Michelin Techniques for Thanks Giving

Heat oven to 425 F/ 218 C

Lay the bones out on two trays with a rack and roast until golden brown, about 40 minutes, flipping halfway through.

Place the bones in a large pot. Flip the racks on the trays and add enough water to submerge the racks. Place in the oven for 5 minutes.

Remove the racks and use a wooden spoon to remove the fond. Add this to the bones and cover with cold water.

Bring this up to a simmer on high heat, and once bubbles come up pull the pot half way off the burner for a convection simmer. Use a spoon and a bowl of water to remove all the fat and impurities that float to the surface.

Place the pot back on the burner and lower the heat so that it is just at a simmer. Let this cook for 3 hours.

Add the carrots, onions and celery to the stock and cook for another 45 minutes.

Turn off the heat and add the thyme, peppercorns and parsley stems.

Strain the stock through a colander into a large bowl, then double strain to remove any small bits.

Fill your sink with ice water and place the stock in the large bowl to cool, then place in the fridge

*Notes

Putting water on the tray and rack will not only remove the flavorful fond, but it makes cleaning the pans way easier, just make sure you clean them while they are still warm.

A convection simmer will push all the impurities off to one side of the pot allowing you to easily remove all the fat and impurities. Plus it will prevent the fat and impurities from emulsifying which would create a cloudy stock.

Using a bowl of water not only gives you a place to put the impurities, but allows you to clean the spoon so that you don’t reintroduce them into the stock.

Cooling the stock to under 70 degrees fast will prevent bacteria from spoiling the stock.

Place all fat, extra skin and Popes nose into a pot and give it a rinse.

Submerge with cold water and render on low heat for one hour.

Strain the fat, then reduce out all the water and store off to the side.

Mix the salt and sugar together, than sprinkle the cure over the turkey thighs.

Add the excess cure in the bottom of a dish with the thyme and bayleaf and place the thighs on top.

Rinse off the cure then place it in a pan and submerge in the render turkey fat.

Bake at 270 F/ 132 C until tender, about 1 hour.

Cube brioche and dry overnight or in the oven

Add the turkey fat into a pot with mushrooms and a pinch of salt, and brown.

Add in the shallots, garlic and leeks with a pinch of salt, sweat, then set aside.

Into a bowl, whisk the egg, stock.

Place in the fridge for 1-2 hours to cool.

Add the cranberries, sugar, sparkling wine, orange juice and tie half a cinnamon stick to the handle and bring to a simmer.

Pass this through a strainer and store in the fridge.

*Note: Adding fat like butter to a puree will help make it smoother.

Butterfly the turkey breast and remove tendons from tenders and breast and season all sides of the turkey.

Use a wet towel to wipe the counter and lay down a sheet of plastic wrap. Place the turkey down with more plastic wrap on top and using a meat mallet, pound the turkey, then shape it into a rectangle with a bench scraper.

Remove the top layer of plastic and place the stuffing in the middle, shaping it with your hands. Use the plastic to shape the turkey into a log, then use the counter to tighten the log. Tie off ends and store in the fridge for a minimum of 3 hours.

Cut the skin in half and place the unwrapped log down, and warp it in the skin. Trim away any excess.

Tie loops around the turkey to give it shape, and patch any holes with the skin before tying it off and storing it in the fridge.

Cover in melted turkey fat and salt and roast at 475F/ 246 C until you reach a 150F/ 65C internal and rest for 10-15 minutes.

*Note- When meat is tightly wrapped like this , it will carry over 10 plus degrees.

Preheat your oven to 350F /176 C

Bake until extremely tender, about 80 minutes.

Remove from the foil and while still warm, peel the potatoes.

Pass them through a strainer and into a pot.

Add the brown butter, cream, maple syrup to the pot and warm. Season to taste and set aside.

*Note- Cook your brown butter until it is nice and brown then place in to another container to prevent it from burning.

Pull off the burner to create a convection simmer to remove all the impurities.

Reduce down to nappe or sauce like consistency

Finish with thyme, smashed garlic clove, butter and a splash of sherry vin.

Strain into a sauce pot and keep off the side.

*Note- Add cold stock to hot roux or vise versa to prevent lumps.