turkey

the best turkey in the world

servings
10

method

In my books, the perfect bird is 6.5kg– 8kg in weight because that’s a good size to handle, feeds about 10 to 14 people and has better flavor than bigger birds. If you’re buying from a small producer, like the lovely turkey I used from my mate Paul Kelly, you’ll often find these birds come with their own cooking instructions. Really good-quality birds do cook in a shorter time so follow the instructions if it has them.

This year I’m using a flavored butter to give a bit of extra love to my turkey, and this is a job you can do the day before. Get your turkey and use a spoon to work your way between the skin and the meat. Start at the side of the cavity just above the leg and work gently up towards the breastbone and towards the back so you create a large cavity. Pick up half of your butter and push it into the cavity you’ve created. Use your hands to push it through the skin right to the back so it coats the breast meat as evenly as possible. Do the same on the other side then rub any leftover butter all over the outside of the bird to use it up. If you’ve got any herb stalks left over, put them in the cavity of the turkey for added flavor as it cooks. Cover the turkey in cling film and keep in the fridge until you need it.

Take your turkey out of the fridge a few hours before you are ready to put it in the oven so it has time to come up to room temperature. That flavored butter will already be under the skin so you’ll only need a few tweaks to finish it off. Halve 2 to 4 clementines and pop them in the cavity with a few more sprigs of fresh herbs like rosemary, bay and thyme. The fruit will steam and flavor the birds in a really lovely way. Take a sprig of fresh rosemary, pull off the leaves at the bottom then spear that through the loose skin around the cavity to hold it together and keep it from shrinking back as the turkey cooks.

Open up the neck cavity and pack as much stuffing as possible in there, then carefully pull the skin back over the cavity, tuck it under the bird and pop it in the roasting tray. If you’ve already made your gravy like I’ve done, you won’t need a vegetable trivet, if not, do that now by roughly chopping 2 or 3 carrots, 3 peeled onions and 2 celery sticks. Preheat your oven to full whack and get the turkey in the roasting tray. As soon as it goes in the oven, immediately turn the heat down to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4.

As a rough guide, you want to cook the turkey for about 35 to 40 minutes per kilogram, so a 7kg turkey will want about 4 to 4½ hours in the oven. But there are so many variables such as the sort of oven you have and the quality of your bird. Check on your turkey every 30 minutes or so and keep it from drying out by basting it with the lovely juices from the bottom of the pan. After 3½ hours, remove the foil so the skin gets golden and crispy. If you are at all worried just stick a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the breast. When the internal temperature has reached 65ºC for a good quality bird, and about 82ºC for a cheaper bird, it’s ready to come out.

Carefully put a metal skewer in the cavity and use it to lift the bird and angle it over the roasting tray so all of the juices from the cavity run out. Move the turkey to a platter then cover it with a double layer of tinfoil and 2 tea towels to keep it warm while it rests for at least 30 minutes.

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1. by Roy on Sat 24 Dec 2011 @ 11:44

Jamie doesn't make it clear in the program I watched, do we cover the whole turkey with foil or just the legs? Can someone help.<br />

2. by Regina on Sun 18 Dec 2011 @ 21:51

last year I done the jamie`s turkey with the gravy. All the 20 people eaten, loved it!<br /> Now, I am trying to do the gravy and I cannot remember the recipe. Would sombody please, e-mail me???? URGENT!!!<br /> I cannot find it any place!!<br /> Regina

3. by kelly on Wed 22 Dec 2010 @ 14:33

The ingredients are listed in the other recipes i.e,
stuffing recipe
roasted vegetables
Roast Potatos.................etc

4. by jane on Wed 22 Dec 2010 @ 13:37

6.5-8kg turkey 2-4 clementines Rosemary, bay or thyme sprigs 2-3 carrots 3 onions, peeled 2 celery sticks For the butter
1 x 250g pack of butter 75g dried cranberries, really finely chopped Few sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves picked 4 fresh rosemary sprigs, leaves picked Few sprigs of fresh sage, leaves picked sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 clementine
found this on the channel 4 website

5. by Laura Loo on Wed 22 Dec 2010 @ 13:06

Found them!

• 6.5-8kg turkey
• 2-4 clementines
• Rosemary, bay or thyme sprigs
• 2-3 carrots
• 3 onions, peeled
• 2 celery sticks

For the butter
• 1 x 250g pack of butter
• 75g dried cranberries, really finely chopped
• Few sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves picked
• 4 fresh rosemary sprigs, leaves picked
• Few sprigs of fresh sage, leaves picked
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 clementine

Happy Christmas and Happy Cooking! x

6. by tegan on Wed 22 Dec 2010 @ 01:24

its just a recipe to cook the turkey!!
search recipes for the:
"flavored butter" or "christmas butter",
"stuffing" and
"get-ahead gravy (with mummy and petal)"

7. by RhinosoRoss on Tue 21 Dec 2010 @ 19:31

Jamie made a big point about how to stuff it on TV: this only says fill the neck cavity!

His advice was just to chuck in little balls of stuffing and not to fill the main cavity, before the mentioned half Clementines.

8. by Wotsit on Tue 21 Dec 2010 @ 15:27

I couldn't see the ingredients either but managed to find them on the following link..
http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/other-recipes/christmas-butter
You still need the instructions from this page but at least you will have the ingredients needed.

9. by Meg H on Tue 21 Dec 2010 @ 13:03

With reference to the above emails, look up "christmas butter", merry christmas!

10. by Daniel Payne on Tue 21 Dec 2010 @ 10:08

http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/other-recipes/christmas-butter

11. by Trina on Tue 21 Dec 2010 @ 07:37

search for "christmas butter" to get ingredients for under skin butter rub mixture :)

12. by jinnymaer on Tue 21 Dec 2010 @ 02:47

For the ingredients for the butter search "Christmas butter" - that gives both the ingredients and how to put it on the bird. Merry Christmas!

13. by Brigid on Sun 19 Dec 2010 @ 05:48

Yeah...where are the list of ingredients - this sounds fantastic Jamie - now show us the ingredients!!

14. by Yvette on Sat 18 Dec 2010 @ 22:17

I can´t see the ingredients list either!!

15. by claire on Sat 18 Dec 2010 @ 17:52

Not just you Kri_kee i cant see the ingrediants anywhere and its really annoying. x

16. by ROBERT on Thu 16 Dec 2010 @ 03:15

WHERE CAN I GET THE INGREDIENTES FOR THIS RECIPE???... MY WIFE IS GONNA KILL ME ! PLEASE HELP !

17. by irina on Wed 23 Dec 2009 @ 18:25

Helpppp!!!! I'm doing this recipe tomorrow and I'm confused. I don't know if I'm supposed to rub the turkey with salt or not. All the others turkey recipes contains salt on the skin. This one doesn't. I heard that salt destroys the skin and it is better to put the bird in salted water over the night. Is this true?

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