Go wild for this traditional turkey and stuffing recipe this Christmas
While South Africans normally cook chicken over Christmas, you'll go mad over this traditional turkey and stuffing recipe.
Turkeys won’t vote for Christmas but your family could line up for your traditional roast turkey.
Your family will fall in love with this traditional serving made with love and will definitely pay much-due compliments to the chef, you of course!
Also read: Eggs: the perfect protein for back-to-school meals
Try this traditional roast turkey recipe.
Ingredients
- 50g butter or margarine
- 2 medium onions, peeled and finely diced
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
- 225g beef sausage meat
- 180 g lean rindless bacon
- 180g fresh bread-crumps
- 15ml freshly parsley, chopped
- 2.5ml nutmeg
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 to 2 eggs
- 4.5 to 5.5 kg turkey
- Melted dripping or butter, for brushing if you don’t have a self-basting turkey
Also read: African cuisine celebrated in style
Method
stuffing
1. Melt the butter in a small frying pan, sauté the onion and garlic gently for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the sausage meat and bacon well.
2. Stir in the fried onions and garlic, breadcrumbs, parsley, and nutmeg. Bind with the one egg first and if it’s necessary add the other. The mixture should be soft but not sloppy. Refrigerate for 20 min.
Turkey
1. Remove the giblets and wash the bird. Drain well and pat dry with kitchen paper. Stuff the cavity, not too tightly, and cover the stuffing smoothly with the neck skin. With the bird breast-side up, fold the wingtips neatly under the body or secure with toothpicks, pinning down the neck skin.
2. Truss the bird, tying the legs together with a piece of string. Try to make the body as plump and even in shape as possible.
3. Weigh the bird to calculate the cooking time, allowing 20minutes per 450g plus 20 minutes. Put the turkey, breast-side up, on a rack in a roasting pan. Brush with dripping or melted butter and dust with plenty of seasoning.
4. Cover loosely with foil. Roast in the oven at 180°C for the calculated cooking time. Remove the foil and baste the turkey 30 minutes before cooking time is up. Allow turkey to rest after cooking, in the oven for 30 minutes before carving.
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