of Turkey!
GEV DESAI, veteran culinary expert and Area Chef in Bombay for the ITC Hotels, describes what stuffing and carving a turkey during the festive season means to him.



Traditional Turkey Stuffing

Ingredients:
1 kg. turkey meat
(leg boneless w/o skin)
1/2 kg. pork (boneless)
200 gms pork fat
1/2 kg. chicken (boneless)
200 gms chicken fat
6 eggs
15 water chestnuts
(fresh, shelled and blanched)
10 walnuts (shelled)
50 gms. pistas (shelled and blanched)
50 gms red or black currant
2 tbs. white pepper powder
1 tbs. nutmeg powder
1/2 tbs. cinnamon powder
150 ml. cream
2 tbs. milk powder
150 ml. brandy
Salt to season

Method:For the Stuffing

Chill the boneless meats and fat to 1-2 * C and pass through mincer or pulverizer till it turns almost pasty. At home one needs to mince 2-3 times.
Add water chestnuts, walnuts, pistas, currants to mince.
Beat together five eggs, cream, milk powder and brandy in a bowl, with a whisk (not in a food processor).
Add the beaten liquid, spice powders, salt to mince and mix in a large bowl, till it is well homogenized.

For the Turkey
Most turkeys farmed in India have leg meat which does not lend itself to roasting, resulting in chewy overdone results. To avoid this, debone the turkey as in a galantine (requires more than basic skill). Start with incising the skin from the neck to the tail, working inwards, almost surgically separating the meat from the bones.
Keep the skin intact, remove the leg meat, keeping the skin underneath attached
to the galantine (the leg meat is used
for the stuffing).
Beat the remaining egg with a teaspoon of salt and pepper mix, and baste over the turkey meat of the galantine.
Spread the galantine, meat facing up, on a table, over enough sheets of foil to encase the turkey after folding. Place the required amount of stuffing in the galantine, fold the skin over the turkey and compact well, within the foil, twisting the foil corners as in a toffee wrap fold (use two or three layers of foil to prevent tear).
Do not overstuff the galantine.
Chill encased galantine within foil for five to six hours prior to roasting.
Tear off the top layer of foil, and roast.



Sausage and Aniseed Stuffing


Ingredients:
500 gms Oxford pork sausage
(removed from casing)
1 piece turkey liver
125 gms butter
6 cups whole-grain
fresh breadcrumbs
2 fennel bulbs
2 tbs. saunf (coarsely-ground)
2 large onions (chopped)
1/2 tbs. white pepper powder
2 tbs. rosemary (dried)
2 tbs. tarragon (dried)
50 gms red currant (minced)
400 ml. chicken stock
Salt to season

Method:
In a dry non-stick pan, toss breadcrumbs over low heat for 5-7 minutes. Heat butter on slow fire, sauté onions and fennel bulbs till soft. Add saunf, pepper, rosemary, tarragon, sausage meat, chopped turkey liver, and sauté for 10 minutes. Then add stock, breadcrumbs, mix and remove. Can be used for stuffing turkey or, as a bed in roasting dish over which turkey is rosted.


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