Thanksgiving and turkey tips from local chef

With Thanksgiving mere moments away, turkey is guaranteed to be in the back of everyone’s mind. Of course, every family has their own holiday traditions, but trained chef of Benji’s Restaurant in Plains, Ben Geitan has offered some helpful tips to make those traditions even better.

The key to an outstanding turkey, according to Geitan, is in the turkey brine, which is a solution made mostly of water, salt, sugar and spices of a person’s choosing. Geitan recommends using oranges, lemon, thyme, rosemary and garlic, however, the spices are up to the individual’s discretion. The brine should be made the day before cooking the turkey and the turkey should be placed in the brine and refrigerated for no more than 24 hours. The steps to make the brine solution are as follows:

1. Completely dissolve one cup of kosher salt and one cup of light brown sugar in two gallons of water, no heat needed.

2. Add two quartered oranges, one quartered lemon, four sprigs of fresh thyme (or one tbsp dried), two sprigs of rosemary (or half tsp dried) and six crushed garlic cloves.

3. Remove the giblets and neck from the cavity of the thawed turkey and save for the turkey stock.

4. Rinse the turkey under cold water, inside and out.

5. Place the turkey in the brine and make sure it is completely covered.

6. Cover and refrigerate.

7. Soak turkey for a minimum of 45 minutes per pound and no more than 24 hours.

Geitan said all the liquid infuses into the meat making it very juicy and adds flavor depending on what spices are used.

“It (the turkey) comes out nice and moist and juicy so brining is key,” said Geitan who added that this same brine recipe can also be used with chicken.

The second recommendation Geitan offered is how to make a good turkey broth, used to baste the turkey when it cooks. The turkey broth can also be made the day before.

“The key is to make sure not to throw away the giblets. It sounds nasty, but it’s all good food,” said Geitan.

Instructions to make a turkey broth are as follows:

1. Heat one tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.

2. Add the turkey neck, heart, and gizzard to the pan and sauté until it just starts to brown, which should take about one minute.

3. Add one large, coarsely chopped onion, one coarsely chopped celery stalk, one coarsely chopped carrot and one bay leaf and sauté until soft, which should take about two minutes.

4. Add three cups of chicken stock and three cups of water and bring to a boil.

5. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer for about one hour or until reduced to about four cups.

6. Strain the stock into a pot or large measuring cup, cool and refrigerate until ready to use to baste the turkey when cooking.

“Now you have enriched turkey stock, it’s delicious,” said Geitan.

The last tip Geitan suggests is to stuff the turkey with a dressing and steer away from stuffing because it is safer to use when trying to get the turkey to 165 degrees.

“In order for it (the turkey) to be really safe it has to get up to 165 degrees, if you can get that stuffing all the way to the middle to that temperature, the outside of the turkey is going to be dry because you’re going to have to overcook it, so when you are stuffing a turkey, I would prefer to use dressing,” suggests Geitan.

Geitan proposes a recipe for Mire Poix, which can be made the day before or right before cooking the turkey.

Mire Poix is fairly easy to make and consists of mixing chunks of onion, carrots and celery together. Getian suggests adding garlic, sage and parsley for extra flavoring. Mire Poix is only meant to flavor the turkey and not to be eaten unless it reaches 165 degrees. Once the turkey is cooked, Geitan said, the mire poix can be removed and a person’s favorite stuffing or dressing, which will already be cooked, can be used to stuff the turkey.

“You don’t even have to make it nice, just rough chop it into chunks and stick it in the cavity of the bird,” said Geitan.

Also, to keep the turkey moist, run the turkey down with butter and try to get some butter under the skin, but be very careful not to break the skin, which will cause all of the juices to run out.

When cooking the turkey, in order to keep it moist and juicy, first cook it breast side down for an hour. After an hour, take it out and flip it over breast side up until it is done. Baste the turkey every hour with the turkey stock.

And finally, just enjoy yourself.

“The turkey is the centerpiece, you want it to be nice and if it doesn’t come out right, who cares it’s Thanksgiving, you’re surrounded by good people and family,” said Geitan.