How to Use All Parts of Your Turkey: Recipes Included

Most turkeys harvested this spring get the quick and easy treatment—breasted out, and the legs set aside. Yes, these parts of the turkey are delicious, but there are plenty of other parts of the bird that are useful if you know what you’re doing. A wild turkey will yield roughly 8-12 pounds of meat, relative to its size. Compared to other game animals, this is one of the highest yields of meat to game weight ratios. The issue most hunters run into is not knowing how to properly use meat other than the breast. One man, Jesse Griffiths, is on a mission to change that.

Jesse has authored The Turkey Book the authoritative cook book on wild turkeys and also heads the Pedernal Project. A member-exclusive site dedicated to creative ways to cook wild game, in addition to running his own restaurant, Dai Due. His life’s work has been dedicated to cooking, processing, and honoring the game animals we love. In a recent conversation with Jesse, he shared some of his favorite outside-of-the-box turkey recipes. These recipes feature useful ways to get creative with your wild turkey this spring. So ditch the deep fryer and turkey nuggets for some elevated and resourceful means to cook up a gobbler.

Recipe 1: Turkey Country Pâté

Pâté is a French dish made from minced meat and fat. Its smooth texture makes it an excellent spread and the perfect spring snack. Jesse’s turkey version of it utilizes the liver, heart, and gizzard—parts of the bird often overlooked and tossed aside. The result is a delicious, aromatic pâté that any dinner guest will enjoy.

Ingredients

• 1 cup brandy, bourbon, sweet vermouth, port, madeira or marsala, or a combination 
• 1 medium onion, large dice
• 1 garlic clove, smashed
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 3 tbsp breadcrumbs
• 2 tbsp heavy cream
• 1 pound fatty pork or wild boar (shoot for about 30% fat), large dice
• Heart, liver and cleaned gizzard of 1 wild turkey, large dice
• 6 ounces smoked bacon or pancetta, large dice
• 6 sprigs thyme, leaves only
• ¼ tsp pâté spice
• ⅛ tsp Instacure #1, optional
• 4 tsp Kosher salt
• 1 cup pistachios
• ¼ cup chopped parsley, optional
• 12 thin slices of bacon, optional
• Caul fat, optional
• Optional garnishes, ½ cup/8 ounces:
• Diced ham
• Turkey or other tenderloin, trimmed of silverskin and cut into long strips
• Dried cherries or other dried fruit like apricots, diced prunes or cranberries

Instructions

1. In a small pot, combine the alcohol with the onion and garlic. Bring to a simmer and cook until almost syrupy and reduced to about ¼ cup. Cool completely in the refrigerator.
2. Combine the eggs, breadcrumbs and cream in a small bowl and refrigerate.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the pork, turkey, bacon, thyme, pate spice, Instacure and salt. Toss well, then lay this out on a baking sheet and place in the freezer for about 20-30 minutes, until partially frozen.
4. Preheat the oven to 300°F.
5. Set up a grinder with a medium plate. Add the onion mixture to the meats and grind once into another chilled bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer.
6. Using the paddle attachment of the mixer, combine the chilled egg and breadcrumb mix with the ground meats until well combined and sticky, about 1 minute. Add the pistachios, parsley and any other optional garnish. If using strips of tenderloins, set these aside until ready to assemble the pate.
7. If desired, line a loaf pan or terrine mold with caul fat, or lay strips of bacon across the mold, leaving enough to completely wrap the pate.
8. Spoon the pate mixture into the mold pressing down with moist hands to eliminate air pockets. If garnishing with tenderloin, place half of the meat mixture down, then add the strips of tenderloin lengthwise, then cover with the remaining meat. If using bacon or caul fat, seal the top of the pate at this point.
9. Place the pan in a larger pan and fill with enough hot water to come about ⅔ of the way up the sides of the pate. Cover this pan with a lid or foil and place in the oven. 
10. Bake the pate until the interior is 150°F. Remove from the water bath immediately and leave to cool to room temperature.
11. Cut a piece of cardboard to fit on top of the pate and wrap this with plastic wrap. Once cooled, place this cardboard on top and then weight the pate with heavy jars or cans. Refrigerate the weighted pate for at least 24 hours.
12. To serve, remove the weights and cardboard and invert the pate onto a plate. If it won’t come out. Submerge the loaf pan in a little hot water to loosen the pate slightly.
13. Serve cold with cornichons, mustard, fruit chutneys and crusty bread, or toasted bread. Also consider serving the pate with a salad.

Recipe 2: Turkey Leg Ticinese

Ingredients

• Serves 4
• 6 ounces pancetta, bacon or salt pork, diced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 turkey leg quarter, cut into drumstick and thigh; or 1 drumstick, 1 neck (cut into 2 pieces)
•  and 1-2 turkey wings
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 carrots, diced
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 8 juniper berries
• 2-3 bay leaves
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 cups red wine
• 1 14-ounce can of tomatoes
• 1 quart turkey stock or water
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 300°F.
2. In a large enameled cast iron pot with a lid or braising pot, heat the olive oil and butter over medium heat. Add the pancetta or bacon and cook until rendered and crisp and remove to a plate with a slotted spoon.
3. Season the turkey with salt and pepper. Brown the turkey parts well in the remaining fat until nicely caramelized all over. Remove to the plate with the pancetta.
4. Add the onion and carrot and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 8 minutes.
5. While the vegetables are cooking, wrap the cinnamon, juniper, bay and fresh herbs in cheesecloth and tie securely. Add this to the cooking vegetables and continue to cook for a couple of minutes. Add the wine and cook until reduced by half, then add the tomatoes and the stock or water.
6. Bring to a very gentle simmer, cover the pot and place in the oven for 3 hours, checking after 2 hours to make sure there’s enough liquid to cover the turkey. Turn the turkey at this point, too.
7. Continue to cook until the turkey leg is tender, which might take up to 4-5 hours. Once tender, remove the lid, discard the herb bundle and turn up the heat to reduce the sauce more quickly. Let the sauce become thickened and slightly jammy.
8. Serve the turkey over game bird polenta.

Pairing: Game Bird Polenta

Use good-quality cornmeal for polenta. There are many smaller producers selling flavorful cornmeal, available in many grocery stores. If you can find a small gristmill in your area or order some online, all the better. Make this with cornmeal ground for polenta or grits. Grits tend to be a little more coarse, which is actually my preference. A 4:1 ratio of liquid to cornmeal yields a looser finished product for serving with stews and braises, while cutting that down to 3:1 will make a firmer polenta that can then be chilled, sliced and crisped in a pan.

Ingredients

• Serves 4
• 1 quart turkey stock
• 2 cups heavy cream, half and half or milk
• 1 bay leaf
• Pinch ground nutmeg, optional
• 1 ½ cups polenta or grits
• Salt and pepper
• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter

Instructions

In a medium pot over medium-low heat, combine the stock, cream, nutmeg and bay leaf. Warm for a few minutes, then remove the bay leaf and whisk in the polenta in a steady stream until incorporated. Cook, stirring very often, until cooked, about 20-30 minutes depending on the cornmeal. Add the Parmesan and butter, then season with salt and pepper to taste.