WINE-INFUSED TURKEY WITH ADOBO SAUCE AND PECAN-SAGE STUFFING

Adam

Our favorite recipe for Thanksgiving turkey. The wine and adobo give it Cal-Latino pizzazz.

ingredients

One 10-12 lb turkey
1/2 cup red wine
For Adobo
1 medium yellow onion, minced
3 large cloves garlic, mashed
3/4 C sweet sherry
1/4 C red wine vinegar
juice of 1 lemon per 3 lbs of turkey
2 T Dijon mustard
1 T unsalted butter, melted
salt & pepper to taste
For Stuffing
2 lbs sweet Italian sausage, out of the casing and crumbled
2 T olive oil
2 large onions, finely chopped
4 celery stalks, finely chopped
1/2 C mixed fresh herbs to taste, chopped: sage, rosemary, thyme
2/3 C bourbon
2 large eggs
1/2 C pecan halves
8 C stale bread, crumbled
2 C turkey or chicken broth
For Roasting with the Turkey
1 cup dry red wine
3 roma tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1 medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped
salt & pepper

directions

1
Prepare turkey: remove innards & excess fat, discard. Rinse the turkey inside and out, pat dry with paper towels. Place the turkey, breast side up, in a shallow roasting pan. Fill turkey baster with 1/2 C red wine, make a small hole in the skin at the top of the turkey breast, and squirt wine through the hole.
2
Adobo: Combine all ingredients in large mixing bowl. Run inside and outside of turkey with the adobo, wrap it completely in plastic, and refrigerate overnight.
3
Stuffing: Over medium-high heat, fry sausage in olive oil until slightly browned. Remove the meat; add onion, celery and herbs to the pan. Cook until onion is soft. Add bourbon, simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. When cool, move mixture to a large bowl and mix in the egg, sausage, and pecans. Stir in bread and broth. Season with salt and pepper to taste; set aside.
4
Remove plastic from turkey, fill body cavity with stuffing, close with trussing skewers. If any stuffing is left over, bake for 35 minutes in covered casserole while turkey’s finishing.
5
Add ingredients for roasting with the turkey to the Adobo in the roasting pan and mix so it’s all evenly distributed. Put turkey in roasting pan, then put roasting pan in middle of preheated oven at 450. Roast for 30 minutes, basting with pan juices, then lower to 325. Roast, basting every 20 minutes, about 3 to 3 1/2 hours more, until thermometer reads 180, or turkey juices run clear when thigh is pricked. Add water to pan as pan juices evaporate. If breast gets golden brown before turkey’s done, cover with aluminum foil during the last stage of roasting. Remove from oven, let rest 20 minutes before carving.
6
Skim the fat off the pan juices, place roasting pan over moderate heat. Stir 1/2 to 1 cup water into juices and scrape the bottom. Simmer until thickened.