The Christmas Turkey

Turkey is a customary Christmas treat in the US as well as in many European countries. It is usually baked whole for the festive table. There are hundreds of recipes for Christmas turkey and you have to bear in mind that ovens are different just as turkeys are. The best way to find out if the bird is ready is to prick it where it’s thickest. If you draw transparent juice, the turkey is ready. Ours was not a big bird, so we baked it without foil. If you get a big-sized turkey, you would do well to bake it in foil first and take the foil off afterwards to give the bird a brownish crust.

Ingredients for Christmas Turkey

• a turkey of about 6-7 lb
• 2 tablespoons coriander
• 1 tablespoon black peas
• 5-6 laurel leaves
• a bulb of garlic
• a couple of rosemary twigs
• an inch of ginger
• 0.1 lb balsamic vinegar
• a glass of white dry wine
• olive oil for coating

Recipe for Christmas Turkey

1. Grind together garlic, pepper, coriander, laurel leaf, ginger, rosemary.
2. Mix them with salt, wine and balsamic vinegar.
3. Coat the bird with the mixture well from all sides, so that the mixture gets under the skin as much as possible. Place in a deep dish and leave for 24 hours for a good soak-up.
4. After that coat the bird with oil, set on a grill installed over a baking tray where you have poured in a little water.
5. Bake at 356 degrees for about 2,5 – 3 hours, adding 3 more oil coating along the way.