Christmas dinner is probably the closest most home cooks get to working in a busy restaurant kitchen: all those pots, roasting trays, frying pans and grills going on at once; the enormous amount of food that has to be prepared for large numbers of people; the dinner guests who come with serious expectations of what they’re going to get. Get that wrong or turn the food in late and you’re suddenly the Grinch, and you better have bought enough booze to make them forget.
Many of us are looking for something a bit different for Christmas dinner, but there’s someone in every family who insists it has to be turkey, and then everyone’s stuck with it. I have the solution for this perennial problem: barbecue it! It will give a brilliant smoky flavour, and no dryness – using a low and slow method, the bird will cook more gently and retain its moisture. There is little need for resting, as the meat isn’t stressed out with the usual high temperatures of a roast. Also because of the low temp, if you’re half an hour late in taking it out, it won’t be ruined; you have much more room for Christmas errors, late relatives and a couple of early sherries. It will save valuable oven space for roasting your veg, potatoes and huge yorkshires. And best of all, it’s really, really easy to do. I promise it will taste so good that everyone will shut up and wish they had brought you better presents.
I’ve added a sprout recipe with sugar, bacon and the wonderful fragrant spice of Sichuan pepper – it should complement the smokiness of this turkey and please even the most hardened sprout hater. I developed this recipe with the chefs at Smokehouse Chiswick for the ultimate smoked turkey. We used their large wood-fired smoker and cooked it with sustainable English oak, but there is no reason why it can’t be done in a home smoker with any wood. You’ll just need a smoker big enough to hold the turkey. For kettle barbecues, set it up with the coals to one side with a few wood lumps or woodchips (place dry chips in tin foil and poke a few holes in the foil for slow release). If you have the Green Egg or other ceramic or kamado grill barbecues, just make sure you have the plate setter in place. Get the fire up to temp before putting the turkey in and set the vents to hold as near 120C as possible.
The ultimate smoked turkey
(Serves 6-8)
1 whole 5.5-6kg bird
75g sea salt
50g cracked black pepper
10g garlic salt
75g dark brown sugar
75g caster sugar
40g paprika
1tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground cloves
pinch of nutmeg
Salt the turkey for at least 24 hours (preferably 48) with a good sprinkling of quality sea salt.
Set up your smoker to smoke indirect and with a little oak or your favourite wood. Get the temperature to 125C.
Un-truss the turkey completely and don’t stuff it. Mix the rest of the ingredients together and sprinkle all over just prior to smoking.
Smoke for approximately four hours or until the temperature reaches 69C in the leg. The turkey should carry over (continue to heat up) by 4 degrees to 73C once out of the smoker, but double-check it.
Sprouts with sugar, bacon and Sichuan pepper
6 baking potatoes
200g whole smoked bacon
10 brussels sprouts
6-8 carrots roughly chopped
3 cloves of garlic
1 small pumpkin peeled and sliced
100g dark brown sugar
1 tbsp Sichuan peppercorns
juice of one orange
2 tbsp fish sauce
Peel and cut the potatoes into satsuma-sized chunks. Place in a pan of cold water with plenty of salt and simmer until tender and almost falling apart. Set an oven to 180C and roast for 40min with the carrots and pumpkin, covered in oil with a little salt and crushed garlic till coffee brown.
Chop the bacon into lardons and fry in a large pan. Chop the sprouts in half and add to the pan and continue frying.
Meanwhile, melt the sugar down with the fish sauce and orange juice; add the pepper once melted. Bring to the boil then pull off the heat.
Once the sprouts are almost soft, add the caramel and reduce to a glaze.
Serve alongside the turkey with a few bottles of good wine and some great family arguments.
