One of the trickiest meals to cook is a turkey. The sheer size of the bird means that it requires a significant amount of time in the oven. Cooking for such a long time means that the meat can dry out. Of course, if you follow this simply recipe, you are sure to have the perfect Christmas turkey that will have your guests asking for more!

Ingredients:

  • 1 turkey (5kg)
  • Olive oil
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 clementine cut in half
  • 2 celery sticks, roughly chopped
  • 2 onions, roughly chopped
  • 2 carrots, roughly chopped
  • Several sprigs of fresh rosemary

Stuffing ingredients:

  • 300g pork mince
  • 2 onions, finely chopped
  • Olive oil
  • Salt and pepper
  • Several sprigs of sage (pick the leaves and chop roughly)
  • ½ teaspoon nutmeg (ground)
  • 1 generous handful of breadcrumbs

Directions:

  • Before you begin, you need to remove your Christmas turkey from the refrigerator approximately 1 hour before cooking. This ensures that the meat slowly warms to room temperature and will prove beneficial when roasting.
  • Rinse the turkey thoroughly before you pat it dry with some kitchen towels.
  • Drizzle some olive oil over the meat and season with salt and pepper.
  • Rub the seasoning over the entire exterior of the turkey.
  • Turn your oven on to the highest setting and allow to pre-heat as you prepare the stuffing.
  • Fry the onion in some olive oil until soft.
  • Add salt, pepper and nutmeg (if desired).
  • Add sage to the pan and fry for another minute or two.
  • Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature before adding the pork mince and breadcrumbs.
  • Mix the pork mixture well with your hands. It is far more effective than using a spoon or fork.
  • Once thoroughly mixed, press the stuffing mixture into a ball shape, cover and chill until your are ready to stuff the turkey.
  • Place half of the stuffing inside the front of the bird but make sure that you do not compact it too much as this will slow down the cooking process.
  • Fold the flap down and tuck it in to hold the stuffing in place as the turkey cooks.
  • Turn the bird around and fill the larger cavity with a bit more stuffing. Add rosemary and the clementine halves.
  • Cover the base of your roasting pan with some roughly chopped vegetables before placing your turkey on top.
  • Cover with tin foil and place in the oven.
  • Turn the oven down to 180 degrees C at this point so that you do not end up burning the exterior while the interior remains raw.
  • Cook covered for 40 minutes per kilogram. The larger the turkey, the longer it needs to be cooked. For a 5kg turkey, you will need about 3 hours and 30 minutes.
  • Baste your turkey every 20 minutes to prevent it from drying out.
  • Once there is approximately 1 hour left to cook, you should remove the foil to allow the skin to become crispy and turn a lovely golden colour.
  • Use a meat thermometer and insert it into the thickest part of the turkey to check if cooked. The thermometer should read 75 – 80 degrees C and this indicates that the bird is cooked all the way through.
  • Once cooked, allow your turkey to rest for about an hour. If the bird is larger, you might need to let it set for 2 hours.
  • You will have more than enough time to prepare all your side items like vegetables and gravy to serve with this delicious freshly roasted turkey.

Not only is this Christmas turkey recipe easy to follow, but you will also find that your guests will be begging for more stuffing too! The stuffing adds flavour to the meat and keeps it moist too. Gravy is also very important. Especially if your guests are enjoying a few slices of breast meat because it is known for being one of the dryer parts of the bird.