AMERICAN CRISPY, GOLDEN ROAST TURKEY

Main Dish : How To Make A Crispy, Golden Roast Turkey

This fool-proof method for roasting a turkey is guaranteed to result in a holiday bird that is moist, flavourful, and covered in a gorgeous brown skin. If you have guests that don't like turkey, this will change their minds.

SERVING : 12

Preparation Time : 30 minutes
Cooking Time : 3 hours

INGREDIENTS
1 fresh turkey, 5.5 kilos, washed and dried
1 1/2 onions, chopped into quarters
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 garlic bulbs, cut in halves
1 lemon, cut into quarters
A few celery tops
some rosemary
some thyme
40 ml olive oil
2 tbsp rock salt
salt and pepper

1 baking tray with rack
some kitchen twine
1 cutting board
1 knife
1 thermometer
1 bowl

PROCESSING METHOD

Preheat the oven
* Set the temperature of the oven to 200°C ( 400°F / gas mark 6 ).

Prepare the vegetables
* Add to a bowl the onions, garlic, carrots, lemon, rosemary, rock salt, thyme, celery tops, and a little olive oil. Mix them all together by hand and set aside.
TIP : Handle raw turkey with the same care that you would raw chicken. Wash the inside and out with water and lemon juice and dry with paper towels. Use a separate cutting board and utensils.

Trim the turkey
* Place the knife deep inside the neck cavity and cut off the neck, trying to reserve as much of the skin as possible.
* Next, find the elbow joint of one of the wings, insert the knife, cut and remove. Repeat with the other wing.

Fill the bird
* Place the vegetables into the main cavity of the turkey, stuffing it as much as possible.
* If there is enough skin remaining around the neck cavity to close it, stuff that area as well.

Tie the bird
* Start with a 1 metre piece of string. Place it around the turkey's neck and wings. Cross the legs together .Wrap one side of the string around the legs and then wrap the other side. Pull them together and tie a knot.

Prepare for oven
* Place the bird on the rack. Pour some olive oil over its skin and rub it in well, covering the entire surface. Season well with salt and pepper.
* Turn the bird onto its side and season again. Repeat until the whole bird is coated and leave it on the rack, breast-side down.

Roast
* Allow for 10-15 minutes for each 450 g of weight. After 30 minutes, lower the temperature to 180°C and cook for about 1.5 to 2 hours more.

Check the turkey
* At this time, test your turkey with a meat thermometer. Place it into the thigh first and then into the breast. The temperature should exceed 85°C for the thigh and at least 76°C in the breast. Once these temperatures are reached, remove the turkey and turn it breast-side up so it will brown.
* Increase the oven to 220°C and let it cook for 10 minutes more.
* At this time, remove the turkey from the oven, cut the string, and let it rest for 20-30 minutes.
* Don't forget to save the drippings for the gravy from the oven tray!

Serve
* Time to carve and serve.

AMERICAN PERFECT BREAD STUFFING

Side Dishes : How To Make The Perfect Bread Stuffing

This quick and easy bread stuffing is the ideal complement to serve with your Thanksgiving or Christmas turkey.

SERVING : 4 to 6

Preparation Time : 20 minutes
Cooking Time : 1 hour 10 minutes

INGREDIENTS
1 onion, chopped
4 celery stalks, chopped
30 g butter
6 slices day-old bread, cubed
2 eggs, beaten
1 tbsp thyme, chopped
vegetable stock
salt
pepper

1 oven-proof casserole dish, buttered
1 saucepan
1 wooden spoon
1 bowl
aluminium paper

PROCESSING METHOD

Preheat the oven
* Set the temperature of the oven to 180° C / 360° F.

Brown the vegetables
* Place the saucepan on a medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add the butter, onions, and celery. Cook until the onions are translucent.

Combine ingredients
* Transfer the vegetables to a bowl and add the bread, thyme, egg, and season with salt and pepper.
* Next, moisten with some vegetable stock and let it sit for a few minutes, just long enough for the mixture to soak up the liquid.
TIP : If you want to add anything else to this recipe, this is the time to do it. Mushrooms, any spices, cheese, and walnuts all will go well.

Prepare for oven
* Put the stuffing in the baking dish, cover it with aluminium foil and place it in the oven.
* After approximately 30 minutes, remove the foil and bake for another 20 minutes.
* When brown on the surface, remove from the oven.

Serve
* Serve as an ideal accompaniment to Thanksgiving, Christmas or Sunday meals.

AMERICAN YAMS

Roast Dinners : How To Make Thanksgiving Yams

This easy Thanksgiving Yams recipe is extra sweet and simply irresistible. They will go well with your turkey, your ham, and everything else on the table.

SERVING : 4 to 6

Preparation Time : 15 minutes
Cooking Time : 50 minutes

INGREDIENTS
650 g yams or sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
150 g brown sugar
100 ml water
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp sherry
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp toasted almonds
salt and pepper

1 roasting tray
1 saucepan
1 spoon
1 oven-proof dish

PROCESSING METHOD

Preheat the oven
* Set the temperature of the oven to 220° C - 430° F.

Season the yams
* Place the yams in the roasting tray. Add the oil and season with salt and with pepper. Thoroughly coat the surface using your hands, and place them into the oven.
Tip : The yams can be boiled but they will lose a great deal of texture and flavour.

Make the syrup
* Heat the saucepan over a medium-high heat.
* Add the sugar, water, lemon juice, sherry, vanilla and maple syrup. Bring to a boil and simmer for 2-3 minutes.
* Remove from heat and set aside until the yams are done.

Test the yams
* Keep checking on the yams, making sure that they do not burn on the bottom by turning them over occasionally.
* At around 20-25 minutes, test them with a knife to see if they are cooked. The knife should enter easily without resistance. At this point, transfer them to the oven-proof dish.

Add the syrup
* Pour the syrup over the sweet potatoes and return them to the oven.
* Let them warm through, giving the syrup time to caramelize. This should take about 25 minutes.
* Finally, remove from the oven.

Serve
* Your Thanksgiving Yams are almost ready for table.
* All that is left is to sprinkle them with some toasted almonds.

MOROCCAN BARBECUE SALMON WITH PAPRIKA AND TOMATO

African : How To Make Moroccan BBQ Barbecue Salmon With Paprika Tomatoes

A Moroccan slant on the most versatile of fish - enjoy this salmon dish as an alternative to barbecued meat.

SERVINGS : 2

Preparation Time : 20 minutes
Cooking Time : 40 minutes

INGREDIENTS
2 x 200g salmon fillets
1 tbsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp coriander, chopped
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil
coriander, to garnish

For The Tomatoes
500 g tinned tomatoes
1 dried chilli
3 garlic cloves, sliced
1 tbsp paprika
salt
80 ml olive oil

1 saucepan
1 wooden spoon
1 bowl
1 spoon
1 metal spatula
1 tongs
1 tray
1 barbecue, either charcoal or gas
1 bottle of water for dousing any flames

PROCESSING METHOD

Prepare the barbecue
* If you plan to use a charcoal barbecue, light it 30-45 minutes before you cook and wait until the charcoal has turned white and there are no more flames. If you are using an electric barbecue, turn to high and leave for 20 minutes to heat up.

Make the paprika tomatoes
* Into the saucepan add the tomatoes, chilli, garlic, paprika and salt. Stir together well and bring to the boil.
* Using the spoon, break up the tomatoes and turn down the heat for 20-30 minutes and allow to simmer until the tomatoes are almost dry.
* Pour in the oil, stir and remove from heat.

Marinate the salmon
* Place the salmon fillets into the bowl and add the paprika, cayenne pepper and the chopped coriander.
* Season well with salt and drizzle over with oil.
* Using your hands to mix, make sure that the fillets are covered.

Barbecue the salmon
* Cook the fillets on the barbecue for 3 minutes on each side then remove.

Serve and garnish
* Transfer the salmon fillets to serving plates and spoon over a couple of the paprika tomatoes.
* Garnish with chilli and a sprig of coriander.
* Serve with a glass of chilled white wine.

KOREAN MAEUNTANG (SPICY FISH SOUP WITH VEGETABLES)

Maeuntang from Maangchi on Vimeo

SERVING : 4

Total Cooking Hours : 1 - 1 1/2 hours.

INGREDIENTS
a red snapper (25 cm long)
4 clams
4 large shrimp
Korean radish
2 shiitake mushrooms
water
kelp
fish sauce
salt
minari (water dropwort)
enoki mushroom
ssukgat (edible chrysanthemum)
green onions
green chili pepper
red chili pepper
half an onion
cooking wine
ginger.

PROCESSING METHOD

Make stock first
* Soak 2 shiitake mushrooms in warm water for 3 - 4 hours and cut them into bite size in length.
* Soak 4 - 5 clams in cold salty water (2 cups of cold water +1 tbs salt) for at least 3 - 4 hours and wash them and set them aside.
* Cut radish thinly into about 3 × 4 cm size, 0.2 - 0.3 cm in thickness.
* Place the sliced radish (about 1 cup), the pieces of mushroom, and some kelp in a pot.
* Pour 6-7 cups of water into the pot and boil it over high heat for 20 minutes.

Make maeuntang sauce
* Place 7 cloves garlic, 1/2 medium size onion, 1/2 tbs ginger, 2 tbs cooking wine (or soju), 2 tbs hot pepper flakes, 1 tbs hot pepper paste, 2 tbs fish sauce in the food processor and grind it for about 1 minute.
* Set it aside.

Prepare fish
* Put a red snapper on a cutting board and clean out guts, remove scales and fins. Wash it in cold water, cut it into chunks, and set it aside.
TIP : To save time, you can ask your fishmonger to do this for you
* Prepare 4 large shrimp; remove the heads and intestines, wash them, and set aside.

Prepare vegetables
* Clean ssukgat (edible chrysanthemum) and cut it into 7 cm long pieces.
* Clean minari (water dropwort) and cut it into 7 cm long pieces.
* Cut out the bottom part of enoki mushrooms and wash and split them.
* Slice some green onions, 1 green chili pepper, 1 red chili pepper,
* After boiling stock for 20 minutes, open the lid of the pot and take out kelp.
* Place chunks of the fish, shrimp, clams in the boiling stock.
* Add the maeuntang hot sauce and boil it all over medium heat for 30 minutes.
*tip: It might boil over from time to time. Open the lid and remove the floating foam from the top and then close the lid halfway
* Add 1/2 ts of salt, enoki mushrooms, minari (water dropwort) and ssukgat (garland chrysanthemum), green chili pepper, red chili pepper, and boil a few more minutes before serving.
* Your maeuntang is done!

Serving
* Put some fish soup in a bowl for each person and provide each person with a bowl to collect fish bones and serve with rice and other side dishes.