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Sauce for stuffed turkey breast?


tammylc

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I'm having some friends over for dinner tonight, and in a demonstration of hostly laziness, bought a pre-stuffed turkey breast from Whole Foods to serve for dinner. It's stuffed with wild rice and mushrooms, and I'm thinking it might be a little dry. Anyone have any suggestions for a sauce I could throw together to go with?

The rest of the meal will be prosciutto-wrapped scallops as the appetizer (also purchased pre-prepared from Whole Foods -- I hang my head in shame), and green beans on the side. Served with Beaujolais Nouveau, cause 'tis the season and why the heck not? Dessert will be a cherry pie (and no, I didn't make that either).

Thoughts?

Tammy's Tastings

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eGullet Foodblogs #1 and #2
Dinner for 40

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don't hang your head in shame, it all sounds delicious! and gives you much more time to chat with your friends, too. how about mushrooms/Madeira/little bit of double cream/chopped tarragon combined with the pan scrapings?

Fi

Fi Kirkpatrick

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"Your avatar shoes look like Marge Simpson's hair." - therese

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Thanks all.

Guajalote - what kind of wine? I have a random red and an Australian Chard in the fridge that should still be okay for cooking with. Or should I use the Beaujolais?

Dave (or anyone else) - any bean dress-up suggestions? I was thinking of something vaguely almondine-ish, but hadn't gone surfing for recipes.

Curlywurlyfi - I don't really feel too bad. I've always thought that my greatest strength as a cook is knowing which stores to shop at...

Tammy's Tastings

Creating unique food and drink experiences

eGullet Foodblogs #1 and #2
Dinner for 40

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Thanks all.

Guajalote - what kind of wine? I have a random red and an Australian Chard in the fridge that should still be okay for cooking with. Or should I use the Beaujolais?

Dave (or anyone else) - any bean dress-up suggestions? I was thinking of something vaguely almondine-ish, but hadn't gone surfing for recipes.

Curlywurlyfi - I don't really feel too bad. I've always thought that my greatest strength as a cook is knowing which stores to shop at...

i'd use the BN (if you like it)

there's a great green bean salad in the Moosewood Cookbook. they add sliced onions and grated cheddar cheese to the beans w/ a vinegrette. I've also used goat cheese.

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Hmmm . . . with all those tasting notes mentioning dominant berry flavors, using the BN actually puts you in the flavor range of Jack's Cumberland Sauce! Off the heat, stirring in a little mustard is not a bad idea.

Green beans: even with a bright sauce, I think you're short of acid on the menu. If you don't go the vinaigrette route, how about a bit of shallot and some tomatoes, plus an earthy seasoning like oregano or cumin? Good canned tomatoes would work fine. Once the beans are cooked throught, remove them from the pan, saute the shallot, stir in the seasoning for a minute, then add the tomatoes and cook down just enough to evaporate the free liquid. Toss in your beans to warm them back up.

Dave Scantland
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dscantland@eGstaff.org
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Eat more chicken skin.

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as said madiera and mushrooms would work great(exotics or go for wild-morels) strong stock and pan drippings, finish with butter or cream if wanted/needed.

Bacon or pancetta with green beans is good- i prefer whole butter, shallot, fresh nutmeg and italian parsley.

hth, danny

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Thanks to everyone for the recommendations!

I'm leaning towards Guajalote's red wine pan sauce for the turkey breast - I think the splash of color will make for a nice plate, but I'll probably add a bit of mustard a la jackal10's Cumberland sauce. And maybe a few dried cranberries for texture and seasonalness...

As for the beans - I definitely want a hot side, so the salad is probably out, although I'll peruse Moosewood when I get home and see if I change my mind. Plus raw onions are about the only food that have made it onto my "pregnant, must avoid" food list. Perhaps the tomato concoction Dave recommends, or I may decide to not worry about the acid balance and go for Dano1's simple but classic butter, shallots, nutmeg and parsley. Or maybe I'll roast them with EVOO, sea salt and cracked black pepper and shave some parmesan on top to serve.

Tammy's Tastings

Creating unique food and drink experiences

eGullet Foodblogs #1 and #2
Dinner for 40

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Dinner turned out great. The stuffed turkey breast was really wonderful, and the fabulous built in meat probe in my fancy new stove helped me cook it to perfection. The stuffing had lots of mushrooms so was pretty moist (and the "cooked to perfection" meant the turkey wasn't dry), but the pan sauce still added a nice dimension. There weren't really any drippings to speak of, but I deglazed the pan with some homemade stock and some of the Beaujolais, then reduced it. Just before it was done reducing, I threw in a small handful of dried cranberries. Took it off the heat and whisked in about a tbsp of cold butter and a tsp of a grainy french mustard with grape must. Very nice.

I ended up just steaming the green beans, but due to an error in timing, they were done earlier than I the roast. So I set them aside, and right before serving heated up some EVOO and tossed them in it to reheat with some grey sea salt and fresh black pepper. Shaved some parmagiano reggiano on top.

Everyone raved about the meal, so definitely a win. Thanks for all the help!

Tammy's Tastings

Creating unique food and drink experiences

eGullet Foodblogs #1 and #2
Dinner for 40

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