesy Chicken Parmesan recipe from Mario Batali's restaurant, Otto, in New York City…

  • Savory Brined Turkey with Brown Rice Syrup Glaze

    Turkey recipes abound and its officially countdown time to the big day! I've ordered my…

Share
Tweet
Pin
Yum
Email
Buffer
Reddit
Share

Category She's Cookin' Tags Bon Appetit Challenge| Brown Sugar-cured Turkey| She's Cookin'| Thanksgiving

Previous
Brussels Sprouts Grow on Trees
Next
The Three P’s: Pizza=Party=Perfect
logo
Food Advertising by

Reader Interactions

Trackbacks

  1. Top Mom Blog » Blog Archive » Bon Appétit Challenge says:
    January 5 at 8:49 am

    […] Anyway, past Bon Appétit challenges have included  Five-Spice Apple Pie, Mario Batali’s Chicken Parmesan, Pork Tenderloins with Cranberry-Port Sauce and, most recently, Brown-Sugar Cured Turkey. […]

    Reply
  2. Savory Brined Turkey with Brown Rice Syrup Glaze | She's Cookin' says:
    November 16 at 5:58 am

    […] brining, glazing, deep-fried, smoked, and grilled turkeys! For the past 10 years I’ve made a Brown Sugar Cured Turkey recipe from Bon Appetit – its a rub of brown sugar and herbs that is slathered on the bird […]

    Reply

We love hearing from our readers! Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Get Adventures by Email

logo
Food Advertisements by

Travel with Me

logo
Food Advertisements by

Top Posts

10 Naturally Delicious Sodium Substitutes
Low Sodium Homemade Country Biscuits
5 Everyday Foods That Go Well With Port Wine
Luscious Lemon Meringue Cocktail
Ina Garten's Lemon Chicken Breast
King Cornbread
logo
Food Advertisements by
  • Home
  • Recipes
  • Drinks
  • Low Sodium Tips
  • OC Dining & Events
  • Travel
  • About

Footer