Day ninety three

Roasted turkey on the buffet

The secret of roasting a turkey.

Today we have started a new class - Modern Banquet and Catering. This is our first class where our goal is to cook food for the real customers - students at the school. All classes we have had before were designed to build our knowledge and practical skills in cooking. Now we are moving to the production.

Our menu for today was: green salad, New-England clam chowder, Yankee pot roast, root vegetables, roasted turkey, stuffing, Mariera sauce, whipped potatoes, cranberry relish, and seasonal vegetables. As my friend said this is banquet for the poor people.

All these dishes were distributed between class and everyone was responsible for something. I was responsible for a turkey. It was not so difficult. What I found out is that the best way to cook turkey is to separate legs from the carcass and cook them separately as they tend to cook longer and the breast will be overcooked by the time the legs are cooked properly. So I have them cooked separate. The turkey was simply roasted. Season it with
salt, pepper, and then rubbed with oil. Convection oven 325 F for approximately 2 hours. The main point here is not the time, because it will always be different. There are many variables: size of turkey, condition of turkey (was it frozen? how well it was thawed?), oven temperature, type of the oven (convection, or regular), and so on. The best thing to do is to check temperature. You need 150-155 F in the thickest part of thigh or breast (as they are cooked separately). Yes, the recommendation is to cook it until 165 F, however as a turkey is quite a big bird, you will have a lot of carry over cooking during resting period. It will easily pick up another 10-15 degrees. When the temperature reaches 150 F remove from the oven and let it rest for a good half an hour. Then carve and serve.

Another trick I have learned is to use some fat in the roasting pan to brush the bird. It will prevent burning skin. If the skin is dry it will burn and become black. If there is fat on the skin it will remain golden color, and this golden color will intensifies. So after an hour of cooking, let's say every 15 minutes check the bird and brush the skin with fat. You will get amazing color at the end.

So it was a really good day and a great start for this class. Tomorrow we are cooking the same menu, but there will be rotation in the class.