KosherEye.com
There are thousands of ways to roast a turkey. Here is one of our favorites. We make this year round, because it is flavorful, moist and simple. The recipe was adapted from The Second Avenue Deli Cookbook: Recipes and Memories from Abe Lebewohl's Legendary Kitchen.
The secret to this exceptional turkey is "marinating" it overnight in a spice rub mixture.
Ingredients
Turkey
1 14 lb. turkey
5 Tablespoons onion powder
5 Tablespoons garlic powder
5 Tablespoons paprika
2 teaspoons sea salt or kosher salt
1-teaspoon pepper
For Stuffing
5 tablespoons canola oil
2 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped carrots
4 cups scrubbed, dried and chopped mushrooms
10 cups loosely packed cubes of French, Italian bread or challah
2 Tablespoons poultry seasoning
5 eggs, beaten
1-teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon pepper
Directions
Turkey
Wash the turkey in cold water; remove any excess pinfeathers; clean cavity; dry well.
In a bowl combine all spices. Rub the spices all over the outside of the turkey.
Place in a large dish or platter, and cover tightly with foil or plastic wrap. Refrigerate 12-18 hours.
Preheat oven to 350.
Truss legs of turkey with skewers, culinary twine, or our favorite -- silicone bands like Architec Stretch Cooking Band, 2-Inch, Package 20, Assorted Colors.
Bake until internal temperature reaches 165, about 3 ½ hours. If turkey is getting too brown, tent with aluminum foil.
Allow about 20 minutes per pound for roasting or until internal temperature at the thigh reaches 165. Also, for safety, check the temperature under the wing.
For Stuffing
Saute all vegetables in oil
Place bread cubes in a colander; Run cool water over them to soften and then squeeze out excess liquid. Mix with sautéed vegetables.
Just before stuffing turkey, mix in eggs. Place stuffing into cavity of marinated turkey. Do not pack tightly since stuffing will expand. Tie legs together with silicone bands, culinary twine, or skewers.
Place turkey in a baking pan with 2 " of water. Bake breast side up for about 4-5 hours, basting every 30 minutes with pan juices. A stuffed turkey takes about 30 minutes longer to roast than an unstuffed one. If turkey is getting too brown, tent with aluminum foil.
Place any extra stuffing in a deep baking dish, rather than a shallow one to maintain moisture. and bake alongside the turkey for about 60 minutes. To ensure that any bacteria are killed, the stuffing must be cooked until a thermometer inserted into the middle reads 165°F.
Stuffing can be cooked separately and served alongside turkey. For safety reasons, this is our preference. Instead of using water to moisten the turkey, we often use Vegetable or chicken broth.
Notes
Serves 8-10
Read more about roasting turkey safely: If you don't have an instant read thermometer, this may be the time to consider one. We use ours year round on meats and poultry. See instant-read Thermapens here.