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Turkey Stock/Broth


Alex

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Followed James Peterson this year -- very short boiling of the carcass.

Very refined broth.

Have left behind long boils.

Why? I love that super-gelatin result from a long boil, and the gelatin is really good for you. But I'm just wondering why the short boil would be preferred.

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I am not Lindacakes, but I also reduced the simmering time this year. I have been finding that with already roasted bones and carcasses I was getting a muddy flavor instead of improving the end result when I went my usual time . I still got a gelatinous stock. To clarify, I was doing an overnight, and this time only did very low heat for 5 hours- just an occasional bubble popping up to the surface.

Followed James Peterson this year -- very short boiling of the carcass.

Very refined broth.

Have left behind long boils.

Why? I love that super-gelatin result from a long boil, and the gelatin is really good for you. But I'm just wondering why the short boil would be preferred.

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I think the first time I ever made turkey stock I used Julia Child's recipe "Feasting on the Remains." In her free-spirited way she throws in raw chicken parts along with the chopped up turkey carcass and raw beef or veal bones. I'm more of a purist when it comes to turkey stock and prefer it to taste like nothing but roasted turkey essence, although I do throw in a veal knuckle bone and just a couple of marrow bones after browning them.

Julia's instructions are to cook at a very low simmer uncovered for 3-4 hours or "until you think you have gotten all the flavor out of your carcass." I take that to mean that she pretty much believed whatever good comes from cooking a carcass can be had in 4 hours or less. She suggests that if your stock isn't as strong as you like, you should remove all the solids and cook it down afterwards. I think turkey stock from roasted bird is hypnotically good. Kid back to college, no relatives, no mountains of red and orange foods, just peace and quiet, me and my husband....and the trance caused by turkey broth.

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How do you deal with your turkey carcass

I'm not Mayhaw Man nor Lindacakes . . . :biggrin: but making stock from a big roasted bird is one of my all-time favorite kitchen activities. After the big tryptophan dose I become a crazed turkey vulture picking away at the bones. My modus operandi:

1. Let Big Bird cool down breast-up on a platter.

2. Get three bowls and a stock pot :light, dark, skin and bones.

3. Cover bones with just enough water, simmer for several hours.

4. Cool, strain and freeze.

I like concentrated turkey stock frozen in 1 cup containers for future usage. Some of the best dark meat bits are along the back, hidden from diners. The big toms have fantastic back meat -- it reminds me of cod cheeks in that they're shallow muscles with broad attachment to bone, and not worth the bother in small specimens.

Peter Gamble aka "Peter the eater"

I just made a cornish game hen with chestnut stuffing. . .

Would you believe a pigeon stuffed with spam? . . .

Would you believe a rat filled with cough drops?

Moe Sizlack

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How do you deal with your turkey carcass

I'm not Mayhaw Man nor Lindacakes . . . :biggrin: but making stock from a big roasted bird is one of my all-time favorite kitchen activities. After the big tryptophan dose I become a crazed turkey vulture picking away at the bones. My modus operandi:

1. Let Big Bird cool down breast-up on a platter.

2. Get three bowls and a stock pot :light, dark, skin and bones.

3. Cover bones with just enough water, simmer for several hours.

4. Cool, strain and freeze.

I like concentrated turkey stock frozen in 1 cup containers for future usage. Some of the best dark meat bits are along the back, hidden from diners. The big toms have fantastic back meat -- it reminds me of cod cheeks in that they're shallow muscles with broad attachment to bone, and not worth the bother in small specimens.

My bird and had a lot of fat on it, and since it was 22# it took 4½ hours to roast at 325ºF. This caused the dark meat on the underside to come out Confit. What a joy for me! My wife doesn't like dark meat, SO, all of the good stuff was gone by the time I got that massive bird picked clean. <insert loud belch here>

Veni Vidi Vino - I came, I saw, I drank.
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I made better-than-many-years stock from the carcass, then the turkey/rice/vegetable soup from my mother's recipe. It was as wonderful as it was when she made it on December 28th every year.

There's a limit to how much soup you can eat on consecutive days, and we had a couple of cups left over. Boy, did our cats make out! I zapped it for twenty seconds and poured some over their canned food.

When cats are in culinary bliss their ears turn back and their eyes close. They lap every bit of the stock then devour the turkey bits and the carrots, rice and potatoes. Thank heavens I have a frozen stash of stock in the freezer!

Margaret McArthur

"Take it easy, but take it."

Studs Terkel

1912-2008

A sensational tennis blog from freakyfrites

margaretmcarthur.com

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Just this instant I finished the last of a pot of chicken (used a rotisserie, picked clean -- another carcass! -- because the slim turkey remnants were getting old), kale and canellini bean soup with my ultra-rich, gelatinous turkey broth. Lots of carrot, celery and garlic (like eight cloves), red pepper flakes in the beginning and chipotle sauce in the end for spicy/smoky kick, and finished with lemon juice. It got better each day, and I must've eaten eight bowls of it myself.

I consider it a borderline crime to toss a carcass in the trash, and if I could get away with it I'd probably troll the neighborhood during holidays, looking for unwanted turkey remnants for soup.

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  • 1 year later...

I got a couble of turkey back yesterday to use for making stock on Sunday so i have it ready for Thanksgiving. What is the word from everyone regarding roasting the turkey and the vegtables before they go into the stock pot? I have done it each way and to tell the truth i don't notice a big difference.

What say you?

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I would say, if you don't notice much difference between a stock made from roasted and unroasted bones and mirepoix, then you may not be roasting deeply enough (or, depending on the animal, simmering enough/getting enough extraction). Much the same as the difference between a white and brown veal stock, white and brown chicken stock, etc., these are entirely different in character (and use).

What are you looking to do with the stock?

Edited by paul o' vendange (log)

-Paul

 

Remplis ton verre vuide; Vuide ton verre plein. Je ne puis suffrir dans ta main...un verre ni vuide ni plein. ~ Rabelais

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Turkey gravy is the ONLY thing that I make that I brag about. I buy the wings and roast them with oil, carrots, onions, poultry seasoning and a little tomato paste. I roast them very well and then make the stock from that. I make my gravy ahead of time and freeze it. I have WAY too much going on in my kitchen to make gravy at the last minute.

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My understanding of the stock that is used in gravy is that it is typically not made from roasted parts, but that's because you don't have roasted parts until the turkey is done, in which case it would too late to make a stock for gravy. We usually make the necessary small amount of stock for gravy by using the raw parts such as turkey neck and gizzard, and adding half an onion, some celery tops and simmering for up to two hours, ending up with about 2+ cups of stock. If our stock is too weak we boil it down a bit. That liquid is used to deglaze the pan as the first step in the gravy process. If you happen to have any type of strong turkey stock around before you have cooked the bird--whether from raw parts or roasted--I don't see why you couldn't use that.

I do think there is a pretty distinct difference in stock made from raw poultry/bones vs roasted; that's why turkey soup made from the carcass and trimmings of a roasted bird tastes so special. But I can't see going out of my way to achieve roasted stock just for making gravy, since stock is only one ingredient in good gravy and you will be picking up the scrapings and drippings flavors plus the winey meaty flavor of brown sauce if you are including that in your gravy, and the buttery flavor of a roux if you add that for a little body. In a perfect world one might use a beef bouillion made from roasted bones for the brown sauce, but even James Beard used a can.

I've never used a combo of roasted and raw turkey to make a stock, but I don't see why you couldn't. Doesn't Julia Child throw in raw and roasted things in the same soup pot?

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Yes i amgoing to make gravy. So I like to have stock to do so as the drippings in the pan often don't give me enough as my crowd like gravy, so I will make the stock ahead to have to addd to what I can scrape up from the roasting pan. Roux is what I use to thicken it up.

Then I would definitely roast the bones & mirepoix. That's where all the color and much of the flavor comes from. Without roasting you'll basically end up with a broth.

When you make the sauce save a little stock to deglaze the turkey roast pan with after cooking. I add some flour right to the fatty drippings to make a quick pan roux, then deglaze. Make your regular pan gravy and add it to your turkey sauce.

And don't forget the giblets (liver, heart, gizzard): simmer all until very tender, cool chop (take off the tough outer layer from the gizzard)and add late in the gravy-making process (I also add the cooking juice for even more flavor).

The Big Cheese

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I've done it both ways, but I preferred the one made with roasted parts: make sure you are roasting them to a reasonably deep brown: we're not worried about over-cooking the meat, after all! Let them get a very good amount of color, stirring every 10-15 minutes especially toward the end of cooking. I have sometimes found I had to take the vegetables out before the turkey parts were dark enough for my liking.

Chris Hennes
Director of Operations
chennes@egullet.org

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I'm with Chris: roast them and don't be shy. About an hour in a 425°F oven does it. Deglazing the roasting pan with water or chicken broth gives you a nice start on the stock.

When I make stock ahead of time (which for Thanksgiving means almost always) I use wings but no mirepoix. I don't find that the vegetables add much to the stock, and if I want veg in the gravy, I'll add it later.

Dave Scantland
Executive director
dscantland@eGstaff.org
eG Ethics signatory

Eat more chicken skin.

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jmolinari - Perfect timing, this. I actually just started my Christmas gravy this morning. First I roast turkey wings, carrots and celery – tossing them with Bell’s Seasoning, pepper and a tomato paste/olive oil slurry – I’ve never had a problem with the tomato paste burning, but I roast at 350 degrees. All roasted and gorgeous:

P1060316.JPG

Then they get covered with broth (HM if I have it, a good canned one or Better Than Bouillon, if I don’t) in a deep stock pot and simmer for a few hours to make stock:

P1060319.JPG

I drain and chill the stock, retaining the wings. If the fat gets good and solid, I make a dark roux with that and flour (I use butter if the fat isn’t solid enough), add some white wine and the stock to make the gravy. I cook the gravy in a cast iron dutch oven and reduce it very slowly, tasting for pepper, salt. Once it is almost done, I add back in the shredded wing meat. If I’m not freezing, I add some fresh marjoram and thyme about 30 minutes before serving.

Here are some notes that I made for posterity (that is, if my daughter ever wants to make turkey gravy).

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I roast any chicken parts that will be used for gravy, on an elevated roasting rack. This replicates the conditions for roasting the whole turkey. Better browning on all sides of the parts and lots more fond in the pan. More fond = more flavor.

Tim

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Just thought I’d finish up the description of my gravy for anyone who is interested (still got Christmas coming up, too). The beginning of the roux:

P1060327.JPG

All browned up:

P1060328.JPG

Finished gravy:

P1060333.JPG

It will be much thicker when I get it out of the freezer and I’ll need to thin it a little with some chicken stock.

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