Chef Nuno Ferraz Christmas Turkey

If you couldn’t get a place at D. Pedro II restaurant for Christmas Eve dinner or simply if you are not nearby, we leave you our chef’s Christmas turkey recipe so you may try it at home.

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INGREDIENTS:

1 Turkey about 3 or 4kg

2 Oranges

80gr Olive oil

20gr Garlic

2 kg Minced meat

500gr Paris mushrooms

300gr Bacon

200gr Smoked ham

500gr Chestnuts

100gr Breadcrumbs

150gr Shallot

40gr Parsley

20gr Thyme

1kg Butter

40gr Sage

20gr Ras el hanout

Salt

Black pepper

1 empty bread flour bag (ask in your bakery shop)

For the gravy and jam

100gr Flour

60gr Port wine

120gr Butter

300gr Cranberries

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Wash the turkey
• Chop the shallot, parsley, thyme and garlic. Cut the mushrooms, the smoked ham, the chestnuts and the bacon into small cubes.
• In a large bowl, place the minced meat and all of the above ingredients. Season with salt and Pepper, ras el hanout, olive oil and the breadcrumbs. Combine all the ingredients.
• In a separate bowl, add the butter, salt, pepper, chopped sage and orange juice.
• Separate the skin from the turkey meat carefully in the areas of the breasts and legs.  Stuff the butter mixture between the skin and the meat and spread generously.
• Stuff the turkey with the minced meat and cover it with the orange peel. Sew the turkey with kitchen string.
• Rub the turkey with butter and sage. Place it inside the flour bag and wrap the bag very well.
• Roast it for 5 hours at 180ºC. Every 20 minutes, the bag must be watered.  
• After the 5 hours, remove carefully from the oven, making sure to use all the drippings from the tray. Slice the turkey, separating the whiter meat from the darker. Cut also the filling and serve with all the elements.

For the gravy and jam

• Place butter and flour on a saucepan and cook it until the flour starts to roast. Add the drippings from the roast. Put it all in the mixer and strain them through a fine-mesh sieve. Season with salt and Pepper. Pour it again into the saucepan and boil it. In the end, add a tablespoon of butter.
• For the jam, add the cranberries, the Port wine and the butter in a saucepan. Let it boil. Pass it through the mixer and strain it through a fine-mesh sieve. Pour it again into the saucepan and boil it some more.

Serve with your favorite side dishes!