Some people try to keep the white meat moist by tenting it with aluminum foil, or adding a pan of water to the oven.

THE NIBBLE’s consulting chef, Eric Dantis, is a pro at cooking turkey. His technique to keep the breast from drying out is simple, especially if you carve the turkey before bringing it to the table (as opposed to showcasing the roasted turkey before carving).

The tip: Simply cut the legs off and roast them in a separate pan.

It’s simple science: With such a long and slow cooking process, the breast will reach serving temperature of 165°F way before the legs will. As the breast remains in the oven so the legs can finish cooking, it leaks valuable juices, causing the meat to dry out.

Some people flip the bird mid-roast, so that the juices flow down into the breast, which is now on the bottom. With a large, hot bird, this can be tricky—if not outright dangerous.

So, roast the legs in a separate pan. This way, when the body of the turkey is finished cooking, you can remove it let the legs continue to cook while the body rests before carving.

Your turkey will cook faster, the breast will remain moist, and the legs will be tender. Roast on!

FOOD TRIVIA: WHERE DID THE TURKEY ORIGINATE?

The turkey is a native American, domesticated by ancient Mesoamericans from the wild turkeys of what is today Central Mexico. The meat and eggs were major sources of protein; the feathers were used for ornamentation.

The Spanish conquistadors brought turkeys to Spain around 1528. In a turn-about, England sent domestic turkeys back to the Americas—to the Jamestown Settlement in Virginia, in 1607. Here’s more on the history of the turkey.

If you have too much leftover stuffing from Thanksgiving dinner, convert it into this delicious appetizer, side or snack: fried stuffing balls, which look similar to falafel.

Get out the cookie dough scoop, make stuffing balls, cover with breadcrumbs and pan fry in minutes.

You can turn leftover cranberry sauce into a dipping sauce; or serve the stuffing balls with honey mustard, salsa, yogurt dip or other favorite.

Ingredients

*Wondra is a brand of “instant flour,” a pre-gelatinized wheat flour mixed with some malted barley flour. It was formulated to dissolve quickly in hot or cold liquids, and is most popularly used to thicken gravies and sauces while avoiding lumps. If you can’t find instant flour you can substitute all-purpose flour. Use an immersion blender to blend out the lumps.

Preparation
1. Coat the bottom of a pot with oil and heat on medium-high.
2. When oil is hot, add carrots, celery, onion, garlic, mushroom stems, and about ¼ of the sliced mushrooms.
3. Season lightly with pinch of salt and pepper.
4. Sweat with no color for 10-15 minutes, until tender.
5. Add thyme, bay leaf; sprinkle in flour.
6. Cook for 5 minutes to toast the flour and cook out the raw flour flavor.
7. Add soy sauce and simmer for 5 minutes.
8. Add chicken stock, stir and increase heat to high.
9. Bring liquid to boil then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer.
10. Simmer for 30-40 minutes; skim off and discard any scum or residual grease.
11. While the stock is simmering, brown the reserved mushrooms in a separate pot with some oil.
12. After 40 minutes, strain the mushroom stock into the pot with the reserved browned mushrooms. Bring to boil over high heat; then reduce, maintaining a simmer.
13. Reduce the broth by at least half, or until the flavor of the salt level is to your liking.
14. Add half of the cream and bring back to a boil. The gravy should nap the back of a spoon. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper.
15. If the viscosity of the sauce is still too thin, sprinkle in Wondra a little at a time, whisking to avoid clumps. You need to bring the gravy to a boil in order to activate the gluten in the Wondra.
16. Strain one more time into a bowl and keep warm until ready to use.
17. If making a day ahead of time, do not add cream until reheating.

Let us know how you like it!