5 Best Ways To Cook Your Thanksgiving Turkey

1) Turkey Glazed with Citrus Served with Chipotle Gravy (1 of 5)

Ingredients

Glaze:

• 3 tbsp of packed orange peel (grated)
• 3 tbsp of packed lime peel (grated)
• 2 tbsp of fresh thyme (chopped)
• 4 tsp of canned chipotle chilies (chopped)
• 1 tbsp of ground cumin
• 1 tsp of salt
• 1/2 cup of honey
• 3/4 cup of butter (unsalted)

Turkey:

• 1 24-pound turkey (reserve neck, gizzard, and heart)
• 4 1/2 cups of onions (chopped)
• 1 1/2 cups of plum tomatoes (chopped)
• 2 tbsp of butter
• 2 cups of carrots (peeled and chopped)
• 2 cups of celery with leaves (chopped)
• 9 cups of canned chicken broth (low-salt)

Gravy:

• 1/2 cup of all purpose flour
• 1 cup of canned chicken broth (low-salt)

Preparation

Glaze:

1. Place a saucepan with butter over medium heat to melt it
2. Remove from heat and add honey, orange peel, lime peel, thyme, chipotle chilies, cumin, and salt
3. Freeze the mixture for 30 minutes and set 1/2 cup of glaze aside

Turkey:

• Place a skillet with butter over medium-high heat to melt butter
• Add onions, reserve the heart, gizzards, and neck, and sauté onions until the onions soften for 20 minutes
• Add tomatoes, carrots, and celery to the skillet and mix to combine
• Cover the turkey and set is aside
• Preheat the oven 400 degrees Fahrenheit and after washing the turkey inside and out and patting it dry, place it in a roasting pan on the bottom third rack of the oven,
• Loosen the skin by placing a hand at the neck and sliding it between the skin and meat
• Rub 1/2 cup of citrus glaze over the breast meat below the skin
• Tuck wing tips under the bird, tie its legs loosely together, brush 1/3 cup of glaze on top of the bird and its sides (save leftover glaze)
• Sprinkle salt and black pepper, cover turkey with foil, not pan
• Roast turkey for half an hour (30 minutes)
• Decrease oven temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
• Add o1 cup of chicken broth to the pan and press foil around the bird, not pan
• Roast the bird for 1 hour and 15 minutes
• Add 1 cup of chicken broth to pan and roast the bird, adding 1 cup of chicken broth every half an hour
• In the final 15 minutes of cooking, remove the foil and cook for 3 hours and 25 minutes, and place the turkey on a platter

Gravy:

• Strain juices into an eight-cup measuring cup, press solids to extract liquid and pulp
• Throw away solids and remove fat
• Add chicken broth to the juices in the cup to measure out six cups
• Stir reserved 1/2 cup glaze in a saucepan and place it over medium heat to melt it
• Decrease to medium heat, add flour, whisking it for a minute, whisk pan juices in, bring to a boil, whisk again, and reduce to medium heat to allow sauce to thicken
• Glaze the turkey, season the gravy with salt and black pepper, and serve