Because Croziers’ Free Range turkeys are very lean you need to protect them with foil or an oven bag to prevent them drying out during cooking.
Ingredients
4 ½ kgs | Turkey (Main) |
2 | Oranges |
200 g | Stuffing mix, sage and onion flavour |
¼ cup | Orange juice, up to half a cup if needed |
50 g | Butter, melted |
Glaze
¼ cup | Orange juice |
1 Tbsp | Gelatine, powdered |
1 Tbsp | Sugar |
Directions
- Ensure the turkey is thawed enough to remove the giblets. Run cold water through the inside of the turkey then pat dry inside and out with paper towels. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper and pat in.
- To make the stuffing, finely grate the rind of the oranges. Remove the pith and dice the flesh. Place the rind and flesh in a bowl with the stuffing mix, seasonings and enough orange juice to bind
- Heat the oven to 160C.
- Loosely fill the neck and main cavity with the stuffing. Secure the legs and neck with skewers to hold the stuffing in. Or place a large onion at the entrance to the main cavity to hold the stuffing.
- Place the turkey in a large roasting dish, breast-side up. Brush with the butter. Place about 2 cups of water in the roasting pan. Cover the pan loosely with foil.
- Roast for about 40 minutes per 500g of turkey plus 30 minutes extra, until the legs ease away from the body with gentle pulling. Baste at least twice during cooking. Remove the foil during the last 30 minutes of cooking.
- Combine the glaze ingredients and heat until the gelatine and sugar are dissolved. Prick the turkey skin with a needle then brush with the glaze. Continue cooking for 5 minutes. Brush with the glaze again and continue cooking until the skin is golden and crisp. Stand for about 10 minutes before carving.