Roast Turkey With Bacon, Tarragon and Applejack Gravy
- Ready In:
- 6hrs 10mins
- Ingredients:
- 15
- Serves:
-
12
ingredients
- 10 ounces crabapple jelly
- 3⁄4 cup butter
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 1⁄3 cup frozen apple juice concentrate, thawed
- 4 tablespoons fresh tarragon, chopped
- 12 ounces mushrooms, quartered
- 1 large onion, coarsely chopped
- 1 large carrot, coarsely chopped
- 23 lbs whole turkey, neck cut into 4 pieces
- 10 cups chicken broth
-
Gravy
- 1⁄4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 cups chicken broth, low sodium
- 8 slices bacon, 12-inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, chopped
- 1⁄4 cup Applejack (optional)
directions
-
MAKE TURKEY:
- Stir jelly, 1/2 cup butter, apple juice concentrate and 2 tablespoons tarragon in small saucepan over medium heat until butter and jelly melt.
- Remove glaze from heat. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and chill. Bring to room temperature and rewhisk before using.).
- Set rack at lowest position in oven and preheat to 375°F
- Place small rack in center of large roasting pan.
- Melt 1/4 cup butter in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add mushrooms, onion and carrot; sauté until dark brown, about 12 minutes.
- Sprinkle vegetables and turkey neck pieces around rack in pan.
- Stir remaining 6 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons tarragon in heavy small saucepan until butter melts.
- Rinse turkey inside and out; pat dry with paper towels.
- Place turkey on rack in pan.
- Starting at neck end, slide hand between skin and breast meat to loosen skin.
- Brush 3 tablespoons tarragon butter over breast meat under skin.
- If stuffing turkey, spoon stuffing loosely into main cavity.
- Brush remaining tarragon butter over outside of turkey.
- Sprinkle turkey with salt and pepper.
- Tuck wing tips under turkey; tie legs together to hold shape.
- Roast turkey 45 minutes.
- Reduce oven temperature to 350°F; add 1 cup broth to pan.
- Cover turkey loosely with foil.
- Roast until thermometer inserted into thickest part of thigh registers 180°F., adding 1 cup broth and basting with pan juices every 1/2 hour and brushing with 1/3 cup glaze twice during last 2 hours, about 4 1/4 hours longer if unstuffed or 4 3/4 hours longer if stuffed.
- Transfer turkey to platter.
- Tent with foil; let stand 1/2 hour.
- Reserve pan juices.
-
MAKE GRAVY:
- Mix 1/2 cup glaze and flour in small bowl to blend.
- Strain pan juices into large measuring cup, pressing on solids; spoon off fat.
- Add enough broth to measure 6 cups.
- Sauté bacon in heavy large saucepan over medium heat until crisp.
- Pour off fat.
- Add broth mixture to saucepan and bring to boil.
- Whisk in glaze-flour mixture and tarragon, then applejack.
- Simmer until thickened to sauce, about 5 minutes.
- Season with salt and pepper.
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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
lazyme
Grapeview, Washington
<p>Hi and thanks for visiting my AM page. My name is Vicki and I love to cook. I've always been an avid collector of recipes and cookbooks - in fact I have over 1200 cookbooks on my computer alone.</p>
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