Smoked Turkey Legs

[bloviatrix]

In Al Dente's Kosher Kollard Green thread, he asked what would be a good substitute for ham hocks and the solution was to use a smoked turkey leg.

Since I keep kosher, I always skipped the recipes that called for ham hocks, so you can imagine that I'm very excited because this substitution expands my repetoire.

I've got the smoked turkey leg, what else can I make?

[fifi]

BEANS!

[winesonoma]

Tipsy Black Beans from James Beard's American Cookery. Don't have a link see if you can find the book in the library or pm me and I'll send it. Don't know if it qualifies as Kosher but it sure is good.

[peanutgirl]

Split Pea Soup !

Or added to a simmering pot of pintos / black or any other beans or bean based soup. I frequently substitute smoked turkey legs or even wings in a pinch.

[slkinsey]

Pretty much any long-simmered vegetable will be perfect with the addition of this "kosher smoked ham hock."

[Emily Kaiser]

Susan McCreight Lindeborg, chef of the Majestic Cafe in Alexandria, VA did a fun smoked-turkey-leg "faux pho" (forgive the terrible pun - I made it up, she didn't) for a $10 meal challenge in the Washington Post Food section. The article that goes along with the recipe is simply magnificent. ;)

http://www.emilykaiser.com/text/000417.php

Cheers, Emily

[Jason Perlow]

Collard Greens/Kale is great with smoked turkey or ham hocks.

[bloviatrix]

Considering that the turkey leg is quite large, should I shred some of the meat off or just throw the whole thing in?

[fifi]

I was thinking about that problem. It is more geometric than anything else. Turkey legs are a very inconvenient size and shape. I actually saw smoked thighs at my local HEB. There would be more meat on a thigh as well. I would say that if you have room in the pot, say a big pot to sweat down a big batch of greens, I would throw the whole thing in. If I were doing a pot of beans in my little Le Creuset, I might pull off chunks of the meat.

[lovebenton0]

Yes, if you have the room, the whole leg would yield more flavor then de-bone and return the "kosher hock" meat to soups or beans, etc. I often do greens, lentils, various beans (love the baby limas this way!), blackeye peas, or split pea soup with smoked turkey -- the flavor is wonderful and the aroma will make you believe you are eatin' the real thing!

Going a bit beyond the ham hocks question -- but smoked turkey leg or thigh (just so it's the dark meat) is also good to sub for other ham/bacon uses -- such as in quiche or frittatas. Just saute first to give it a bit more of a firm slightly crisp texture.

[Al_Dente]

Split Pea Soup !

Or added to a simmering pot of pintos / black or any other beans or bean based soup. I frequently substitute smoked turkey legs or even wings in a pinch.

←

After cooking the greens with two whole turkey legs, we took the legs out and picked at them (those of us who were cooking anyway). The first dish that popped into everyone's mind was split pea soup! You could rename that soup with those two legs in mind-- Split Pea Standing Up???

[KatieLoeb]

I've often used a smoked turkey leg or thigh in place of a ham hock. It's "un-traife", and generally a whole lot less salty as well. I've used it quite successfully in Split Pea soup and 15 Bean soup. Once it boils for a while the meat can be pulled off the bone, cut into chunks and returned to the pot. Watch out for the tendons and stringy parts.

[bloviatrix]

I can't wait to try some of these ideas. Keep 'em coming.

[fifi]

Going a bit beyond the ham hocks question -- but smoked turkey leg or thigh (just so it's the dark meat) is also good to sub for other ham/bacon uses -- such as in quiche or frittatas. Just saute first to give it a bit more of a firm slightly crisp texture.

←

Now that is a great idea. You have just expanded the use of smoked turkey tremendously. My son's roommate is Jewish, not kosher but doesn't eat pork just from life experience, so this thread is going to be very valuable since so many of our favorite recipes depend upon pork products.

[lovebenton0]

Split Pea Soup !

Or added to a simmering pot of pintos / black or any other beans or bean based soup. I frequently substitute smoked turkey legs or even wings in a pinch.

←

After cooking the greens with two whole turkey legs, we took the legs out and picked at them (those of us who were cooking anyway). The first dish that popped into everyone's mind was split pea soup! You could rename that soup with those two legs in mind-- Split Pea Standing Up???

←

I like it!

[tryska]

a former roommate used to make this fabulous soup with just smoked turkey wings, navy beans and some pepper.

she'd just drop it all in the crockpot and leave it for a day or two.

i think pretty much anything calling for ham hocks can use smoked turkey for a substitute, so go back through those recipes!

[Lexica]

We found one Thanksgiving that turkey skin makes an excellent faux-bacon. We had brined and roasted a bird, and before roasting I had carefully made sure to separate the skin from the meat everywhere I could without tearing it. Most of the people we were feeding that day were fat-and-skin-averse, so I removed the nice large piece of roast skin from over the breast and set it aside before carving.

When we were cleaning up after everyone had left, my husband broke off a bit of skin and started munching on it. "I saw you prepare this, so I know there's no bacon in it, but.... wow!" he said.

[bloviatrix]

I made a lentil soup tonight and threw in a smoked turkey leg. The soup was good, but not particularly smokey flavored -- I shredded the turkey meat before serving and the smokey flavor only came through when a chunk of meat was in the mouthful.

So, I have a couple of questions...

How much flavor should the leg be imparting to the dish? Is it very obvious or just subtle?

In preparing the soup I heated some olive oil and then sweated my mirepoix for about 10 minutes until the veg were soft. At that point I added the turkey leg, lentils and water. Would it be more effective if I add the turkey leg to the oil and the let the fat render off and the oil asborb the smokey flavor, then remove the leg, sweat the veg and replace the leg?

[winesonoma]

Did you include the skin?

[bloviatrix]

Did you include the skin?

←

Yes. I threw the whole thing in.

[tryska]

how long did you let the soup cook?

just like with ham slow and low is the key. that's what gets everything else really flavored with the smokiness.

[bloviatrix]

The soup simmered for about 1 1/2 hours. The pot was partially covered (I left the house and was afraid it would boil out).

[Al_Dente]

I made a lentil soup tonight and threw in a smoked turkey leg.  The soup was good, but not particularly smokey flavored -- I shredded the turkey meat before serving and the smokey flavor only came through when a chunk of meat was in the mouthful. 

So, I have a couple of questions...

How much flavor should the leg be imparting to the dish?  Is it very obvious or just subtle?

In preparing the soup I heated some olive oil and then sweated my mirepoix for about 10 minutes until the veg were soft.  At that point I added the turkey leg, lentils and water.  Would it be more effective if I add the turkey leg to the oil and the let the fat render off and the oil asborb the smokey flavor, then remove the leg, sweat the veg and replace the leg?

←

I used 2 legs for a huge pot of collard greens. It simmered for about 3 hours. The smokiness was definitely there. I did do some rendering with the legs while sauteing some onions and garlic to start off the process. Then I added about 2 quarts of stock along with probably 3 pounds of trimmed collards.

[FistFullaRoux]

You may want to try making a stock with one leg, and drop another one in the dish itself.

It's gilding the lily a bit, but at least it's turkey.

I wonder if the thigh can be deboned and sliced thin so it could be seared and served in the morning with eggs?

Smoked turkey confit anyone?

[trillium]

When I've cooked things for vegetarians that usually need smoked pork I use a little bit of morita or chipotle (the dried kind) or smoked paprika to add smokiness to a dish. The smoked paprika is pretty potently smoky. You might try any of those with your smoked turkey to up the flavor.

regards,

trillium