Turkey with a twist

The scientific name for a turkey is Meleagris gallopava from Latin gallus, meaning cock, and pavo, meaning chickenlike. Meleagris is the Roman name for guineafowl, suggesting early confusion with turkey.

It is by no means clear how the turkey gained its name — one colourful theory claims a certain resemblance between the turkey stag's head and the helmet of a soldier of the Turkish Empire.

Another suggestion is from the wild turkey's call, which sounds like ‘turk-turk-turk’. Another likely explanation is that in the 16th century, merchants trading along the seaboards of the Mediterranean were known as Turkes. They probably included the birds in their merchandise, and they became known as turkey fowls.

One theory is that Columbus thought the new world was connected to India and that turkeys were really peacocks, so he named them ‘tuka,’ which is peacock in the Tamil language of India.

In Spain, the turkey was often referred to as Indian fowl, an allusion which is repeated in the French ‘dindon’ formed with d'Inde which means ‘from India’.

Turkeys have been around for ten million years — there are fossils to prove it.

The American Indians hunted wild turkey for its sweet, juicy meat as early as 1,000 AD. Turkey feathers were used to stabilise arrows and adorn ceremonial dress, and the spurs on the legs of wild turkeys were used as projectiles on arrowheads.

Turkeys are believed to have first been brought to Britain in 1526 by Yorkshireman William Strickland. He acquired six birds from American Indian traders on his travels and sold them for tuppence each in Bristol.

Henry VIII was the first English king to enjoy turkey, although Edward VII made eating turkey fashionable at Christmas.

Why not try these variations on the traditional turkey theme?

SAFFRON TURKEY WITH WILD RICE AND CRANBERRY STUFFING

(Serves 12)
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: approx three hours 22 minutes
Per serving 458 kcals, 10g fat

You will need:
For the stuffing:
1 tbsp olive oil
50g butter
2 onions, chopped
2 large sprigs rosemary, leaves only, chopped
100g cooked wild and long grain rice
50g dried cranberries
100g dried apricots, roughly chopped
175g fresh white breadcrumbs
6 good quality pork and herb sausages, skinned
1 lemon, finely grated rind
1 egg, beaten
For the turkey:
5.6kg British turkey, thawed if frozen, giblets removed
1 lemon, halved
1 bay leaf
50g butter
1/2 tsp saffron threads

Method:
Heat the oil and butter in a saucepan and fry the onion and rosemary for five to six minutes.
Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining stuffing ingredients until well combined. Season.
Preheat the oven to 190ºC; gas mark 5.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan, stir in the saffron threads and leave to cool slightly.
Push some of the stuffing into the neck end of the bird, packing it right up to the breast meat. Secure the neck skin with cocktail sticks.
Roll the remaining stuffing into balls. These can be cooked separately for 30 minutes.
Weigh the turkey and calculate the cooking time at 20 minutes per kg, plus 90 minutes at the end.
Push the lemon halves and bay leaf into the cavity and place in a roasting tin. Brush the whole bird with the saffron butter and season well.
Cover with foil and roast. Remove the foil and baste with any remaining saffron butter, and roast uncovered for the last hour of cooking time.
To check if the turkey is cooked, push a metal skewer into the thickest part of the leg — if the juices run clear it is cooked.
If the juices are slightly pink, pop it back into the oven for a further 15 minutes before checking again.
Cover with foil and allow to rest for 20-30 minutes before carving.

REDCURRANT, HORSERADISH AND MUSTARD GLAZED TURKEY CROWN

A roast turkey crown makes a superb centrepiece to the table and there is little waste. Without the legs, it is also much easier to carve

(Serves four to six)
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Per serving: 412 kcals, 9g fat

You will need:
1 x 1kg 350g boned British turkey crown
850ml turkey or chicken stock, boiling
275ml dry white wine
salt and freshly milled black pepper
For the glaze:
4 tbsp redcurrant jelly
2 tbsp creamed hot horseradish
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
Watercress mayonnaise:
8 tbsp mayonnaise
1 x 150g bag watercress
dash white wine vinegar
dash water
cracked black pepper

Method:
Preheat the oven to 170ºC, gas 5.
Season the turkey crown, place in a deep roasting tray with a 4cm gap around the edge.
Pour in the boiling stock, add the white wine, cover tightly with foil and place on the hob. Turn the heat to high and bring to the boil, you will hear the stock bubbling inside. Then carefully transfer to the hot oven for one hour.
Prepare the glaze, place the redcurrant jelly, horseradish and mustard in a bowl and whisk together to form a loose paste.
After the turkey has been cooking for an hour, carefully remove from the oven.
Lift off the foil and using a skewer, check to see if the juices run clear from the thickest part of the bird. Pour off the stock and turn the oven up to 200ºC; gas mark 7.
Spread the glaze evenly over the crown. Return to the oven and cook for a final 15-20 minutes to colour, making sure that it does not burn. Then remove from oven and allow to rest for 15 minutes before carving.
Meanwhile, spoon the mayonnaise into a liquidiser with the watercress, a dash of vinegar and water, then blitz to form a thick green puree. Season to taste. Transfer to a bowl for handing around the table.
Serve the turkey with roast potatoes and green vegetables such as broccoli or beans.

© Phil Vickery

BRITISH TURKEY WITH A WHISKEY GLAZE

Sufficient for a 5.5kg turkey.
Cooking time: Three hours 20 minutes

You will need:
5.5kg oven ready British turkey
175g prepared stuffing of your choice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 onion, peeled and cut into wedges
Small bunch of fresh herbs
50g softened butter
6 rashers back bacon
For the whiskey glaze:
6 tbsp Irish whiskey
3 tbsp clear honey
1 tbsp grated orange rind
2 tbsp orange juice
Method:
Preheat oven to 190ºC, gas mark 5, ten minutes before cooking. If using a frozen turkey, ensure it is thoroughly thawed and no ice crystals remain in the body cavity. Remove giblets if necessary. (Use the giblets to make stock for the gravy).
Wipe the turkey inside and out with either a clean damp cloth or kitchen paper.
Stuff the neck cavity with your prepared stuffing and secure neck flap, firmly encasing the stuffing. Season the body cavity then place the onion and fresh herbs inside. Weigh the turkey and calculate the cooking time allowing 20 minutes per kg, plus 90 minutes.
Place in a roasting tin and spread the breast and thighs with the softened butter and place the bacon over the top. Cover loosely with tin foil and cook in the preheated oven for the calculated cooking time.
Blend the ingredients for the glaze together and, 40 minutes before the end of cooking time, remove foil and the bacon, if used. Pour half the glaze over the breast.
Continue to cook for the remaining time, pouring over the rest of the glaze after a further ten minutes.
Baste occasionally until the turkey is cooked and the juices run clear when the thigh is pierced with a skewer. Add a little of the pan juices to the gravy.
Allow to rest for 15-20 minutes before carving and serve with roasted potatoes and parsnips, sprouts and carrots.

TWELVE TASTY TURKEY TEASERS

Ten million units of turkey were sold last Christmas and two out of every three whole birds were frozen.

For 87 per cent of people in the UK, Christmas would not be Christmas without a traditional roast turkey.

There are many more turkey cuts and joints than people are aware of including mince, chunks, breast steak, escalopes, drumsticks, sausages, stir fry strips, burgers, rashers and crowns.

The average weight of a Christmas turkey is 5.5kg/12lb.

Turkeys originated from Mexico, not Turkey.

The first meal eaten on the moon by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin was cold roast turkey.

Turkey was a luxury right up until the 1950s, when refrigerators and freezers became more widely available.

The bronze coloured wild turkey must fly to survive, and can glide for a mile without fluttering a wing.

Female turkeys are called hens, male turkeys are toms, and baby turkeys are called poults.

Most of the turkeys raised commercially are White Hollands, which have all-white plumage. The bronze turkey was the chief turkey raised in Canada until the mid-1960s.

The Guinness Book of Records states the greatest dressed weight recorded for a turkey is 39.09kg (86lbs). It was at the last annual heaviest turkey competition in London, in December 1989.

The most common enquiries received by the British Turkey Information Service at Christmas are requests for thawing and roasting times. The more bizarre enquiries come from confused callers wanting information about Istanbul, kebabs and carpets! Call 0800 783 9994, or visit the website: www.britishturkey.co.uk