Best Bay Bacon Roast Turkey With Make Ahead Gravy Recipes

CHEF JOHN'S MAKE-AHEAD TURKEY GRAVY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Combine onion, carrots, celery, and vegetable oil in a large roasting pan and toss to coat. Place turkey wings on top of vegetables
• Place roasting pan in the preheated oven and cook until the turkey wings are browned and vegetables are caramelized and softened, 45 to 60 minutes.
• Transfer turkey wings and vegetables to a large stockpot. Place the roasting pan over a stovetop burner on medium heat. Pour 2 tablespoons cold water into the pan and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits. Transfer mixture to the stockpot and add 10 cups cold water, thyme, and garlic.
• Bring turkey wing mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, until meat falls off the bone, about 3 hours. Skim off turkey fat throughout the process and set aside 2 tablespoons.
• Strain turkey stock and reserve 6 cups of stock; discard all the solids.
• Heat butter and 2 tablespoons reserved turkey fat in a large saucepan over medium heat. Sprinkle in flour and cook, whisking continuously, until it begins to smell like cooked pie crust, 2 to 3 minutes. Slowly pour in turkey stock, whisking continuously. Increase heat to high and simmer until thick and warmed through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper to taste.

MAKE-AHEAD TURKEY AND GRAVY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°. Place turkey on a rack in a roasting pan, breast side up. Sprinkle with poultry seasoning and pepper. Tuck wings under turkey; tie drumsticks together., Roast, uncovered, 30 minutes. In a 4-cup measuring cup, mix broth, herbs, lemon peel and juice, and garlic; pour over turkey. Roast, uncovered, until a thermometer inserted in thickest part of thigh reads 170°-175°, 3 to 3-1/2 hours, basting occasionally with broth mixture. Cover loosely with foil if turkey browns too quickly., Remove turkey from pan; let stand at least 20 minutes before carving. Skim fat from cooking juices., To freeze: Carve turkey and place in shallow freezer containers. Pour cooking juices over turkey; cool slightly, about 1 hour. Cover and freeze up to 3 months., To serve: Partially thaw turkey in refrigerator overnight. Preheat oven to 350°. Transfer turkey and cooking juices to a large baking dish. Pour 1-1/2 cups broth over top. Bake, covered, until a thermometer inserted in turkey reads 165°, 50-60 minutes., To prepare gravy: Remove turkey to a platter, reserving broth mixture; keep warm. In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat; stir in flour until smooth. Gradually whisk in broth mixture; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Cook and stir until thickened, about 2 minutes. Serve with turkey.

MAKE-AHEAD TURKEY GRAVY

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Put the turkey pieces on a rimmed baking sheet, and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Roast until browned and cooked through, about 30 minutes.
• Transfer the roasted turkey pieces to a medium saucepan; scrape up any brown bits from the baking sheet, and add them to the saucepan. Add the stock, thyme and bay leaves. Bring to a simmer, then cook for 30 minutes to enrich the stock with roasted-turkey flavor. Strain the liquid into a heat-safe bowl, and keep warm.
• Melt the butter in the saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the flour, and whisk until the mixture is smooth, toasted and a deep golden brown. Slowly pour in the warm broth, whisking continuously, and continue whisking until the mixture comes to a simmer. Continue to cook, still whisking, until the gravy is thick and coats the back of a spoon, about 5 minutes more. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Let the gravy cool to room temperature. Transfer it to an airtight container or resealable plastic freezer bag, label and date, and freeze for up to 2 weeks.
• To serve, reheat the frozen gravy in a saucepan or a microwave. Be sure to whisk vigorously as the gravy heats up to keep lumps from forming. Adjust the seasoning as needed.

MAKE-AHEAD TURKEY GRAVY WITH ONIONS & SAGE

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute, stirring often, for 15 to 20 minutes, until the onion becomes browned and starts to caramelize. Sprinkle on the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 1/2 minutes. Stir in the chicken stock, Cognac, sage leaves, bay leaves, 2 teaspoons salt (depending on the saltiness of the chicken stock), and 1 teaspoon pepper. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour and strain, pressing the solids lightly and then discarding them. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• After the turkey is cooked, remove it to a carving board to rest while you finish the gravy. Place the roasting pan on the stovetop over medium heat and add the wine. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring and scraping up all the bits clinging to the bottom of the pan. Slowly whisk the gravy base into the pan. Simmer for about 5 minutes, until the gravy is smooth and slightly thickened. Taste for seasonings and serve hot.

ROAST HERITAGE TURKEY WITH BACON-HERB AND CIDER GRAVY

Steps:

• For bacon, dijon, and herb butter:
• Blend all ingredients in processor until bacon is finely chopped. Transfer to sheet of plastic wrap. Using plastic wrap as aid, roll butter mixture into 2-inch-diameter log; chill until firm. DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.
• For cider gravy base:
• Preheat oven to 425°F. Combine turkey neck, 1/4 cup turkey fat, and turkey leg in heavy large ovenproof pot. Place in oven; roast uncovered until turkey parts are deep, dark brown, turning once, about 1 1/2 hours. Drain, reserving fat from pot. Reserve 1/4 cup fat for gravy; return 1 tablespoon fat to pot. Return turkey parts to pot; stir in celery, onions, thyme sprigs, and peppercorns. Return pot to oven; roast uncovered 10 minutes. Add apple cider and vinegar; roast 10 minutes longer. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F. Add 8 cups stock and sage to pot; cook in oven uncovered 1 1/2 hours. Strain gravy base through fine strainer; discard solids in strainer (there will be about 5 cups gravy base). DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and chill.
• For turkey:
• Cut bacon butter into 1/4-inch-thick rounds and let stand at room temperature 20 minutes. Rinse turkey inside and out; pat dry. Starting at neck end, carefully slide hand between skin and breast meat, then slide hand between skin and thigh meat. Carefully slide butter slices between skin and leg, thigh, and breast meat to cover (there will be a generous amount of butter mixture). Sprinkle 1 teaspoon coarse salt and 1 teaspoon pepper over turkey, and 1 teaspoon coarse salt and 1 teaspoon pepper in main cavity of turkey. Place turkey on rimmed baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap or foil; chill at least 1 day. DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled.
• Set rack at lowest position in oven; preheat to 350°F. Mix onions, celery, fennel, carrots, apples, oil, and bay leaves in large roasting pan. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Place turkey atop vegetable mixture. Tuck wings under; tie legs together loosely to hold shape. Place turkey in oven; roast until instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of thigh registers 170°F, basting with pan drippings every 30 minutes and tenting loosely with foil if browning too quickly, about 4 hours total. Transfer turkey to platter (internal temperature of turkey will increase 5 to 10 degrees).
• Pour vegetable mixture and pan drippings into large strainer set over large bowl; press on solids to extract liquid. Discard solids in strainer. Spoon off fat from pan drippings; discard (there will be a large amount of fat in pan drippings). Reserve degreased pan drippings for gravy (about 1 cup). Remove fat from surface of gravy base; reserve 1/4 cup fat. Rewarm cider gravy base.
• Melt reserved 1/4 cup fat in large saucepan over medium heat. Add flour; stir 3 minutes. Gradually add warm cider gravy base and degreased pan drippings. Simmer until smooth, thickened, and reduced to 51/2 cups, whisking frequently, about 5 minutes. Season gravy with salt and pepper.
• Serve turkey with gravy.