 |
||||||||
 |
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
The picture-perfect turkey
By JANET K. KEELER, Times Staff Writer
ST. PETERSBURG -- Let's blame Norman Rockwell for our insane need to bring a perfectly burnished turkey to the Thanksgiving table. Freedom from Want, one of "The Four Freedoms" illustrations inspired by President Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1941 State of the Union address, shows smiling faces ringing a table and a golden turkey about to become the centerpiece. It's one of Rockwell's most enduring works, though its significance as wartime commentary is probably lost on contemporary audiences. The beautiful turkey is what strikes us most now. Efforts to duplicate its patina and the fuzzy feelings it engenders have led us to extreme cooking methods: boiling in oil, daylong smoking, garbage can roasting and all sorts of oven methods. Brining, basting and boning are also part of the national turkey discourse. Chef Paul Mattison of Mattison's in St. Petersburg brings another method to the madness. He flips the bird, roasting it breast-side down on a bed of rough chopped aromatic vegetables rather than a rack. The French term for the chopped vegetables is mirepoix, and Mattison's mixture is celery, onions and carrots. For the last 30 minutes of roasting, Mattison turns the turkey over so the breast browns. "If you roast a turkey breast-side up, the white meat will be as dry as can be," says Mattison, who recently demonstrated the technique for us in the restaurant's kitchen. By roasting the turkey breast down, Mattison says, all the juices -- and that includes the flavorful fat -- run through the breast aided by gravity. The juices give the white meat more flavor and keep it moist. The bonus is that the mirepoix, to which he adds water, salt, the turkey wing tips and the neck, creates a flavorful stock with which to make gravy. The mirepoix replaces the rack, and the sturdy vegetables keep the turkey off the hot pan. Uneven cooking can result when the turkey sits directly on the hot metal pan. Roasting tasty turkeys has a couple of challenges. One is that white meat cooks faster than the denser dark, leading to the legendary complaints and jokes about dry meat. (Isn't that what gravy is for?) Another is that turkeys are bred leaner these days as a response to Americans' dietary concerns. Lean poultry is great for weight watchers but terrible for taste, because fat is a primary contributor to flavor.
With leaner turkeys, it's important to find a way to pump up flavor. Mattison does this by sprinkling the cavity with coarse salt and stuffing it with fresh parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme. Who needs a recipe there? Just hum Simon and Garfunkel's Scarborough Fair and you've got it. Mattison ties the bird so the clipped wings and legs are tucked in, and he rubs it with olive oil. More coarse salt is sprinkled on top. "The turkey roasts more evenly if the meat is compact," Mattison says. "That's why I tie it up." Use a roasting pan that gives the turkey at least 2, preferably 3, inches of breathing room all the way around. This allows the vegetables to thoroughly roast and give off their juices. Mattison sears the turkey in a 400-degree oven for 20 minutes and then lowers the temperature to 300 for the duration. "The high heat seals in more juices," he says. He bastes the bird with pan juices every 30 minutes. It sounds simple, and it is -- to a chef trained at the vaunted Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y. Questions nag the rest of us. What type of turkey to buy is one of those questions. Mattison recommends a fresh turkey, which is one that hasn't been frozen. Frozen turkeys, the least expensive of alternatives, are usually injected with a moistening solution of broth, water and/or flavorings. This helps the meat retain moisture, because freezing dries it out. Mattison contends that frozen turkeys lose flavor because the meat soaks up some of the added liquid before it freezes, thus making it mealy and diluting its taste. If you buy a frozen turkey, defrost it in the refrigerator to avoid bacterial contamination. Allow 24 hours in the fridge for every 5 pounds of frozen turkey. A 20-pound turkey should be moved from the freezer to fridge the Sunday morning before Thanksgiving. Fresh turkeys, Mattison says, require a shopping trip to the crowded grocery store no more than two days before the bird will be cooked. Fresh turkeys have a short shelf life. You can take your chances that the grocery store will have them in stock or reserve one at a butcher shop. Mattison doesn't cook free-range turkeys, because he thinks all that running around makes them leaner and ultimately less flavorful. A chubby turkey is a better turkey, he thinks. When buying a turkey, figure 1 1/2 pounds per person. "You lose half in the cooking, people eat about 4 to 5 ounces, and you want some left over for sandwiches the next day," Mattison says. Mattison's big caveat is not to overcook turkey. That's an age-old problem remedied by a meat thermometer. Use the clock as a guideline; use the thermometer as the gospel. The chef likes to gauge doneness by measuring the temperature between the drumstick and the thigh. When it reaches 140 degrees, he flips the bird for the final 30 minutes. Those last minutes of cooking should bring the temperature of the dark meat to 180 degrees, the mark at which food safety experts say the meat is safe to eat. A 12- to 14-pound unstuffed turkey will need three to 3 3/4 hours in the oven. The 45-minute time difference depends on the accuracy of your oven, what else is cooking in there and the bird itself. The instructions that come with the turkey will give approximate cooking times. The turkey must rest for at least 20 minutes -- Mattison lets his sit for 45 -- to allow the juices to draw back into the meat. Also, the bird will continue to cook for a few minutes after it's removed from the oven. A loose aluminum foil tent over the turkey helps keep it warm. The resting period also frees up oven space to heat side dishes and make gravy. That's where Mattison's flavorful pan juices come in. He strains the vegetables and then skims the fat off the remaining liquid. In a saucepan he mixes the fat, instead of the traditional butter, with an equal amount of flour to make a roux, the gravy's thickening agent. The roux should be cooked over medium heat for about 15 minutes or until the flour browns. Stir in the defatted pan juices a bit at a time until the desired consistency is achieved. "Gravy doesn't have to be thick," Mattison says, "but it has to have flavor." To make a healthier gravy, Mattison suggests throwing away the skimmed-off fat and avoiding the flour. Puree the roasted vegetables and mix them with the defatted pan juices to thicken and add flavor. He sometimes roasts the gizzards and purees them for the gravy. (He doesn't use the other organs.) For home cooks, especially those who aren't confident carvers, Mattison suggests cutting the turkey in the kitchen. He likes to carve half the bird by cutting off a leg and a wing, and then removing half the breast with a boning knife. He slices the white meat and fans it over the carcass. Fresh herbs placed strategically can cover any unappetizing spots. He also suggests enlisting guests who fashion themselves as expert carvers. "If you've got someone who loves to carve, let them do it." Carving the turkey in the kitchen might burst your bubble of delivering the main event to the table intact. But even Rockwell didn't stand on ceremony after commissioning the cooked turkey. "She cooked, I painted it, we ate it," the artist reported. "That was one of the few times I've ever eaten the model." And that was the end of that historic turkey. Making the feastChef Paul Mattison will share his tips for making a memorable Thanksgiving feast during a cooking class at 6:30 p.m. Monday at Mattison's, An American Bistro, 111 Second Ave. in St. Petersburg. Cost is $40 and includes recipes, dinner and wine. Registration required. Call (727) 895-2200.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • Tampa Bay Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111 
|
From the Times Taste section From the features wire |
