Troubleshooting Braised Turkey Thighs

[Shel_B]

Apple cider braised turkey thighs have been on my menu for several years, although I only make the dish about once, maybe twice, a year.  While flavorful, the thighs always seem to be a little stringy and somewhat chewy.  I've tried adjusting time/temp a bit, and the results have all been about the same. Adjustments have been small.

 

I've no issues with other braises ... chicken, beef, pork ... so I'm doing something wrong or there's an problem inherent with turkey thighs and a cider braise.  If it's helpful to know, there is some apple cider vinegar in the braising liquid as well as some apple slices.

 

So, any thoughts of what can be done to troubleshoot this dish?

[Katie Meadow]

29 minutes ago, Shel_B said:

Apple cider braised turkey thighs have been on my menu for several years, although I only make the dish about once, maybe twice, a year.  While flavorful, the thighs always seem to be a little stringy and somewhat chewy.  I've tried adjusting time/temp a bit, and the results have all been about the same. Adjustments have been small.

 

I've no issues with other braises ... chicken, beef, pork ... so I'm doing something wrong or there's an problem inherent with turkey thighs and a cider braise.  If it's helpful to know, there is some apple cider vinegar in the braising liquid as well as some apple slices.

 

So, any thoughts of what can be done to troubleshoot this dish?

In my opinion the problem is that it's turkey. Unless you simply love turkey unconditionally, but kudos for trying! OTOH turkey soup made from roast turkey parts is the bomb. But once you've made a rich stock all the turkey parts except the necks are inedible. I love the necks with a little broth and salt. Do you remember Brennan's in Berkeley? Fabulous drinks and really good turkey necks: big ones, one per serving. Very fun. So sad when they closed.

[blue_dolphin]

If I understand correctly, you are happy with your chicken, beef and pork braises but have never been happy with turkey thighs.  Sounds like it could be the turkey, but just in case…
 

36 minutes ago, Shel_B said:

I've tried adjusting time/temp a bit, and the results have all been about the same.

Maybe describe those failed time/temp adjustments in more detail so people don’t suggest something you’ve already done. 

[liuzhou]

I agree with the above. The problem is it's turkey. Why have you been making them for years if you don't like them.

[Shel_B]

41 minutes ago, liuzhou said:

I agree with the above. The problem is it's turkey. Why have you been making them for years if you don't like them.

I never said I don't like turkey thighs. I don't like the texture in the braise results. I continued to make the braise because in so many ways the dish is exceptional, so I tried to improve the results. If I feel a dish has potential, I don't give up on it ... I keep trying to improve it.  Asking for advice here is just another step in trying to improve the result.

[Shel_B]

1 hour ago, blue_dolphin said:

Maybe describe those failed time/temp adjustments in more detail so people don’t suggest something you’ve already done. 

The original cooking instructions are:

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium Dutch oven or heavy oven-ready pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Season turkey on both sides with salt and pepper and add to pot, skin side down. Cook until skin is golden and crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer turkey to a plate and add shallots to pot. Cook until shallots soften, about 5 minutes. Add apples and cook until slightly softened, about 5 minutes.

 

Return turkey, skin side up, to pot; add cider and broth. Bring to a boil, cover, then place pot in oven. Cook 1 1/2 hours. Uncover; cook 30 minutes more.

 

I've adjusted the oven temp up and down by 25-deg in each direction, cut 30 minutes from the covered braise and both reduced and increased the uncovered braise by 15 minutes.

 

FWIW, of the five other braised turkey thigh and leg recipes I have in my collection, three call for a 90+ minute braise and two call for 2 hours.

Edited June 2 by Shel_B (log)

[Shel_B]

1 hour ago, Katie Meadow said:

In my opinion the problem is that it's turkey. Unless you simply love turkey unconditionally, but kudos for trying! OTOH turkey soup made from roast turkey parts is the bomb. But once you've made a rich stock all the turkey parts except the necks are inedible. I love the necks with a little broth and salt. Do you remember Brennan's in Berkeley? Fabulous drinks and really good turkey necks: big ones, one per serving. Very fun. So sad when they closed.

I visited Brennan's quite a few times. Loved the place and, like you, was saddened when they closed.  The last time I was there I had Irish coffees with my friend Jack ...

 

I'm starting to think it may be the turkey, too, but I want to play with this dish a bit more.  Maybe a braise isn't right for the thighs, but the braising medium and the apples are great ... maybe another way to use the recipe, such as making a marinade of the braising ingredients and then roasting the thighs?  I also thought about using chicken thighs, and was musing about duck thighs or breast but I've not looked into how well they'd do with apples ... I believe they'd be fine.

Edited June 2 by Shel_B (log)

[gfweb]

Stringy, tough turkey meat is usually overcooked.

 

Try sous vide at 150F for 3 hours.

[Shel_B]

4 minutes ago, gfweb said:

Stringy, tough turkey meat is usually overcooked.

 

Try sous vide at 150F for 3 hours.

I just found a few suggestions for cooking the thighs at a lower temp, which I will try. The suggested temps were 165-175 degrees. Your 150-degree sous vide suggestion is close to those temps.

 

I don't have a sous vide setup. Not sure I want one.

 

Thanks for jumping in.

[Smithy]

2 hours ago, Shel_B said:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium Dutch oven or heavy oven-ready pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Season turkey on both sides with salt and pepper and add to pot, skin side down. Cook until skin is golden and crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer turkey to a plate and add shallots to pot. Cook until shallots soften, about 5 minutes. Add apples and cook until slightly softened, about 5 minutes.

 

Return turkey, skin side up, to pot; add cider and broth. Bring to a boil, cover, then place pot in oven. Cook 1 1/2 hours. Uncover; cook 30 minutes more.

 

Without having tried any of this operation, my first thought is that once the turkey is browned and the skin crisp you don't need to bring the turkey back up to boiling point. I'd try following the first couple of lines above, until the skin is golden and crisp, then remove the turkey. Then I'd take all those other steps with softening the shallots and apples, then bringing the cider and broth to a simmer -- not a boil! Then, and only then, I'd put the turkey back in and throw the covered lot into the oven. I also wouldn't pay as much attention to time as to tenderness of the meat. That means checking on it once in a while. I suspect that 1 1/2 hours, plus the extra half hour to boil down the sauce with the turkey still in it, is too much.

[Shel_B]

1 hour ago, Smithy said:

 I suspect that 1 1/2 hours, plus the extra half hour to boil down the sauce with the turkey still in it, is too much.

Thanks for your thoughts.  The more I look into this, the greater my tendency to agree with you. The next time I get to the poultry market, I'll buy a bunch of thighs and continue my experiments in that direction. I'd really like to get this dish to work ...

[&roid]

When we do turkey legs at Christmas I sort i of half braise half roast them and get good results. 
 

they sit in a bed of chopped veg and stock in a roasting tin which I cover tightly with foil. I cook these at 120°C (240°F) for 3h then give them a quick blast at 220°C (450°F) for 15-20 mins to crisp. If you preferred to keep it closer to your method you could brown to start and just leave out the final step.