Just add broth to this pho-spiced dry-brined Thanksgiving turkey
This turkey recipe takes the heady, complex spices in Vietnamese pho and applies them to make a juicy turkey with shatteringly crispy skin and deeply flavored meat.
The complexity and flavor of the classic Vietnamese soup pho comes from the broth, redolent of spices like cumin, coriander, and star anise. (The Philly Pho-natic is a nickname just ripe for plucking; call me Rob Thomson.) This turkey harnesses those same flavors and infuses them into the skin thanks to a long hangout in the fridge. Dry brining a turkey takes some time — at least leaving the bird overnight, and up to three days — but it pays off with shatteringly crispy skin and juicy meat. Butterflying the turkey also means that the bird roasts quickly, so you can use the oven for other things. And the mixture of whole spices, pulverized and added tot he salt mixture, infuses the whole bird with savory complexity. Bonus: you can use the turkey bones to make broth the next day, and you have a built in leftovers plan.
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Ingredients
1 12-14 lb turkey, thawed if frozen and spatchcocked to remove the backbone — a butcher can do this or you can do it at home. (Note: Look for an organic turkey — conventional turkeys can be injected with saline. If your turkey has sodium among the label ingredients, reduce the salt in this recipe by one tablespoon.)
2 star anise
1 cinnamon stick
1 tbsp coriander seeds
½ tsp fennel seeds
6 cloves
1 black cardamom pod
1 tbsp baking soda
4 tbsp Diamond kosher salt
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp neutral oil, like canola
Freshly ground black pepper
Vegetables like baby bok choy, mushrooms, and onions for roasting under the bird (optional)
Directions
In a small skillet, toast the spices over medium-high heat until they’re very fragrant, about a minute, stirring or shaking the pan constantly so they don’t burn.
Using a coffee grinder or mortar and pestle, finely grind the toasted spices. Mix the kosher salt, brown sugar, and baking soda with the spices to make a rub.
Position the turkey on a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet. Rub the turkey all over — inside and outside — with the spice mixture. You may not need all of it, but make sure the turkey is well-covered.
Put the turkey uncovered in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours, and up to 3 days.
Remove the turkey from the refrigerator at least an hour before cooking, and preheat the oven to 450ºF.
Set the brined turkey, skin side up, on a wire rack covering a clean baking sheet, or in a roasting pan. You can sprinkle torn up vegetables like sliced onions, baby bok choy, and mushrooms under the rack so they roast in the turkey drippings — and personally, I would — but it’s optional.
Pat the turkey dry with paper towels, coat with oil, and season the skin and the inside of the bird liberally with black pepper.
Roast until the breast meat registers 150ºF, and the thigh meat hits 165ºF, about 70 minutes. Let rest for 20 minutes, then carve.
— Recipe by Margaret Eby, Deputy Food Editor at the Inquirer