Portuguese roast turkey

10 servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
10 pounds Turkey
2 pounds Coarse (kosher) salt
¼ pounds Unsalted butter
3 tablespoons Olive oil
2 xes Large cloves garlic, minced
1 pounds French or Italian bread
½ teaspoon Fine salt
½ teaspoon Freshly ground pepper
3½ cup Chicken stock
2 xes Large egg yolks

Directions

Remove giblets from turkey and reserve for another use. Wash turkey and pat dry. Fill neck and body cavities with coarse salt, then rub skin well all over with salt. Place turkey and any remainng coarse salt in large deep kettle, adding enough cold water just to cover bird. Set in cool spot 3 to 4 hours.

To prepare stuffing, place butter and olive oil in large, heavy saute pan or kettle, and set over moderate heat. When butter is melted, add garlic and cook 3 to 5 minutes until tender.

Meanwhile, tear bread into small chunks. Add bread, fine salt, and pepper to garlic mixture and toss well. Pour in chicken stock and beat hard with wooden spoon until mixture is paste-like. Reduce heat to lowest point. Cover kettle and steam 15 to 20 minutes until bread absorbs all liquid. Add egg yolks to mixture and beat hard until smooth. Remove from heat and reserve.

Drain turkey and rinse several times in cool water so all traces of salt wash away. Place bird on counter with neck cavity facing up.

With hands, begin working skin free from breast. Proceed gently, taking care not to tear skin. Loosen skin down both sides of bird to within 1 inch of tail end.

With hands, push stuffing bit by bit under skin. Continue packing stuffing in lightly, until breast is covered with about 1-inch layer.

Next, fill neck cavitiy. Skewer neck skin flat against back to enclose and truss bird.

Place turkey, breast-side up, in large shallow roasting pan without rack. Roast at 400 degrees, uncovered about 2½ hours. Do not baste. When bird is richly browned and leg moves easily in hip joint, remove from oven and let stand, uncovered, 20 minutes.

Drain drippings into sauceboat and keep warm. Remove trussing string and skewers and serve turkey at once on warmed platter.

-- from the LA TIMES FOOD SECTION, 11-21-91 by Peter Kump, director of Peter Kump's New York Cooking School

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