Best Heritage Turkey With Oyster Dressing Recipes

TURKEY BREAST WITH OYSTER STUFFING

Steps:

• In a large skillet, cook bacon over low heat until crisp. Remove bacon and set aside to drain. Add onion, celery, and sage to the bacon fat rendered in the skillet, and cook until onions are translucent and celery is soft, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add sage and broken-up bread to the skillet. Stir in parsley, butter, oysters, salt, and pepper. Lightly toss stuffing, but mix well, and let cool.
• Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F.
• Butterfly the turkey breast with smooth side down and stuff, folding edges over to hold stuffing. (You may want to secure with skewers or cotton kitchen twine.) Season turkey breast with salt and pepper and place into the oven to roast until it reaches an internal temperature of about 160 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• While turkey is in oven, place the turkey neck and giblets in a medium saucepan with 4 cups water and cook until you have about 1 cup of giblet stock. Reserve the neck and giblets, removing meat from neck when cool enough to handle and chopping giblets. When turkey is done, remove breast to a platter to let rest for 20 minutes before slicing. Skim most of the fat from the pan juices, reserving 1/3 cup of the fat. Add the wine to the remaining pan juices and cook over medium high heat until reduced by half. In a separate saucepan, heat reserved 1/3 cup of fat and whisk in flour over moderately low heat for a few minutes to make a roux. Add stock and wine reduction, continuing to cook until gravy simmers. Add reserved cooked and chopped giblets and neck meat. Slice turkey to reveal stuffed interior and arrange on plate. Serve with gravy.

ROAST TURKEY WITH HERB BUTTER

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees with rack in the lowest position. Make herb butter: In a small bowl, mix together 4 tablespoons butter with chopped herbs; season generously with salt and pepper.
• Prepare and stuff the turkey. Loosen skin: Working from the neck end, slide fingers under skin until you reach the end of the breast, being careful not to tear the skin; rub herb butter under the skin. Fill neck cavity: Place turkey breast side down. Fill neck cavity with stuffing; avoid packing. Close up by folding skin over and fastening with skewers or trussing needles. Tuck wings: Turn turkey over; bend wing tips underneath bird so they stay in place (you may have to break the bones). Loosely fill large cavity with stuffing. Tie legs: Using cotton kitchen twine, tie legs together securely (they will overlap) so bird retains its shape and moisture during cooking.
• Cut neck into pieces; mix with carrots, onions, celery, and 2 cups water in a large roasting pan. Set roasting rack over vegetables in pan.
• Lift turkey onto rack; rub with remaining tablespoon butter. Season generously with salt and pepper. Tent turkey loosely with foil. Roast 1 hour, then baste every 30 minutes with pan liquids, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of thigh (avoiding bone) registers 125 degrees, about 3 hours.
• Remove foil; raise oven heat to 400 degrees. Continue roasting, basting occasionally, until thigh reaches 180 degrees, 45 to 60 minutes more. Tent with foil if bird browns too quickly; add more water if pan becomes dry. Transfer turkey to a serving platter; cover loosely with foil, and let it rest at least 30 minutes before carving.

OYSTER STUFFING FOR TURKEY

Steps:

• In large frying pan, saute sausage meat, stirring to break up, until lightly brown.
• Lift out with slotted spoon into large bowl.
• In drippings (add a little butter, if there's not enough), saute celery and onion until tender-- 8 to 10 minutes.
• Add to sausage meat.
• Add next seven ingredients; mix well.
• Add broth and eggs.
• Mix.
• If the stuffing is not moist enough, add a little water, but be careful because you don't want it too wet.
• The turkey will add moisture during the cooking process.
• Use this recipe to stuff a 10- 12 lb turkey.
• Spoon dressing into turkey cavities, but do not pack.

OYSTER DRESSING (STUFFING)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease a 2 quart casserole dish.
• Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add celery and onion; cook and stir until tender, about 5 minutes. Mix in the bread crumbs and parsley and remove from the heat. Add the oysters and eggs, and season with salt, pepper, poultry seasoning and thyme. Stir in enough liquid from the oysters to moisten and mix everything thoroughly. Transfer to the casserole dish.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the top is toasted and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.

OYSTER AND CRACKER DRESSING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees with rack in top third. Pulse saltines in a food processor until coarsely ground. Add butter and pulse just to combine. Spread a thin layer of crumbs in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Top with half the oysters.
• Stir together reserved oyster liquor and cream. Drizzle half the cream mixture over oysters. Sprinkle with half the remaining crumbs and all the thyme. Repeat layering with remaining oysters and cream mixture.
• Stir parsley into remaining crumbs and sprinkle evenly over top. Bake dressing until bubbling and top is golden brown, about 45 minutes. Serve hot, with lemon wedges for squeezing.

CATHY BALLOU GRANDMOTHER'S OYSTER DRESSING

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, over low heat, combine turkey neck, celery leaves, carrot top, onion and water to cover. Simmer for 2 hours as the turkey roasts. In a large bowl combine stale breads, set aside. In a large saute pan melt butter with vegetable oil. Add onions, celery and sage and cook over medium heat until onions begin to brown Add onion mixture and enough of the giblet broth to moisten bread, toss, and set aside. About 1 hour before the turkey is done, using a turkey baster or a large spoon remove all but 1/2 cup of fat from pan. Toss the oysters with the bread stuffing and add it in an even layer to the roasting pan with the turkey, stirring to coat the bread. Return the turkey to the oven and continue roasting for the final hour. Serve as a side dish.

OYSTER STUFFING

Steps:

• In a small skillet, saute celery and onion in butter until tender; transfer to a large bowl. Stir in the parsley, poultry seasoning, sage and pepper. Add bread cubes. Combine the egg, broth and oysters; add to bread mixture, stirring gently to combine. , Transfer to a greased 1-qt. baking dish. Cover and bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Uncover; bake 10-15 minutes longer or until a thermometer reads 160° and stuffing is lightly browned.

GRANDMOTHER'S OYSTER DRESSING

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, over low heat, combine turkey neck, celery leaves, carrot top, onion and water to cover. Simmer for 2 hours as the turkey roasts. In a large bowl combine stale breads, set aside. In a large saute pan melt butter with vegetable oil. Add onions, celery and sage and cook over medium heat until onions begin to brown Add onion mixture and enough of the giblet broth to moisten bread, toss, and set aside. About 1 hour before the turkey is done, using a turkey baster or a large spoon remove all but 1/2 cup of fat from pan. Toss the oysters with the bread stuffing and add it in an even layer to the roasting pan with the turkey, stirring to coat the bread. Return the turkey to the oven and continue roasting for the final hour. Serve as a side dish