A question for the PS chefs!

[vc10um]

I'm in charge of the Christmas meal this year (again). Last year I did lamb chops because there were only three of us and I knew everyone would like lamb. This year I have a few picky eaters and I'm not wasting my money, so roasting a turkey breast it is! The problem is...I have no idea how much meat I need!

There are 6 of us, all probably average in terms of consumption amount and we'd like some, but not a ton of, leftovers...maybe enough for 3-4 sandwiches? We're mostly vegetarian, and I don't want it to go to waste! So, PSers, how large of a turkey breast would YOU buy in my situation? (And if you have any tried-and-true recipes, don't be afraid to share! )

 

[Enerchi]

I am *NOT* the chef in this household, so I deferred to Mr Enerchi who is a WHIZ in the kitchen! He can make anything and it is always awesome --- so I went to him for a suggestion. He always says to me "when in the kitchen, remember, you are only a guest"...

His recommendation would not be to go 1lb/person if there are some vegetarians, + you desire left overs, so instead, go for 1/2 lb / person and aim for 4 - 6 lbs max.

Again, I stress I am NOT the cook, so know ZERO about buying turkeys, but do whole turkeys come in a 10 lb size and you could freeze extra meat for later?? (no idea if this is an option... I did mention that I'm not allowed in the kitchen, right??)

 

[vc10um]

Big thanks to your DH, Enerchi!

I should clarify that by "we" I meant my DH and myself are mostly veggie, but will probably each have a slice of the turkey...the remaining 4 are carnivores, but one eats like a child. I'd say the other three are probably average, though.

If I could do an all-vegetarian Christmas, DH and I would be happy as clams, but there's no way the rest of my family would go for that. ::sigh::

As of this moment I have a 4#-ish turkey breast in my online cart (the turkey breast is coming from a local all-natural farm)...hopefully it'll be enough!

I breifly toyed with the idea of a whole turkey, but the smallest currently available is 15#, which I think will just be far too much for our eating habits.

 

[Deactivated member 42515]

I agree with Mr. Enerchi. 1/2 pound sounds good. And you say you are only buying breast meat correct? Not the whole turkey? So it shouldn't be a problem trying to find a 3-5 pounds breast.

For me, I usually marinate the turkey first. Since breasts takes longer to soak in the flavor, I try to marinate overnight or 24 hours before. I use olive oil, thyme, rosemary, sage, pepper and salt and run it into the skin. And then sometimes, I like to sear the skin a little bit on a frying pan before putting it in the oven. But you don't have to (since it'll make more dishes ) and then the important most important part is to slow roast it. I'm a stickler so I check the temperature of my meat every 15 minutes after about 45-hour has passed to make sure it's on schedule.

 

[Enerchi]

DH says you are more than welcome ... but wonders if you may need a slightly larger breast... (HAHAHAHA!! )

No - not in *that* way (I'm just too immature for my own good sometimes!!) but if you want left overs, the 4lb may not do it. Can you email/talk to the poultry farm you are ordering from, for their suggestions?

 

[Deactivated member 42515]

I wanted to add that I am vegetarian also, but am the only one in my family. But I still gotta make dinner for all of the carnivores. I'm making a rotisserie bone-in prime rib this year for Christmas dinner. It would be nice if I could just make a bunch of vegetables. I've tried to make tofurkey from scratch every year but it just doesn't turn out right... Have you tried a tofurkey recipe that's worked? I'll probably just end up eating my vegetarian stuffing and green beans

 

[Lulie]

I think 1/2 lb pp sounds about right if you know your guests well and have several sides. My step son eats like no other, so I bought a 6 lb breast bone-in for a small gathering of 8. I smeared softened butter, sage, thyme, paprika, garlic, salt and pepper under the skin and baked it in the crock pot, it turned out super juicy- tender! I should post the pic over crock pot tread and thank the poster

 

[FrekeChild]

I would still go with 6 pounds, personally. Better to be safe than sorry!

I'm a huge fan of dark meat, so I'd be sad if there was only white breast meat to go around...just sayin'!

 

[vc10um]

I would still go with 6 pounds, personally. Better to be safe than sorry!

I'm a huge fan of dark meat, so I'd be sad if there was only white breast meat to go around...just sayin'!

Thanks for the information, everyone! And the crock pot?!!? I'm going to have to pop into that thread and get the recipe...that will free up some much-needed oven space on Christmas Day! Thanks for that, lulie!

Freke, out of the 6 people at the table, only one prefers dark meat, which is why I decided to go for the breast only instead of either trying to find a small full bird, or roasting two whole chickens. But I'm sure my mom will be silently mourning the lack of dark meat, lol.

YT, we're not COMPLETE vegetarians, we do enjoy fish on very rare occasion at home, or sometimes a meat entree when out to eat (oh, and DH has a turkey sandwich almost every day), but aside from that, we just prefer meatless meals! It started out as a one week experiment, then we reverted to 5 dinners a week meatless, 2 with meat, and now I can't remember the last time I cooked meat for dinner. ...And that was awfully long-winded to say I've never tried to make my own Tofurkey, but I DO love the Tofurkey stuffed roast! We don't eat a lot of alterna-meats b/c hubs is soy-sensitive, but the Tofurkey brand roast doesn't bother him at all!

Off to go check out the information on making the turkey breast in the crock pot...

 

[pinkjewel]

I would go for at least a 6 pound turkey breast as you have quite a bit of weight in the bones rather than the meat. You also want to look for a broad breasted turkey rather than a scrawny little one. I have a recipe I have used for the past 3 to 4 years- I also use it for a whole turkey,too. The turkey comes out soooo tasty and juicy. I have altered it just a tad from Ina Garten's original recipe.

Herb Roasted Turkey Breast

1 whole bone-in turkey breast, 6 1/2 to 7 lb.
3 to 4 cloves minced garlic
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves *
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves*
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme leaves*
2 tsps. kosher salt ( or other coarse salt)
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons Extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup white wine

* I have sometimes used a couple of tablespoons of Herbs de Provence seasoning in lieu of these 3 fresh herbs

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

Ina a small bowl combine all the above except the wine. It should make a nice paste texture. Loosen the skin from the meat gently with your fingers and smear half of the paste directly on the meat. Spread the remaining paste evenly on the skin. Pour the wine into the bottom of the roasting pan. Put breast on a little stand to lift it off bottom of roasting pan. I also cut up celery and onions and put in the bottom of the pan. I add little new potatoes, too.

Roast turkey for 1 and 3/4 to 2 hours, until skin is golden brown and thermometer registers 165 degrees when inserted in thickest part of meat. If skin is getting too brown-cover with foil. Let rest 15 minutes before carving.

It's always been a big hit at my house!!

 

[MichelleCarmen]

I was going to suggest using a crockpot. Be sure if you add any broth to use LOW SODIUM. I cook regular turkey breasts in mine and always add low sodium and no extra salt... (guests can later add salt if they want). Also, there are a couple of brands of excellent natural turkey gravey that all you have to do is heat up. One is Pacific Organic turkey gravy and also, Trader Joe's has a kind. They come in a box rather than a pouch of powder (usually with msg ). Very convenient and everyone, including kids, always like these ones.

 

[JulieN]

I successfully made medium rare roast beef in my Crock Pot over the weekend, but it was only 2 pounds.... easier to get even heating on a smaller piece of meat.

1. Presalt. 3/4 tsp kosher salt per pound, so with a 4# breast you get one Tablespoon. Season with whatever other seasonings you want. Do this at least over one night, but more is not a problem.

2. You want it to cook evenly, so take it out of the refrigerator to come up to temp 1 or 2 hours before it goes into the crock.

3. To aid even cooking, add enough low-sodium chicken broth to go halfway up the side of the turkey breast. Put the heat setting on low.

4. Every half hour, flip over turkey breast. Once center of breast is 135-140, put crock pot on warm. Continue to flip until breast hits 150. Remove from CP.

You can start this first thing in the morning, expect it to take several hours. Once breast is done cooking, you can tun off your CP, uncover it until it reaches 120 degrees, and then put the breast back in to keep it warm and you are ready to serve.