I am here to share something that might surprise everyone as the person who has been in charge of Thanksgiving for my family for 28 years and as someone who has mentored numerous novice hosts through their own hosting.
This is not to say I do not cook a whole turkey, which I certainly do. I just deconstruct it first.
This implies—and I know this will shock anyone who follows me on Instagram—that there is never a picture of a gigantic mahogany bird fit for Norman Rockwell that can be paraded and shown to the assembled crowd. Before the bird appears on the buffet, it is fully sliced and portioned in all of its accessible glory.
Because turkey? It’s a real b*tch. The modern bird has been bred for so much white meat that it cooks wildly unevenly. When the dark meat reaches the proper temperature, the white meat has already begun to cook and become moist, so the breast meat has already been thoroughly cooked. Every advice on how to avoid this calls for the awkward (and, to be honest, somewhat risky) process of turning the bird over while it’s cooking.
Imagine what goes into those recipes if you could imagine a medicine ball at the gym covered in butter, with two legs and two wings sticking out, and extremely hot.
The other problem with the whole turkey is the stuffing issue. Stuffing is polarizing, especially in the food community. Knowing what’s what when it comes to food safety means that stuffing needs to reach a temperature of 185 degrees before it’s completely safe to consume. At this point, the stuffing has absorbed most of the juices from the bird, causing the entire bird to be overcooked and extremely dry. However, the incredibly moist dressing within the bird stuffing is just plain better than any pan of baked dressing that could be served.
Additionally pointless if you’re not Jacques Pepin or a skilled butcher is carving a whole turkey. Now you are taking that medicine ball with the greasy legs that is hot and trying to wrangle it with a manual or electric knife that is getting very slippery on a cutting board that is getting wet. You’re left with unevenly sliced breast and shredded thigh meat, with the gorgeous crisp, burnished skin you’ve worked so hard to achieve only sort of attached to some of the meat and missing entirely from most of it.
Enter, the deconstructed turkey. This is not my idea, nor a new one. I got it from Julia Child originally, likely based on an old French concept. But when I came across the method over a decade ago, it was a total gamechanger. In essence, you dissect the bird into two leg/thigh quarters and a breast crown, which is the entire breast with the wings attached. The back, having been removed, is saved for stock for the gravy. After the thigh bones are cut out, the thighs are tied like miniature roasts, giving you two objects that resemble boomerangs: legs with a tube of tied thigh attached. These three turkey pieces are then roasted on top of a pile of stuffing. In general, deconstruction results in more evenly cooked meat. However, it also allows you to remove any breast meat that reaches temperature before the dark meat and continue cooking the latter, or vice versa. One leg finished before the other? Out it comes. So every piece can be served at its optimal deliciousness. If a large portion of your family enjoys dark meat, get a few extra leg or thigh quarters from your butcher to enjoy twice as much of the good stuff.
Since the stuffing is not inside the bird, it can reach a safe temperature without losing any of its amazing flavor and texture. Carving is a pleasure because the legs are still whole for those who enjoy a drumstick, the tied thigh now slices into perfect round slices of meat, and the breast crown rests firmly on a cutting board where the meat can be removed in whole lobes and then sliced across, with each slice receiving its portion of skin.
The only thing to know is that there are no pan juices for gravy. I don’t care about this personally because I prepare my gravy well in advance and use the fond instead of turkey stock after roasting the neck and backbone with an onion. So far, no one has voiced any complaints, and I don’t miss the last-minute stress of attempting to make a decent gravy while hoping the turkey doesn’t go bad.
Thanksgiving is a time for family, friends, and of course, delicious food. And what’s more central to the Thanksgiving table than the turkey? This year, ditch the traditional roasting method and try Julia Child’s Deconstructed Turkey recipe. This innovative approach not only ensures perfectly cooked white and dark meat but also saves you precious oven space for all your other Thanksgiving favorites.
Why Deconstruct?
The key to Julia Child’s genius lies in separating the turkey into three main parts: the breast/wings, the leg quarters, and the backbone. This allows for individual cooking times and temperatures guaranteeing juicy, tender white meat and perfectly cooked dark meat. Plus, it frees up your oven for other dishes making Thanksgiving prep a breeze.
The Process: A Step-by-Step Guide
Preparation:
- Deconstruct the Turkey: Begin by removing the thighs and drumsticks from the breast. Then, remove the backbone from the breast. Save all the bones and scraps for making delicious turkey stock and gravy.
- Brine the Breast: Submerge the turkey breast in a salt-water solution for 6-12 hours. This ensures juicy and flavorful meat.
- Prepare the Thighs: Season the thighs with salt, pepper, and sage, then truss them up using skewers and kitchen twine. This helps the dark meat cook evenly and retain its moisture.
Cooking:
- Roast the Breast: Sear the skin side of the breast in a skillet, then transfer it to the oven to roast at 425°F for 30 minutes.
- Prepare the Stuffing: While the breast roasts, prepare the stuffing by combining dried bread cubes with sautéed onions, garlic, herbs, and beaten eggs.
- Cook the Thighs and Stuffing: Add the thighs and stuffing to the roasting pan with the breast. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and continue cooking for 40-60 minutes, or until the breast reaches 160-165°F and the thighs reach 175-180°F.
- Rest and Carve: Allow the turkey to rest for 30 minutes before carving. This allows the juices to redistribute, resulting in even more tender meat.
Additional Tips:
- Use a meat thermometer: This is the most accurate way to ensure the turkey is cooked to the proper temperature.
- Don’t overcook the breast: White meat dries out easily, so be sure to remove it from the oven as soon as it reaches 160-165°F.
- Let the turkey rest: This allows the juices to redistribute, resulting in juicy and flavorful meat.
- Make the most of the leftovers: Leftover turkey can be used in sandwiches, salads, soups, and more.
Beyond the Recipe: FAQs and Additional Resources
Frequently Asked Questions:
- Can I use a pre-brined turkey? Yes, you can use a pre-brined turkey. Just skip the brining step and follow the rest of the recipe as instructed.
- What if I don’t have wooden skewers? You can use toothpicks or even small metal skewers instead.
- How long will the turkey last in the refrigerator? Leftover turkey can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.
- Can I freeze the turkey? Yes, you can freeze the turkey for up to 2-3 months.
Additional Resources:
- Julia Child’s Deconstructed Thanksgiving Turkey Recipe: https://myyearwithchris.wordpress.com/2014/11/29/julia-childs-deconstructed-turkey/
- House of Yumm’s Julia Child’s Deconstructed Thanksgiving Turkey Recipe: https://houseofyumm.com/julia-childs-deconstructed-thanksgiving-turkey/
- Video Tutorial on Deconstructing a Turkey: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXz917_50qY
Julia Child’s Deconstructed Turkey is a game-changer for Thanksgiving. This innovative approach ensures perfectly cooked turkey, frees up oven space, and allows you to focus on enjoying the holiday with your loved ones. So, this Thanksgiving, ditch the traditional turkey and give Julia Child’s method a try. You won’t be disappointed!
Additional notes on the deconstructed turkey:
Request that your butcher remove the leg-thigh quarters and the breast in one big crown, which is equivalent to removing the backbone. Ask them to debone just the thigh part of the leg quarters, leaving the legs attached. This will look like a leg with a boneless thigh skirt. I usually ask them to save the backbone, neckbone, and giblets for me to make stock and gravy.
Take the leg/thigh quarters and roll the thigh portion up, tying each with two to three small lengths of kitchen twine so that the thigh is a tight roll, still attached to the leg, after removing the turkey parts from the brining bag to dry. This will allow you to carve the thigh meat in perfect rounds after cooking. Then, you can store these two peculiar turkey boomerangs in the refrigerator to dry out next to the breast.
How to Make It
Dry Brined Turkey Over Stuffing
Adapted lightly from both Julia and America’s Test Kitchen
Serves 12-16 with leftovers
- One 12- to 16-pound turkey, deconstructed as per notes below.
- Kosher salt
- Herbs and/or spices to flavor the salt
- 1 large batch of your favorite stuffing recipe
1. Pour one tablespoon of salt into a bowl for every five pounds the turkey weighs (you would need three tablespoons for a fifteen-pound bird). If you’d like, you can add flavors to the salt, such as smoked paprika and orange zest, bay leaf and thyme, or rosemary and lemon zest. Use a mortar and pestle, small food processor, or spice grinder to grind the spices and salt together to season the salt. (Or sticking with plain salt is fine; however you want to roll. ).
2. Season the deconstructed turkey pieces all over evenly with the seasoned salt.
3. Place the turkey in a 2 1/2-gallon sealable plastic bag, press out the air and seal tightly. (If you can’t find a resealable bag large enough, you can use a clean, unscented garbage bag or a turkey oven bag, but be ready for it to leak.) ) Place the turkey parts breast-side up in the refrigerator. Chill for 3 days, turning the breast over face down for the last day. Smoosh the salt around inside the bag once a day.
4. Remove the turkey from the bag. After placing the turkey parts (breast-side up) on a rack placed over a baking tray, chill them for at least eight hours without covering them. This will dry out the skin which will help make it crispy. (Be careful for the raw turkey to not touch anything else in your fridge. If you don’t have enough room in your refrigerator, move the turkey to a fresh bag and don’t seal it.
5. Take the turkey out of the fridge the day before it’s supposed to be cooked, and let it sit at room temperature for at least an hour and up to 90 minutes.
6. Heat your oven to 425 degrees.
7. Apply canola or grapeseed oil to the turkey breast (I usually use canola or grapeseed spray for uniform coverage). After preheating an oven-safe nonstick skillet, place the turkey breast skin side down and roast it for 30 minutes.
8. Spoon your stuffing into a deep 16 by 13-inch roasting pan, making sure to level it out into a rectangle with a 1 ½- to 2-inch border around the edges.
9. After taking the breast out of the oven, place it over the stuffing in the center and cover it with some wadded-up paper towels or oil-resistant oven mitts. Arrange the leg quarters over remaining stuffing flanking the breast and brush or spray them with oil. Make sure that most of the stuffing is covered by the turkey by tucking any large exposed chunks of stuffing under the bird pieces. Transfer the pan to the oven and cook for 30 minutes.
10. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Roast for a further 40 minutes to an hour and twenty minutes, or until the thickest part of the breast registers 160 to 165 degrees and the thickest part of the thigh registers 175 to 180 degrees. Start checking the temperature after 30 minutes, and remove any piece that hits temperature as needed. Place the pieces on a chopping board that has a juice well, cover with foil, and allow them to rest for thirty to forty-five minutes. While turkey rests, stir the stuffing well, scraping up any browned bits. Reposition the stuffing in the roasting pan so that it is loosely and evenly distributed, then shut off the oven.
11. Carve and serve.