Recipes

Smoked Christmas Turkey

Posted on by Martyn
cooking time icon

cook time: 3hrs

 

 

Moderate Cooking Icon

Difficulty: Moderate 

Prep Time Icon

Prep time: 1.5hrs, allow for curing time

 

Serving Icon

Serves: 8 people

 

Ingredients

The Stuffing

  • 3 slices fresh bread
  • 1tbs Cranberry sauce
  • 50g Dried cranberries
  • 50g Dried appricots
  • 50g Walnut pieces
  • 40g Butter
  • 1/4 Onion
  • 2 Cloves garlic
  • 3 Sprigs thyme
  • 1 Egg
  • 150g Turkey mince (chicken can be used as an alternative)
  • 1/4tsp Ground clove
  • 1tsp Ground white pepper
  • 50ml Thickened cream

 

Classic Cumberland Sauce

  • 1 Orange’s zest and juice
  • 1 Lemon’s zest and juice
  • 225g Red currant jelly
  • 125ml Port
  • 1tbs Red wine vinegar
  • 1/4tsp Mustard powder
  • Pinch of cayenne pepper
  • 1/2tsp Cornflour
  • 2tsp water
  • Salt and white pepper to taste

Brining The Turkey

  • 1 Turkey Breast (approximately 1.5kg)
  • 50g Brown sugar
  • 30g Salt
  • 3 Cloves
  • 1tbs Black peppercorns
  • 2 Bay leaves
  • 1 Oranges (Sliced)
  • 2 Star anise
  • 2 Cinamon quills
  • water

 

Instructions

Curing The Turkey

  1. In a large container, be sure that this will fit in your fridge, combine all the ingredients with 1L of water and mix well until the salt and sugar have dissolved
  2. Add the turkey to the container and top up with water until the turkey is submerged
  3. Allow the turkey to cure in the brine for up to 1 week

The Stuffing

  1. Chop the onion, garlic, dried apricots, and dried cranberries
  2. Roughly chop the bread into small squares.
  3. Sauté the onion and garlic in half of the butter until fragrant
  4. Remove from heat and allow to cool
  5. Soften the remaining of the butter and add the remaining ingredients in a large bowl
  6. Mix until paste like
  7. Allow the bread crumbs to soak in the liquid. (This may take up to 30min)
  8. Once the turkey has been brined, butterfly the breast, and lay the stuffing approximately 2inches thick and roll the breast into a cylinder
  9. Wrap the cylinder in prosciutto and truss with cooking twine

 

Smoking The Turkey

  1. Prepare the smoker to 110-120C with a water pan to catch the juices
  2. Smoke the Turkey for up to 3hrs or until the internal temp of the thickest part of the leg reaches 75-80C
  3. Once the turkey is cooked allow to rest for 1hr
  4. Once rested, carve the turkey and serve with your favourite sides and sauces

Cumberland sauce

  1. Combine all the ingredients except the corn flour and water in a small pot and bring to a simmer
  2. In a small bowl or container mix the water and cornflour into a smooth slurry
  3. Slowly combine the slurry into he pot stirring constantly to avoid lumps occurring
  4. Continue to cook for an additional 5min until the sauce has thickened appropriately
  5. Allow to cool slightly and serve with the turkey

 

Martyn