This Roast Turkey with Paprika and Chorizo would make a great alternative to more traditional roast turkey flavours used on Christmas Day.
With Christmas Day looming, I am sure many of you have already bought or ordered your turkeys now ready for serving on the big day. I like to ensure that my turkey is packed full of flavour because, after all, it is the star of the meal and something we only tend to roast once a year.
Oven Pride, the UK’s number 1 oven cleaner , challenged me to create and cook a traditional Christmas dinner but with a flavour twist, as part of their #ovenpridechristmas campaign.
I know a lot of people who complain that roast turkey can be dry, bland and boring BUT by adding a few spices, herbs or some fruit zest you can make a roast turkey very special and tasty, and be flavoursome and moist. In the past I normally add lemon, garlic and thyme, or orange and sage to my Christmas turkey, but after being challenged by Oven Pride, I knew I needed to go for something with more of a punch in terms of flavour.
I love Spanish flavours and decided to make a butter to rub under the skin of my turkey which was made using chorizo, paprika and lemon zest.
I also added some chorizo slices over the top of my turkey too
The smell that came from my oven while the turkey was roasting was amazing , and once my bird was cooked , and while it rested, I then cooked my roasties in the same roasting tray with all of the sticky chorizo infused turkey juices to maker some delicious roast potatoes which were packed full of flavour and covered in sticky tasty pieces.
Once carved, the meat was moist and full of flavour and beneath the skin were some little pockets of chorizo crumbs which were lovely to eat alongside the turkey meat.
This recipe would work equally as well with chicken as it does with turkey, and it is really very easy to do and the flavours really add such a great dimension to the bird and it is something a little different to dish up on Christmas Day.
Here is the recipe:
- I used a small turkey weighing approx 4kg (taking 2/1/2 hours to roast), and removed the giblets and liver first
- 100g butter
- 1 tsp paprika
- zest of 1 lemon
- approx 75g sliced chorizo (pre sliced)
- 1 whole lemon (minus the zest as this is used as above)
- 6 more chorizo slices(optional)
- Pre heat the oven to 190oC or 170oC (fan)
- Place the butter, lemon zest, paprika and 75g of chorizo into a food processor, and blend to make a buttery paste
- Carefully, lift up the skin and push your hand inside the cavity right down the breast bone as far as you can go.
- Take half of the butter and spread it under the skin as far as you can go towards the bottom, and then all across the top.
- With the skin pulled back down, using your hands spread the butter across the bird's skin
- Slice the lemon in half,and cut one half into slices and add the slices under the skin too.
- Make a whole in each thigh, and again, careful using a finger spited the skin back as far as you can and stuff in ¼ of the remaining butter into each thigh
- Push the half of lemon thats left into the birds cavity
- cover the bird with some more chorizo slices (optional) and an extra dusting of paprika
- Roast in the oven for as long as your bird needs - you won't need to baste it as the juices will baste it for you. It will be cooked where the juices run clear or if you use a temperature probe, check the thigh and breast and it should read 80oC or more.
- *TOP TIPS*
- Despite what the cooking guidelines might say on the turkey packaging, always check your turkey regular, as I aways find that my turkeys cook in less time than stated. Overcook it and your turkey will be dry. Also, if you think your turkey skin is browning too quickly, cover loosely with foil for the last part of the roasting time.
Delicious! And there was plenty of meat for leftovers too 🙂
So how do you cook your own Christmas turkey? Please remember to share your own ‘Christmas Twists’ ideas on social media and use the hashtag #ovenpridechristmas .
This recipe is my own and it was commissioned by Oven Pride
