Turkey Pad Thai

This dish has now become a traditional Boxing Day dinner for our family. It’s a great way to use up leftover turkey and the spiciness is an excellent antidote to the richness of other Christmas dishes. For an extra chilli hit, serve the Thai sauce nam prik on the side…chopped chilli in equal parts fish sauce and lime juice.

Prep time: 30 minutes. cooking time: 15 minutes
Ingredients:

1 packet pad Thai rice noodles
2 tspoons store bought Thai red chilli paste
10 large green prawns, peeled with tails intact
1.5 cups Leftover turkey meat
4 cloves garlic thinly sliced
1 cup bean sprouts
3 eggs lightly beaten
2 tablespooons vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped coriander
1 lemon juiced – about 3 tablespoons
3 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 limes cut into wedges
4 green spring onion stalks chopped in half
1/2 cup roughly crushed peanuts
1 tablespoon chilli flakes

Method:

1. Boil 2 litres water, then allow to cool to warm, then add rice noodles to soak for 10-15 minutes until they are tender but not soggy.

2. Do all your preparation: Peel and devein prawns, chop turkey meat into chunks, lightly beat eggs, slice garlic, chop shallots and coriander, roughly crush peanuts, juice lemon and cut lime into wedges.

3. Drain noodles and set aside.

4. Heat vegetable oil in wok or large frying pan, add garlic and stir-fry until turning golden, add chilli paste and cook until paste is fragrant.

5. Add prawns and turkey and stir fry for 1 minute, then add fish sauce, sugar and lemon juice and stir until sugar is dissolved.

6. Add noodles and gently stir fry to mix through ingredients and heat noodles.

7. Push noodles to one side then add eggs and gently scramble and then stir through noodles along with 1/2 the crushed peanuts, shallots and bean sprouts.

8. Place into large serving dish or individual bowls and sprinkle with coriander, remaining peanuts and chilli flakes. Serve with lime wedges and nam prik chilli sauce to the side.

Christmas Turkey Stuffing

It’s been a very busy lead up to Christmas so there hasn’t been much time to post recipes but there has been a lot of cooking going on! We have already celebrated Christmas with family  in Melbourne and Sydney. And the now the requests are coming in for the ham glaze and turkey stuffing recipes are coming in so I thought I’d share with everyone.

This stuffing recipe has been in my family forever and I don’t know where it originated from. It doesn’t have fruit or nuts in it but the carrots and onions add sweetness and the finely chopped chicken liver adds texture and an almost gamey flavour. White pepper is essential and adds a tangy spiciness quite different to black pepper.

I use the stuffing in full turkey roast, turkey breast roll and also whole chicken roast. Highly advisable to make a seperate dish of it in the oven at the same time as it goes pretty quickly.

Prep time: 15 minutes  Cooking time: depends on what you are stuffing but at least 1 hour in the oven.

Ingredients:
4 carrots grated
2 brown onions finely diced
4 cloves of garlic crushed to a paste
200g chicken livers with skin and sinew removed and very finely chopped, almost minced
1.5-2 cups white breadcrumbs freshly torn in little chunks from 1/2 a baguette, can include crusts
100g butter
1/2 bunch of thyme leaves stripped from stalk
2 sprigs of sage finely chopped
salt to taste
1.5-2 teaspoons white pepper

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Finely chopped liver

 

Method:

Melt butter in non-stick frying pan over medium heat
Add onions and cook slowly until transparent
Add garlic and sauté for 2-3 minutes
Add chicken livers and cook slowly until browned and colour changes

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Sauté chicken livers over medium heat until colour changes

Add carrots, thyme and sage and pepper and cook until carrots are softened
Remove from heat and put into a bowl, then add breadcrumbs and salt to taste, mix well so the bread absorbs the juices and butterCool thoroughly before stuffing bird
Put extra stuffing in a ovenproof dish and bake alongside the roast

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