I have a skinless whole turkey, ~16-18 lb., that I'd like to roast for
Christmas. I plan on brining it, but I'm still worried that without
skin it will dry out in the oven, or overdarken/overcook the breast.
Is there a good way to prevent this? Maybe wrap in foil before
roasting? I have a convection oven , if that matters...

Thanks for any advice,

Kelly

> ha scritto nel messaggio
oups.com...
>I have a skinless whole turkey, ~16-18 lb., that I'd like to roast for
> Christmas. I plan on brining it, but I'm still worried that without
> skin it will dry out in the oven, or overdarken/overcook the breast.
> Is there a good way to prevent this? Maybe wrap in foil before
> roasting? I have a convection oven , if that matters...
>
> Thanks for any advice,
>
> Kelly

It's a controsense what I 'm going to tell you. Because you have thrown away
skin to avoid fat! But what do you think to cover it with lard (pork fat)?
Meat will result more tasty and more soft, IMHO.
Cheers
Pandora
>

wrote:
> I have a skinless whole turkey, ~16-18 lb., that I'd like to roast for
> Christmas. I plan on brining it, but I'm still worried that without
> skin it will dry out in the oven, or overdarken/overcook the breast.
> Is there a good way to prevent this? Maybe wrap in foil before
> roasting? I have a convection oven , if that matters...
>
> Thanks for any advice,

Braised in covered roaster.


Sheldon Derma

In article .com>,
wrote:

> I have a skinless whole turkey, ~16-18 lb., that I'd like to roast for
> Christmas. I plan on brining it, but I'm still worried that without
> skin it will dry out in the oven, or overdarken/overcook the breast.
> Is there a good way to prevent this? Maybe wrap in foil before
> roasting? I have a convection oven , if that matters...
>
> Thanks for any advice,
>
> Kelly
>

Sorry, I'd braise it.
I don't think that roasting a skinless turkey is a terribly good idea.

But, that's just me. ;-)

Cheers!
--
Om.

"My mother never saw the irony in calling me a son-of-a-bitch." -Jack Nicholson

> wrote in message
oups.com...
>I have a skinless whole turkey, ~16-18 lb., that I'd like to roast for
> Christmas. I plan on brining it, but I'm still worried that without
> skin it will dry out in the oven, or overdarken/overcook the breast.
> Is there a good way to prevent this? Maybe wrap in foil before
> roasting? I have a convection oven , if that matters...
>
> Thanks for any advice,
>
> Kelly

You should be worried

Talk to your local butcher about getting some CAUL FAT.

If you can get it great then place it on top of the turkey.

If not then there are 2 steps you'll have to take first layer the meat with
bacon. The melting fat will keep the meat from drying out - don't worry almost
no fat is actually absorbed into the flesh. The other thing you should do is
roast the bird in a covered pan until done and then just brown uncovered for the
last few minutes.

Dimitri
--
I used to eat a lot of natural foods until I learned that most people die of
natural causes.

Dimitri wrote:
>
> Talk to your local butcher about getting some CAUL FAT.

That would be the classic way to rescue this bird,
but unless the butcher caters to a high-class or
knowledgable clientele, it seems unlikely.
>
> If you can get it great then place it on top of the turkey.
>
> If not then there are 2 steps you'll have to take first layer the meat with
> bacon. The melting fat will keep the meat from drying out - don't worry almost
> no fat is actually absorbed into the flesh. The other thing you should do is
> roast the bird in a covered pan until done and then just brown uncovered for the
> last few minutes.

That's what I was going to suggest. Bacon is
available everywhere, and probably would work
at least as well as anything else -- probably
better than most. The smoky flavor would
marry well with the turkey.

In article >, Pandora > wrote:
>
> ha scritto nel messaggio
roups.com...
>>I have a skinless whole turkey, ~16-18 lb., that I'd like to roast for
>> Christmas. I plan on brining it, but I'm still worried that without
>> skin it will dry out in the oven, or overdarken/overcook the breast.
>> Is there a good way to prevent this? Maybe wrap in foil before
>> roasting? I have a convection oven , if that matters...
>>
>> Thanks for any advice,
>>
>> Kelly
>
>It's a controsense what I 'm going to tell you. Because you have thrown away
>skin to avoid fat! But what do you think to cover it with lard (pork fat)?
>Meat will result more tasty and more soft, IMHO.

Actually, I threw away the skin (feathers still attached) to avoid
plucking, not to avoid fat! So I'm not averse to a little fat. But
I'm guessing that if I covered it with fat, it would simply melt off
in the first few minutes in the oven.

Thanks,

Kelly

Pandora wrote:
> > ha scritto nel messaggio
> oups.com...
>
>>I have a skinless whole turkey, ~16-18 lb., that I'd like to roast for
>>Christmas. I plan on brining it, but I'm still worried that without
>>skin it will dry out in the oven, or overdarken/overcook the breast.
>>Is there a good way to prevent this? Maybe wrap in foil before
>>roasting? I have a convection oven , if that matters...
>>
>>Thanks for any advice,
>>
>>Kelly
>
>
> It's a controsense what I 'm going to tell you. Because you have thrown away
> skin to avoid fat! But what do you think to cover it with lard (pork fat)?
> Meat will result more tasty and more soft, IMHO.
> Cheers
> Pandora
>
>
>
Perhaps wrapping it in several thicknesses of cheese cloth would do
the trick. You would have to baste the turkey frequently, so that the
cloth does not dry up. To do that, you would have to prepare some
turkey stock beforehand, from the giblets if you have them, otherwise
chicken stock will have to do.

In article >,
(Kelly E Jones) wrote:

> In article >, Pandora > wrote:
> >
> > ha scritto nel messaggio
> roups.com...
> >>I have a skinless whole turkey, ~16-18 lb., that I'd like to roast for
> >> Christmas. I plan on brining it, but I'm still worried that without
> >> skin it will dry out in the oven, or overdarken/overcook the breast.
> >> Is there a good way to prevent this? Maybe wrap in foil before
> >> roasting? I have a convection oven , if that matters...
> >>
> >> Thanks for any advice,
> >>
> >> Kelly
> >
> >It's a controsense what I 'm going to tell you. Because you have thrown away
> >skin to avoid fat! But what do you think to cover it with lard (pork fat)?
> >Meat will result more tasty and more soft, IMHO.
>
> Actually, I threw away the skin (feathers still attached) to avoid
> plucking, not to avoid fat! So I'm not averse to a little fat. But
> I'm guessing that if I covered it with fat, it would simply melt off
> in the first few minutes in the oven.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Kelly

Depends on your fat source.

Slabs of pork or bacon should work.

I braised the 1/2 thanksgiving turkey we did and it turned out wonderful.

And that was with the skin on. :-)
--
Om.

"My mother never saw the irony in calling me a son-of-a-bitch." -Jack Nicholson

Kelly E Jones wrote:
> >>I have a skinless whole turkey, ~16-18 lb., that I'd like to roast for
> >> Christmas. I plan on brining it, but I'm still worried that without
> >> skin it will dry out in the oven, or overdarken/overcook the breast.
> >> Is there a good way to prevent this? Maybe wrap in foil before
> >> roasting? I have a convection oven , if that matters....
>
> Actually, I threw away the skin (feathers still attached) to avoid
> plucking, not to avoid fat!

Too bad. Plucking is not much more of a chore than skinning, if you
dip the bird in very hot water first. Usually, when people skin a bird
they plan to cut it up and cook the various parts separately. That
would give you the best chances for a successful outcome.

If you are intent on roasting it anyway, I like the sound of the caul
fat method, followed by the lots of bacon method. Since we think the
skin is the best part of the bird I have no experience with either, so
I'm just guessing.

You might think about roasting temperature, too. I like the results of
the high temp method, but I don't think it would work nearly as well
with a skinless bird. Probably would go with a longer, slower cooking
-- maybe 300°F to a max of 325°F. -aem

"Kelly E Jones" > wrote in message
...

<snip>

> Actually, I threw away the skin (feathers still attached) to avoid
> plucking, not to avoid fat! So I'm not averse to a little fat. But
> I'm guessing that if I covered it with fat, it would simply melt off
> in the first few minutes in the oven.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Kelly

Actually not - rendering the fat from the bacon or fat back takes quite a bit of
time - it's not the same a s frying bacon and remember the purpose of the fat is
to coat and seal the skin to keep the moisture from escaping.

Dimitri
--
I used to eat a lot of natural foods until I learned that most people die of
natural causes.

Hi, Kellyjon,
I always use cheesecloth dipped in melted butter to cover the turkey
breast. Then baste the cheesecloth with a butter/water mixture
frequently. Works for me !

Best of luck,
Nancree

Pandora wrote:

> > ha scritto nel messaggio
> oups.com...
> >I have a skinless whole turkey, ~16-18 lb., that I'd like to roast
> for
> > Christmas. I plan on brining it, but I'm still worried that
> without
> > skin it will dry out in the oven, or overdarken/overcook the breast.
>
> > Is there a good way to prevent this? Maybe wrap in foil before
> > roasting? I have a convection oven , if that matters...
> >
> > Thanks for any advice,
> >
> > Kelly
>
> It's a controsense what I 'm going to tell you. Because you have
> thrown away
> skin to avoid fat! But what do you think to cover it with lard (pork
> fat)?
> Meat will result more tasty and more soft, IMHO.
> Cheers
> Pandora
> >

Wrapping in pastry dough or a thick water and salt paste, or a paste
made with flour or cornmeal will result in a nice turkey. Rub the meat
with oil or butter and sprinkle it with any desired herbs and spices
then enclose in pastry or a paste and bake, throw the paste away when
done and if pastry it can be served with the turkey, sort of like a
turkey version of beef wellington.

The French do the pastry version quite often, and get rather decorative
with it, adding all sorts of pastry bits to the turkey as a decoration.

We used to do marinated venison baked in salt paste and better venison i
have not had. Fresh fish, cleaned and wrapped in a thick layer of mud
and tossed into the campfire is nice also.

As a tecknique it is rarely done these days in the U.S. but it is a good
technique worth experminting with.
---
JL

Thanks for all the suggestions, everyone. The suggestion to cover
with bacon sounds delicious, although one of the best parts of a
roasted turkey is the pan gravy, and I'm not sure I'd like
bacon-fllavored gravy. I think what I'll do is make sure there's
plenty of stock in the roasting pan, and cover the pan tightly with
foil so that I'm braising more than roasting. If things start looking
dicey, I'll cover the bird with some cheesecloth soaked in oil as
well.

Thanks again,

Kelly

Kelly E Jones wrote:
> Thanks for all the suggestions, everyone. The suggestion to cover
> with bacon sounds delicious, although one of the best parts of a
> roasted turkey is the pan gravy, and I'm not sure I'd like
> bacon-fllavored gravy. I think what I'll do is make sure there's
> plenty of stock in the roasting pan, and cover the pan tightly with
> foil so that I'm braising more than roasting. If things start looking
> dicey, I'll cover the bird with some cheesecloth soaked in oil as
> well.
>
> Thanks again,
>
> Kelly

Cheese cloth soaked in *butter*, not oil! You don't want an oily bird

Jill

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
.. .
> Kelly E Jones wrote:

<snip>


, I'll cover the bird with some cheesecloth soaked in oil as
>> well.
>>
>> Thanks again,
>>
>> Kelly
>
> Cheese cloth soaked in *butter*, not oil! You don't want an oily bird
>
> Jill

Yep.

And keep the basting bulb handy

Dimitri