My very special Spanish Christmas Turkey with all the trimmings| Mi pavo de Navidad

In Spain we do have turkey for Christmas as well. In my family we prepare it in this really different and very special way and of all the turkeys I have tried in my life I can assure you this is the best by far! We Botox de turkey with brandy and we massage the turkey after some yoga exercises. When I say that something is the best and special is for a reason. Be prepared for a very unique Christmas turkey recipe with all the trimmings.

 INGREDIENTS

THE TURKEY

• 4.5 kg free-range turkey

• 300ml brandy (or whisky)

• Salt and pepper

• 30g butter

• Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

• 2 lemons

• 6 sprigs of thyme

• 1 syringe (from the pharmacy)

  
  FOR THE GRAVY

• 2 Spanish onions

• Half head of garlic

• 4 carrots

• 3 celery sticks

• 1 leek

• 1 glass of white wine

• A pinch of salt

• 3 litres of water

  
  FOR THE BALSAMIC SHALLOTS

• 8 banana shallots

• 20g butter

• Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

• 3 tbsp caster sugar

• A pinch of salt

• Drizzle of balsamic vinegar

• 100ml water

  
  FOR THE BAKED BRANDY APPLES

• 8 apples

• 3tbsp caster sugar

• Half tsp cinnamon powder

• 20g butter

• 1 shot of brandy

  
  FOR THE NEW POTATO ROSTIES

• 1 kg of new potatoes

• 3 sprigs of rosemary

• Salt and pepper

• Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

• 1 head garlic

• 20g butter

Preparation

1. Start a day in advance injecting all throughout the turkey half the brandy and repeat the Botox operation the following day, when you are meant to be cooking the turkey. Stretch your turkey by grabbing it by the wings and the legs to distribute the brandy throughout the muscles. Give it a good massage as well. To make this turkey so special it needs all the wellness treatments before the cooking! Rest  assure this turkey will give you the love back.

2. To cook the turkey from beginning to end (without the Botox) plus the resting time it will take you 5 hours, so please consider this and plan ahead. We are going to start by roasting the turkey over a bed of vegetables which will become the base of your gravy, your sauce. To do this peel your carrots and roughly chop them together with the leeks, onion and celery sticks and place over a roasting tray with the whole garlic cloves and half of the fresh thyme. Drizzle them with olive oil and give them a good stir. 

3. Rub the inside cavity of the turkey with salt, pepper, half the sprigs of thyme and insert the 2 lemons cut into halves. It should be full inside and will help to keep it moist. Place your turkey on top of this bed of chopped vegetables, drizzle with olive oil and rub the softened butter all over the skin and roast in the oven at 140 degrees Celsius for about 3 and a half hours if your oven is fan assisted, otherwise it will take an extra half an hour. Every hour bast all the skin of the turkey with either a spoon or a brush. As well stir the veg underneath to make sure they all caramelized evenly.

4. Remove the turkey from the oven, place it in a rack or a plate and cover it with aluminium paper for the next hour and a half in a warm place so it rests after the sauna and allow for all the inner juices to return to their place. It is in this time frame when you need to prepare all the trimmings and garnishes: the sauce, the baked apples, the new potatoes and the balsamic shallots. We will do them all (except the sauce) in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius, to keep things easier, we just need to control the timing of each. Shallots will take 90 minutes, apples 1 hour and the potatoes 40 minutes. Make sure you have 3 oven-proof trays and pans. I hope you find it easy enough.

5. Pour all the caramelised vegetables and liquids into a large pot, scrape all the sticky and burnt bits around the edges of the roasting tray, here is were all the flavour is. Pour the glass of white wine, reduce it down for a minute and pour the water, we are going to let it simmer and reduce down until our turkey and all the trimming are ready before we pass it through a sift to obtain a clean, sticky and full of flavour turkey jus.

6. To cook the shallots, peel the first layer of skin and remove the roots. Place them in a oven-proof pan (or tray) with the sugar, the balsamic vinegar and the water and we are going to let them cook slowly for 90 minutes, turning them around every half an hour until soft and caramelised.

7. To bake the apples we are going to peel them first and core them if you have a fruit core remover utensil, otherwise my recommendation would be to leave them whole, they will look even better. Place them in a baking tray with the mixed sugar and cinnamon powder as well as the know of butter on top. Bake them in the oven for an hour.

8. To cook the new potatoes we are going to parboil them in a pot with salted water for about 12 minutes. Drain them and place in a roasting tray together with the olive oil, butter, garlic gloves, rosemary sprigs, salt, peppers

9. Remove the aluminium foil from the turkey and bring all the element to the centre of the table. Finish it off by heating the leftover shot of brandy for a few seconds in a small saucepan and carefully pouring it on top of the apples and flambéing them with the help of a lighter for a bit of a grand finale. Carve it at the table after everyone has taken his Instagram shots and thank the chef for their generosity and care. Merry Christmas everyone. Lot’s of love.

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