TennesseeRains
Well-Known Member
Now, it ain't cause I don't love ya or anything...but the responses I got were just a tad late - my ADD kicked in....
Oh, and keep in mind, although [size]I[/size] have stayed true to my pledge about eating fat (well - for the most part), etc....my buddy, well he ain't... told me to cook that wild turkey chest how I'd like to eat it...
Never cooked one, for real anyway...
Here goes (Keep in mind, I LOVE to cook - alone too - this may not be for you).
BRINE.
Seeing as this was an old, wild tom turkey - I figured it'd be tough; so I brined it. Here's how I did:
Ingredients:
1 gallon water
3/4 cup sea salt
2/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon each of:
-tarragon
-thyme
-fresh-cracked black pepper
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 'tart' apple, chopped - your choice on variety on what you think is tart
1/4 olive oil
I brought all this to a boil, then turned off the heat allowing it to steep and cool. Then I put it in the fridge to cool...
Wild Turkey Chest.
Just like all wild meat I've encountered, from the butcher or no, I found it not to my liking. I trimmed all the visible fat off, along with any 'silver' - that..to me at least...don't taste good.
I then placed the turkey chest in the brine - didn't have to weigh it down either; that surprised me a little.
I left the chest in said brine for 8-hours - shot holes and all!
Then I removed chest from the brine and rinsed it...then rinsed it again.
Recipe:
Ingredients:
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups peeled and coarsley chopped apples (tart)
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon fresh-cracked black pepper
1/2 cup apple juice (you can use apple cider - better yet, applejack liquor)
1 tablespoon corn starch
1 tablespoon water
Cooking:
Now, stay with me - gonna be doing some moving!!!
Heat that oven up to around 375.
In a skillet, brown the turkey chest in the butter on all sides - then take off the heat, but keep warm. Then put the apples in the butter that's left, along with the juices of the turkey chest, and saute them awhile - no need to get them 'done'...you'll cook them later!
Take the apples up and put them on the bottom of a cassarole dish. Put the turkey chest on top of them.
Now, pour off any fat in the skillet where the turkey chest and apples have been - then add the apple (juice/cider/applejack liquor). Deglaze with such for around 2 - 3 minutes...and MAKE SURE to scrape the bottom of the skillet - THAT, is flavor!
Pour the reduced liquid over the turkey chest and apples; cover; and bake for 45 minutes.
In the meanwhile:
Take the cream, lemon juice, salt, and pepper and combine, WELL!
After 45 minutes, remove turkey chest from oven - then spoon the cream, etc. over it. Recover - and bake for 30 more minutes.
Cooked.
Turkey chest should now be cooked. Poke it with a fork and the juices should be clear NOT PINK...Otherwise, pull out your trusty TermaPen that I've crowed about and Wildcat/greendoe told me about...and it should read at least 160, 165 better.
More Fun:
Put the turkey chest and apples on a serving platter and keep em warm!
Then, pour the liquid from the casserole dish into the skillet you used to brown the chest in. Mix the corstarch and water together into a kinda paste...then put it into the casserole liquid.
Cook this here over medium heat, stirring continuously, for around 2 minutes until the gravey you're making is as thick as you want it to be!!!
Then:
Pour the gravy over the turkey chest and apples...serve and eat!
Personally:
Although the brining of the turkey chest did wonders, and I am quite the 'eater' of all things NOT red-meat these days, AND the turkey chest (all one bite I took) had great flavor....the gravy....ohhh the gravy.....
Verdict:
Well, being the cook - my opinon don't count.
However, my buddy - the ahem, guniea pig, said...his tapeworm was quite pleased.
Otherwise...3 of 4 people in the office agreed. The only naysayer was one whom I regard as my BEST critic - as she don't like nothin. She liked the turkey chest flavor, but not the gravey.
All in all, for my first try...and with only one bite myself...I liked the result. The BEST part was getting there though!!!
I had fun.
Oh, and keep in mind, although [size]I[/size] have stayed true to my pledge about eating fat (well - for the most part), etc....my buddy, well he ain't... told me to cook that wild turkey chest how I'd like to eat it...
Never cooked one, for real anyway...
Here goes (Keep in mind, I LOVE to cook - alone too - this may not be for you).
BRINE.
Seeing as this was an old, wild tom turkey - I figured it'd be tough; so I brined it. Here's how I did:
Ingredients:
1 gallon water
3/4 cup sea salt
2/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon each of:
-tarragon
-thyme
-fresh-cracked black pepper
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 'tart' apple, chopped - your choice on variety on what you think is tart
1/4 olive oil
I brought all this to a boil, then turned off the heat allowing it to steep and cool. Then I put it in the fridge to cool...
Wild Turkey Chest.
Just like all wild meat I've encountered, from the butcher or no, I found it not to my liking. I trimmed all the visible fat off, along with any 'silver' - that..to me at least...don't taste good.
I then placed the turkey chest in the brine - didn't have to weigh it down either; that surprised me a little.
I left the chest in said brine for 8-hours - shot holes and all!
Then I removed chest from the brine and rinsed it...then rinsed it again.
Recipe:
Ingredients:
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups peeled and coarsley chopped apples (tart)
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon fresh-cracked black pepper
1/2 cup apple juice (you can use apple cider - better yet, applejack liquor)
1 tablespoon corn starch
1 tablespoon water
Cooking:
Now, stay with me - gonna be doing some moving!!!
Heat that oven up to around 375.
In a skillet, brown the turkey chest in the butter on all sides - then take off the heat, but keep warm. Then put the apples in the butter that's left, along with the juices of the turkey chest, and saute them awhile - no need to get them 'done'...you'll cook them later!
Take the apples up and put them on the bottom of a cassarole dish. Put the turkey chest on top of them.
Now, pour off any fat in the skillet where the turkey chest and apples have been - then add the apple (juice/cider/applejack liquor). Deglaze with such for around 2 - 3 minutes...and MAKE SURE to scrape the bottom of the skillet - THAT, is flavor!
Pour the reduced liquid over the turkey chest and apples; cover; and bake for 45 minutes.
In the meanwhile:
Take the cream, lemon juice, salt, and pepper and combine, WELL!
After 45 minutes, remove turkey chest from oven - then spoon the cream, etc. over it. Recover - and bake for 30 more minutes.
Cooked.
Turkey chest should now be cooked. Poke it with a fork and the juices should be clear NOT PINK...Otherwise, pull out your trusty TermaPen that I've crowed about and Wildcat/greendoe told me about...and it should read at least 160, 165 better.
More Fun:
Put the turkey chest and apples on a serving platter and keep em warm!
Then, pour the liquid from the casserole dish into the skillet you used to brown the chest in. Mix the corstarch and water together into a kinda paste...then put it into the casserole liquid.
Cook this here over medium heat, stirring continuously, for around 2 minutes until the gravey you're making is as thick as you want it to be!!!
Then:
Pour the gravy over the turkey chest and apples...serve and eat!
Personally:
Although the brining of the turkey chest did wonders, and I am quite the 'eater' of all things NOT red-meat these days, AND the turkey chest (all one bite I took) had great flavor....the gravy....ohhh the gravy.....
Verdict:
Well, being the cook - my opinon don't count.
However, my buddy - the ahem, guniea pig, said...his tapeworm was quite pleased.
Otherwise...3 of 4 people in the office agreed. The only naysayer was one whom I regard as my BEST critic - as she don't like nothin. She liked the turkey chest flavor, but not the gravey.
All in all, for my first try...and with only one bite myself...I liked the result. The BEST part was getting there though!!!
I had fun.
