Braised Turkey Thighs Recipes

BRAISED TURKEY THIGHS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, combine onion, celery, carrots, ketchup, salt, paprika and pepper. Pat onto turkey thighs. Place 1 tablespoon flour in oven bag; shake to coat. Transfer turkey thighs to oven bag. , Place in a 13x9-in. baking dish. Combine broth, wine or additional broth, oregano and bay leaves. Put into bag; seal. Cut 2 slits into the top of the bag. Bake 1-1/2 hours or until a thermometer inserted in turkey reads 170°-175°., Remove turkey to a serving platter; keep warm. Pour pan juices into a small saucepan; skim fat and discard bay leaves. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes or until mixture is reduced to 1-3/4 cups., In a small bowl, combine remaining flour and water until smooth. Stir into saucepan. Bring to a boil; cook and stir 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove skin and bones from turkey; cut turkey into slices. Serve gravy with turkey.

BRAISED TURKEY

Steps:

• In a large Dutch oven pot, heat olive oil of medium heat. Season the turkey breast and thigh on all sides with salt and pepper. Add the turkey pieces to the pot, and sear on both sides until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. Remove the turkey from the pot and transfer to a plate.
• Lower heat and add the leek, carrot, and celery to the pot and sweat the vegetables. If the vegetables look dry add a few tablespoons of olive oil. Season with the sage, thyme, and salt, and pepper and continue to cook the vegetables for about 5 minutes, or until they start to get soft.
• Add the turkey back to the pot on top of the vegetables. Pour the stock into the pot. It should reach halfway up the sides of the turkey. Bring the liquid to a simmer, then lower the heat to medium low.
• Cook for 1 hour, then remove the turkey breast and place on a clean plate. Cover with foil to keep and keep in the oven at 200 degrees. After 30 minutes longer, remove the thigh and place on a plate; cover with foil to keep warm.
• Heat the stock and vegetables in the pot over medium high and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until liquid is reduced and a thick gravy forms (see Chef Tips).
• Slice the turkey and spoon the gravy over top.

TURKEY THIGHS IN BROWN SAUCE

Steps:

• Rinse and pat the turkey thighs dry with paper towels, then sprinkle with salt and pepper. In a shallow bowl, mix the flour with poultry seasoning until well combined.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; dredge the turkey thighs all over with the seasoned flour, shake off excess flour, then cook the turkey thighs in the hot oil until the meat is browned, about 5 minutes per side.
• Stir the onion, mushrooms, and garlic into the pan. Stir until the mushrooms have begun to give up their juice and the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Whisk the chicken broth, cream of chicken soup, and sherry together in a bowl, and stir in the oregano, parsley, and garlic powder. Pour the mixture over the turkey thighs. Cover the pan, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until the turkey meat is no longer pink inside and the juices run clear, about 30 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 degrees F (74 degrees C). Slice the turkey thighs, and serve with sauce.

BRAISED TURKEY

Steps:

• In a large skillet over medium heat, heat olive oil. Add sausage, pancetta and as many thighs as will fit comfortably, skin side down; sprinkle thighs with salt and pepper. Brown all well, removing pancetta first (it will brown first), then sausage; set aside. Turn thighs when they are well browned and cook a minute or so on skinless side. Remove them, too, and repeat with remaining thighs if necessary. Add breast to pan and brown it well, skin side down, then flip and cook for just a minute or so and remove. Set pan aside.
• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Soak porcinis in hot water to cover. In pan used for turkey, cook carrots, celery, onions, sage and shiitakes in leftover fat. When all vegetables are tender and beginning to brown, add drained porcini, reserving liquid. Return pancetta and sausage to pan. Cook another minute and turn off heat.
• In a large roasting pan, put thighs in corners, browned side up; there should be room for breasts all in one layer. Fill space between thighs with vegetables; leave breasts out for now. Add mushroom soaking liquid, leaving any sand and grit behind. Add stock or water as needed to come about halfway up sides of thighs.
• Put in oven and roast, uncovered, for 2 hours, checking occasionally to make sure liquid level remains sufficiently high and stirring vegetables if they threaten to brown too much. When thigh meat is tender, lay breasts on vegetables and cook until they are done, about a half hour longer.
• To serve, put vegetables on a platter; slice breasts and lay them on top; shred thigh meat and pile that on the rest.

BRAISED TURKEY LEGS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
• Rinse turkey legs and pat dry; season all over with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Heat a large Dutch oven over high heat and add olive oil. Add turkey legs, skin side down, working in batches, if necessary. Cook, turning, until turkey legs are browned on all sides, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer legs to a plate and discard all but 1 tablespoon of rendered fat from Dutch oven.
• Deglaze with white wine and cook, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pot and slightly reduced, 2 minutes. Lower heat to medium-high and add carrots, celery, and leeks to Dutch oven and cook, stirring, until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add thyme, sage, bay leaves, and stock; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and add turkey legs, skin side down; cover and transfer to oven. Cook for 40 minutes. Uncover, turn turkey legs, and continue cooking uncovered until legs are tender, 45 to 50 minutes more.
• Transfer turkey legs to a serving platter. Skim fat from top of braising liquid and discard; season braising liquid with salt and pepper, and spoon over turkey legs. Serve garnished with chopped parsley and thyme.

BASIC BRAISED TURKEY

Steps:

• Put the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the turkey and brown the leg (and, if you're using them, wing) portions on the skin side well, 10 minutes or more; turn and cook for another 2 minutes on the skinless side. Remove to a plate and brown the breasts in the same skillet, again mostly on the skin side; remove and keep them separate.
• Heat the oven to 300, and cook the bacon or pancetta (if using) in the remaining fat in the skillet until nearly crisp; remove with a slotted spoon. Cook the onions, mushrooms, carrots, celery and herbs, in batches if necessary, until beginning to brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer with the bacon or pancetta to a large roasting pan, then nestle the dark meat in there, leaving room for the breasts. Add stock or water to come about one-third to halfway up the sides of the thighs.
• Roast uncovered for about 90 minutes, checking occasionally to make sure liquid levels remain sufficiently high and stirring vegetables if they threaten to brown too much. When thigh meat is tender, place the breasts in the pan, and cook until tender, 30 to 45 minutes more, or until done. (They should register 155 on an instant-read thermometer.)
• Slice breast and thigh meat and serve on a platter with the vegetables garnished, if you like, with parsley.

MAPLE-BRAISED TURKEY LEGS AND THIGHS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 275 degrees. Pat turkey legs and thighs dry with a paper towel and generously sprinkle with salt and pepper. Dredge in flour.
• Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add turkey skin-side down and cook until browned, about five minutes. Flip and cook until the other side browns, about another five minutes. You don't want to overcrowd the pan, so don't add more than two or three pieces at a time. Otherwise, the skin won't brown properly. If the Dutch oven starts to get too hot, you can turn the heat down to medium.
• After you brown all the turkey, turn the heat down to medium if you haven't already and place the browned turkey on a separate plate. If necessary, add a little more oil to the pan. Cook the onion slices for about four minutes. Pour in the apple cider vinegar and scrap up the brown bits.
• Stir in the maple syrup, chicken stock, bay leaves, sage and thyme. Add turkey and bring the mixture to a boil. Move the Dutch oven to the 275-degree oven and cook uncovered until the leg meat is fall-off-the-bone tender, about 2 hours. Loosely cover the meat with foil and allow it to rest for 10 minutes before carving and serving. Enjoy!

BRINED TURKEY THIGHS

Steps:

• To prepare brine, combine water, salt, sugar, thyme and bay leaves in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil.
• Reduce heat and simmer, stirring, until salt and sugar are dissolved. Remove from heat and cool slightly.
• Pour brine into a heatproof bowl and cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally. Refrigerate until cold.
• Pour brine into an extra-large heavy zip-lock plastic bag. Submerge turkey thighs in brine, adding cold water if necessary to cover turkey. Seal bag and place in a large food-safe container. Refrigerate for 4 hours.
• Remove turkey from brine; discard brine, thyme and bay leaves. Rinse turkey under cold running water and pat dry. Combine sage, mustard, garlic powder, coriander, cumin and pepper; spread mixture over both sides of turkey thighs.
• Grill turkey over medium heat on natural gas barbecue until a meat thermometer inserted into thickest part of thighs registers 180 - 185ºF, about 15 - 20 minutes per side.
• Serve with Mustard Barbecue Sauce.

EASY ROASTED TURKEY THIGHS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 F.
• Pat the turkey dry with paper towels.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Lift the turkey skin and stuff it with the softened butter, then pat it down in an even layer (gently).
• Place the thighs in the baking pan.
• Roast the turkey thighs for 50-60 minutes or until the thermometer shows the turkey is cooked to 170 degrees.

HERB-ROASTED TURKEY THIGHS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Combine room temperature butter with thyme, rosemary, parsley, garlic powder, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
• Pat turkey thighs dry with a paper towel; season with salt and pepper.
• Place potatoes, onions, and garlic on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Add turkey thighs and rub herb butter over the meat and under the skin. Top with lemon zest and juice.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Continue to bake, basting turkey with its own juices after 15 minutes, until no longer pink in the centers, about 30 minutes more. An instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).

APPLE-BRAISED TURKEY THIGHS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat oil over medium-high. Season turkey on both sides with salt and pepper and add to pot, skin side down. Cook until skin is golden and crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer turkey to a plate and add shallots to pot. Cook until shallots soften, about 5 minutes. Add apples and cook until slightly softened, about 5 minutes.
• Return turkey, skin side up, to pot; add cider and broth. Bring to a boil, cover, then place pot in oven. Cook 1 1/2 hours. Uncover; cook 30 minutes more.
• Remove pot from oven and transfer turkey to a plate. Skim fat from cooking liquid and stir in vinegar. Slice meat off bones (discard bones) and serve turkey with apples and pan sauce.

ROASTED TURKEY THIGHS

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients and heat the oven to 350 F.
• Pat the turkey dry with paper towels. Never rinse the turkey before cooking it because the bacteria on the meat's surface will aerosolize and spread around your kitchen. A good pat dry is a reliable procedure and enough for the seasonings to adhere to the skin.
• In a small bowl, combine the softened butter, salt, pepper, garlic, thyme, and sage and mix well.
• Loosen the skin from the meat and rub some of the butter mixture into the meat. Smooth the skin back over and rub the remaining butter mixture on the skin.
• Place the thighs in a roasting pan and pour the broth around the turkey.
• Roast the turkey thighs for 60 to 70 minutes or until a meat thermometer registers 165 F when inserted in the meat away from the bone.
• Remove the pan from the oven, cover tightly with foil or the pan lid, and let rest for 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy.