Spiced Creole turkey with bourbon and pineapple
Chaya was in control of the take a look at kitchen’s Christmas menu this yr, so there was just one means the turkey was going to go flavour-wise. Using pineapple and sugar within the gravy is such a profitable means of getting a sticky caramelisation and conserving every little thing splendidly juicy. Any tendency the chook has in the direction of dryness will likely be offset not solely by taking the Creole route, but in addition, and crucially, by the standard of the turkey you purchase – we acquired ours due to Copas Turkeys, whose high-welfare, free-range birds are very, very particular.
Prep 20 min
Prepare dinner 3 hr 20 min
Serves 8, with loads of leftovers
150g ghee
50g recent oregano sprigs, leaves picked (to get 30g), stalks reserved
4 pink chillies (80g), roughly chopped
12 garlic cloves, peeled
50g tomato paste
1 tbsp smoked paprika
60ml bourbon whiskey, plus 2 tbsp (30ml) further for the gravy
Salt and black pepper
1 x 6-7kg turkey with giblets
200g shallots, peeled and minimize into quarters
2 x 220g tins pineapple items in juice
500ml pineapple juice
1 tbsp gentle delicate brown sugar
3 limes, one minimize in half, the others minimize into quarters
Warmth the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/fuel 6.
Put 135g ghee in a big meals processor, then add the oregano leaves, chillies, garlic, tomato paste, paprika, bourbon, a teaspoon of salt and a teaspoon of freshly cracked black pepper. Blitz clean, scraping down the bowl as you go, then put aside at room temperature.
Put the giblets in a 38cm x 32cm lipped baking tray, add the oregano stalks, shallots, tinned pineapples and their juice, the additional pineapple juice and the sugar, and lay a rack on prime.
Pat dry the turkey, then rub the remaining ghee all around the exterior. Season inside and out with two teaspoons of salt and a superb grind of pepper. Stuff the ghee and bourbon combine within the cavity with the 2 lime halves, tie the legs collectively with butcher’s string, to carry within the stuffing, then placed on the rack.
Roast for an hour, rotate, then baste with the tray juices, and repeat each half-hour for one more two hours and 20 minutes, or till the juices run clear. (You probably have a probe, it ought to learn 74C.) If the turkey begins to get too darkish after an hour, cowl with foil and take it off for the final 20 minutes of cooking time.
Take away from the oven, cowl loosely with foil and go away to relaxation for a minimum of half-hour, so any juices from the chook drip down into the tray beneath.
Utilizing a spoon, scrape the oregano combination out of the cavity and into the tray, then carry the turkey on to a platter or carving board and cowl once more loosely with foil. Take away and discard the oregano stalks and giblets from the tray, then scrape up any bits caught to the bottom of the tray. Add the remaining two tablespoons of bourbon, then return to the oven for Quarter-hour, till the sauce is effervescent and thick.
Pour right into a jug or bowl and serve with the turkey and recent lime wedges.
Roast cassava with roast garlic and coriander salsa
The ridges on cassava present a excessive ratio of crisp shell to fluffy inside, so there’s no want for any wizardry right here. The duck fats makes this extra-special, however olive oil additionally works rather well, for those who’d desire to make this vegan. You will get ready-peeled and frozen cassava from Asian meals outlets.
Prep 20 min
Prepare dinner 45 min
Serves 6-8
3 medium cassaa roots (1.8kg)
8 garlic cloves, pores and skin on
80ml duck fats, melted
For the salsa
50g coriander, finely chopped
70ml olive oil
1½ tbsp lemon juice
2 pink chillies, deseeded, flesh finely chopped
Salt and black pepper
Reduce the cassava into 5cm-long items, then minimize these in half and, utilizing a small sharp knife, peel off any brown and pink pores and skin, leaving you with solely the white a part of the basis. Reduce out the woody vein in the course of root, then put the cassava items in a bowl.
Carry a big pot of well-salted water to a boil, then drop within the cassava and cook dinner at a livid boil for 25 minutes, till a knife goes by way of it simply and it’s not opaque. In the meantime, warmth the oven to 240C (220C fan)/475F/fuel 9.
Drain the cassava properly and placed on a big oven tray lined with greaseproof paper. Pour the duck fats over the cassava items, scatter within the garlic cloves and sprinkle over half a teaspoon of salt and a superb grind of pepper. Stir to coat every little thing, then roast for Quarter-hour and take away from the oven. Spoon the garlic cloves on to a small plate and go away to chill. Utilizing a big spoon, smash the cassava items, turning them over within the fats as you go, then return to the oven for one more 10-Quarter-hour, till crisp and golden.
As soon as the roast garlic is cool sufficient to deal with, squeeze all of the flesh out of the skins, then chop it finely. Put this in a small bowl with all of the salsa components and a half-teaspoon of salt, combine to mix and put aside.
Spoon the roast cassava into a big shallow bowl, spoon half the salsa on prime and serve with the remainder on the facet.
Sauteed rainbow chard with ham hock and cranberry and chard stem pickle

That is impressed by collard greens braised with ham hock from the U South. This fast model makes use of among the hock within the onion base so as to add salty, hammy undertones. The dish is sort of wealthy, so the pickling liquid helps to stability issues out.
Prep 20 min
Prepare dinner 25 min
Serves 4-6 as a facet
400g rainbow chard (or swiss chard), leaves and stalks separated
100ml apple cider vinegar
30ml honey
Salt and pepper
50g dried cranberries
50ml olive oil
2 onions, peeled and thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
50g coriander, 10g leaves picked, the remainder roughly chopped
200g ready-cooked ham hock, torn into chunky items
2½ tsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp black mustard seeds
First make the pickle. Weigh out 80g of probably the most vibrant-looking chard stalks and minimize them into ½cm-thick slices. Put the vinegar, honey and a quarter-teaspoon of salt in a small saucepan, stir to mix, then convey to a simmer. Drop within the chopped chard stems and cranberries, take ioff the warmth and go away to chill when you get on with the remainder of the dish.
In the meantime, minimize the remaining chard stems at an angle into 5cm-long items. Put a big saute pan on a medium-high warmth, add the oil and, when sizzling, add the onions, garlic, chopped coriander, 1 / 4 of the ham, a teaspoon of salt and a superb grind of pepper, and cook dinner, stirring continuously, for Quarter-hour, till the ham is barely crisp and the onions are evenly golden. Add the cumin and mustard seeds, the uncooked chard stems and the remainder of the ham, and cook dinner, stirring, for 3 minutes extra, taking care to not break up the ham an excessive amount of. Roughly tear the chard leaves and stir into the combo in batches, till simply wilted.
Ladle the chard and ham combine right into a shallow bowl, scatter the reserved picked coriander leaves on prime, spoon over a 3rd of the pickle and serve with the remainder on the facet.
Fiona Beckett’s drinks match I slightly fancy a Manhattan with this, however it’s Christmas, so I suppose we’d higher discuss wine – and an enormous pink at that. I’d be inclined to go for a GSM (grenache syrah mourvedre) mix or a shiraz. Attempt the spectacular Domaine de L’Agly Les Cimes 2017 (£17 larger Co-ops, 14.5%), from the Roussillon, or the Château Millegrand Aurore Minervois I discussed a few weeks in the past (£10 additionally on the Co-op, 14%).