My Buonasera Roast Turkey....

This is a belated post of my roast turkey which I cooked for my sister's Christmas party last month. I had never attempted to cook this big bird before as it is very time comsuming and I never have a liking for its tough meat as prefer to chicken. So I decided to try my hands on this when I saw a special Italian recipe from Flavours magazine. It turns out lovely especially the stuffings which uses fresh herbs, mushrooms, eggs, breadcrumbs and streaky bacons. I would love to try it out with my roast chicken next time. Have some pics here to share as well as the recipe. I made some lovely gravy with chicken stocks and the juices from the roasting pan for dippings instead of cranberry sauce.

My almost 4 kg turkey from Tesco,thaw for a whole day in refrigerator..


Cleaned, pat dry inside and outside with wings tuck under ....oh my...is it the correct way? never mind, that's the only way I could do it....

Ingredients for the stuffings:

2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 onion - diced

200g streaky bacon, diced

1 tbsp sage- chopped

1 tbsp thyme- chopped

1 tbsp rosemary- chopped

10g shitake mushroom- sliced

20g oyster mushroom- sliced

40g button mushroom-sliced

4 eggs, beaten

150g fresh breadcrumbs, toasted

sea salt and pepper to taste

Oyster mushroom.........

Shitake mushroom.............


Button mushroom..............

Diced streaky bacon........

Sage.............

Rosemary...........

Thyme............

5kg whole turkey

200ml extra virgin oil

cracked black pepper and sea salt

250ml chicken broth

Gravy:

750ml chicken stock

4 tbsp flour

To make stuffing:

Heat olive oil in pan, cook the onions over over medium heat for 5 mins or til soft. Add bacon, and saute until browned. Add sage, rosemary and thyme and cook for another 5 mins. Add all the mushroom and cook for 2 mins. Remove from heat and leave to cool. Add eggs and breadcrumbs. Mix to combine, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Turkey roasting in oven.................

To roast turkey:

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees celcius. Remove the giblets, neck and excess fat from the turkey. Rinse turkey and pat dry. Season the inside with salt and pepper, and fill with stuffing.

Tie the legs with butcher string. Twist wings under back.

Rub turkey all over with extra virgin oil, and place breast side down, on a rack placed in a shallow roasting tray. Pour chicken broth all over turkey.

Roast for 2 1/2 hrs or until brown, basting the turkey every 30 mins. (I turn it over breast up to cook for a further 30 mins to brown it evenly)

Remove from oven. Cover with aluminium foil for 1 hr, set in a warm place.

To make gravy:

Remove 3 tablespoon of pan juices ( I used more) from the roasting tray into a small saucepan placed over medium heat. Add flour and stir to comnine to a smooth paste. Add chicken stock and cook stirring to prevent any lumps from forming, until the sauce thickens. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Larrie's Yummy Cooking.....

Thank You, Larrie and family, for sharing your great food with us...

On my second day in Perth, my sisters and I got another invitation to dinner. Never did we expect to taste Malaysian food out here in a foreign land to our surprise. Not only was the food familiar to us but it tasted so good as well as from someone who had migrated here for more than 2 decades ago. Don't you all who have been there that day think so..? I would love to look out for Larrie, this time uninvited if I happen to be in Perth again...'laugh to self"......


Yummilicious lobster noodles asian style.................


Larrie preparing the super tasty soup with his lobsters...


Satay with peanut sauce.............

Shane helping to barbecue the satay in the courtyard....


A big rice cooker of nasi lemak (coconut rice)....to go with...

Spicy sambal prawns...............

And deepfried fragrant fish...............

Delicious fried noodles....wish we have soft noodles like this here without all the boric acid in it.

Crispy deepfried springrolls that comes with a nice tangy chilli sauce...


Just out of the oven golden roasted pork........

Larrie slicing up the crispy crackling skin.......

A moment of Thanks to our Father....is my sis Karen ( in white smiling away) dreaming of the lobster or giving thanks?

Like father like son...Larrie's son, Issac, made us this lovely coffee with vanilla ice cream and frangelico. Frangelico is a special liqueur with a sweet nutty flavor with hints of vanilla distilled from toasted hazelnuts and infused with cocoa beans and orange.

New Year's Eve Dinner Down Under..

Dr Lloyd on my right and his wife Connie on the far right....

I was on holiday in Perth last week, my sisters and I were invited to dinner on New Year's eve by our gracious hosts Connie and Lloyd at their lovely home. We had a great time savouring her delicious roasts and western spread from appetizers to desserts plus all the fun in popping crackers to funny jokes, paper hats, and wines to welcome the New Year in a home away from home. Thank you so much, Connie and Lloyd, for giving us a memorable time together.

Deepfried prawns and beef balls for appetizers.........

Roasted pork..........


Crispy and crackling roasted skin, sinful but heavenly indulgence



Roasted chicken rolls with nuts......


Juicy and tender roast chicken.............


Sweet corn and cauliflowers..............

My plate of roasted pumpkin, potato and garlic bread....


Popping crackers with Georgina...............


Busy eating..............