Crisp Apple-Scented Roast Turkey with Cider-Calvados Gravy

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Source: Saveur
Crisp Apple-Scented Roast Turkey with Cider-Calvados Gravy Photo: Landon Nordeman

3. Put turkey into brining bag. The turkey must be kept cold (brine should be 33°), so refrigerate it or bury the bag in ice in an oversize cooler, adding ice as necessary. Before cooking, bring the turkey close to room temperature for the shortest roasting time. (Calculate 10 minutes' roasting time per pound.)

4. Remove the oven's center rack and arrange the remaining rack as low as possible. Heat oven to 450°. Choose a large shallow roasting pan, ideally 2" deep; if the pan is too deep, the turkey will steam instead of roasting. In the pan, cluster together remaining celery ribs halved crosswise, leaves removed; remaining 3 carrots halved crosswise, and remainign 3 onions cut into thick rounds so that the vegetables become a sturdy rack for the turkey. Scatter 1 unpeeled, cored, and coarsely chopped granny smith apple and 1 1⁄2 cups basil leaves over the top. Add 4 cups of the wine to cover the bottom of the pan with 1⁄2" of liquid.

5. Remove the turkey from the brine and pat it dry with paper towels. Set the turkey on the vegetables breast down (a technique that draws juices down into the breast while also protecting the meat from the heat) and tuck remaining unpeeled, cored, and coarsely chopped granny smith apple and remaining 1⁄2 cup basil leaves into the cavity. Dot the turkey with butter and dust all over with 1⁄2 tsp. pepper. Begin roasting.

This article was first published in Saveur in Issue #106

Ratings & Reviews (7)

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Last Thanksgiving I used this recipe to cook my first turkey (yeah it was an ambitious project for a rank amateur) but it turned out to be the best turkey everyone at the table could ever remember tasting. Thank you.
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I did cook it at 450 (thank you msherman - you gave me confidence!) and it was the best turkey I've ever made. The skin started to burn pretty early in the cooking process, but covering it with foil did the trick. This will be on the menu again next year!
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absolutely the best turkey i've ever eaten. well worth the effort. we were not that impressed with the gravy, though, but we will definitely use this brine again--we were talking about getting another turkey 2 days after thanksgiving because we had no leftovers!
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this recipe last year resulted in the most amazing turkey i'd ever had--and all our guests agreed. the 450-degree oven was not a problem (though i might have covered the bird w/ aluminum foil at one point to fend off burning). it was quite a lot of work--a rather involved process, but really worth it.
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i tried this turkey last year and loved it, but did not roast it at the 450 because i was scared :-) has anyone else whose made it roasted it at 450 for the whole roasting period? if so, did you run into any problems?
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i've never made a better thanksgiving turkey.
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i did this recipe on my post-holiday (jan 08) dinner and it was delicious.  be careful on not burning the skin, this maybe a result of the apple cider.

the gravy was absolutely creamy and aromatic.  everyone was raving about this for days after.

 i did stuffed however, with ground beef, apples, raisins, and currants.

 very well recommended.  i will do it again.

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