We had a really low-maintenance Thanksgiving this year.
All I made for dinner was two turkey legs. That was the
extent of my effort. (Mom did make a sweet little pumpkin pie and made a vanilla-flavored
whipped cream the first night and orange-flavored last night).
The advantage of living with a woman who provides
holiday cookies and candies and sometimes seasonal breads, is that people want
to feed you. One of our neighbors told us she would be sending us a large platter
with foodstuff – the Puerto Rican Thanksgiving care package. She sent roast pork
shoulder, fresh baked ham, rice with pigeon peas, a macaroni salad, mashed
potatoes with gravy, and yams.
I did serve some the green bean salad that was in the
fridge, but we’d made that for Monday night’s dinner.
We started the day late and had cookies for breakfast. I
took the meats and made sandwiches for a later afternoon sandwich. I kept the
side dishes for dinner and it was perfectly
portioned for two.
Dry Brine
I dry brined the legs in a tablespoon of sea salt, and a teaspoon of freshly cracked black pepper overnight.
I dry brined the legs in a tablespoon of sea salt, and a teaspoon of freshly cracked black pepper overnight.
Method
I preheated the oven to 500-degrees F and washed off the
salt mixture off the legs. After I patted them dry, I rubbed about 1 ½ tablespoons
of softened unsalted butter on each leg, and stuffed the rest of the butter
under the skin (which I loosened slightly).
A cup of lemon juice infused water in the roaster pan did not really
gather a lot of liquid, but there was enough to baste the legs and top the gravy over the potatoes.
I added garlic powder and a little Cajun seasoning to
amp it up a little bit. The temp went to 350 shortly after the legs went in the
oven. It roasted in a foil tent for about half an hour, then uncovered for 15
minutes; turned and roasted on the other side for about 40 minutes. The last 10
minutes the temp went up to broil, but I didn’t move the legs under the
broiler. I made sure I got an internal temp of 160.
* Times will vary with legs. I rarely make them so I use a thermometer to make sure I'm safe.
* Times will vary with legs. I rarely make them so I use a thermometer to make sure I'm safe.
Compound Butter
You can cream about ¼ cup of unsalted butter with minced
parsley, salt and pepper to taste and a dash of lemon juice. This compound butter
can be spread over the skin to help season it and to crisp up the skin under
the broiler. A couple of dots of Sriracha for color will not hurt it.
It was delicious and the meat was juicy and spicy. Better
yet, no leftovers for weeks and very little clean up! Low-maintenance.
Thankful.
