How to prepare the perfect turkey
The Copas family has been in the same village for nearly 350 years, starting off as fruit farmers, before moving into turkeys, which they have been working with for half a century. Here are their tips on how to prepare the perfect festive bird.
Cooking
Any turkey you buy, no matter where it is from, should be cooked breast-side down. This allows all the fat from the back of the bird to filter down through the meat, making it beautifully succulent.
Cooking time for your turkey is usually 30 to 35 minutes per kg but this does not include the stuffing. If you use 1kg of stuffing, for example, you must add this to the weight and adjust the cooking time accordingly.
Cook your turkey on a higher heat (around 230C/450F/gas mark 8) for the first half hour, before lowering the temperature to 190C/375F/gas mark 5.
When it comes to seasoning and stuffing, if you have a good-quality bird the flavour should already be there, so just use simple options; salt and pepper on top and a quarter of an onion and an apple inside.
You should cover the turkey with tin foil while it is cooking, but then remove the foil half an hour before it is done. At this point, turn the bird breast-side up, and return it to the oven, allowing the breast to bronze.
There are three easy ways to tell when your turkey is done. You can use a pop-up timer (which should be inserted 3cm to the right or left of the breastbone and an indicator will pop up when it’s done), a meat thermometer (when it hits 165F/74C it is ready), or simply wait until the juices from the thickest meat run clear.
Carving
Always use a sharp knife. Ideally, whenever you use a knife you should run it over a steel to keep it sharp. The best way to do this is to hold the steel on the table and then run the knife down it at a 20-degree angle.
For the thinnest slices, you will need to ensure that the take extra care of your fingers.
When you take your turkey out of the oven, allow it to sit for 20 minutes. Then begin by removing the wings and legs. This is easily done. When you pull the wing away it should come away easily.
To remove the leg, take hold of the drumstick and cut along the inside of the thigh, working down with the tip of the blade. When you see the knuckle, pull gently and it should come away easily. Place both the wing and leg to one side to either leave on the bone or carve down later.
There are then two alternatives. The Kelly Carve is good if you plan to use all of the meat the same day. Named after the farmer Paul Kelly, who first started using this method, it removes the breast meat in one piece.
With the tip of your knife cut along the breastbone. Then place a fork into the breast and cut just next to the breast bone, easing the meat away with the fork, working down until it comes away. Repeat for the other breast. Once off, cut the whole breast into slices.
The more common method is simply to carve the breast meat parallel to the bone.
Copas Farms
Cooking
Any turkey you buy, no matter where it is from, should be cooked breast-side down. This allows all the fat from the back of the bird to filter down through the meat, making it beautifully succulent.
Cooking time for your turkey is usually 30 to 35 minutes per kg but this does not include the stuffing. If you use 1kg of stuffing, for example, you must add this to the weight and adjust the cooking time accordingly.
Cook your turkey on a higher heat (around 230C/450F/gas mark 8) for the first half hour, before lowering the temperature to 190C/375F/gas mark 5.
When it comes to seasoning and stuffing, if you have a good-quality bird the flavour should already be there, so just use simple options; salt and pepper on top and a quarter of an onion and an apple inside.
You should cover the turkey with tin foil while it is cooking, but then remove the foil half an hour before it is done. At this point, turn the bird breast-side up, and return it to the oven, allowing the breast to bronze.
There are three easy ways to tell when your turkey is done. You can use a pop-up timer (which should be inserted 3cm to the right or left of the breastbone and an indicator will pop up when it’s done), a meat thermometer (when it hits 165F/74C it is ready), or simply wait until the juices from the thickest meat run clear.
Carving
Always use a sharp knife. Ideally, whenever you use a knife you should run it over a steel to keep it sharp. The best way to do this is to hold the steel on the table and then run the knife down it at a 20-degree angle.
For the thinnest slices, you will need to ensure that the take extra care of your fingers.
When you take your turkey out of the oven, allow it to sit for 20 minutes. Then begin by removing the wings and legs. This is easily done. When you pull the wing away it should come away easily.
To remove the leg, take hold of the drumstick and cut along the inside of the thigh, working down with the tip of the blade. When you see the knuckle, pull gently and it should come away easily. Place both the wing and leg to one side to either leave on the bone or carve down later.
There are then two alternatives. The Kelly Carve is good if you plan to use all of the meat the same day. Named after the farmer Paul Kelly, who first started using this method, it removes the breast meat in one piece.
With the tip of your knife cut along the breastbone. Then place a fork into the breast and cut just next to the breast bone, easing the meat away with the fork, working down until it comes away. Repeat for the other breast. Once off, cut the whole breast into slices.
The more common method is simply to carve the breast meat parallel to the bone.
Turkey talk
- Like sheep, turkeys can be driven. They used to be taken from Norfolk to London to be sold at market.
- They are surprisingly inquisitive and intelligent, and can become bored when confined to small pens.
- If you make a ‘gobble’ sound near a turkey, it will gobble back. There are 40,000 turkeys at Copas, so just imagine the noise!
Copas Farms
- It was founded as a turkey farm in 1957 after Tom Copas’s father decided that his son needed a new project. The farm has increased its yield from selling just 153 turkeys to 40,000 each Christmas.
- The company supplies around 280 independent butchers countrywide each year. Tradition and welfare are a huge part of its ethos.
- Copas has 26 different turkey breeds, from Norfolk Blacks (perfect if you want a medium-sized turkey) to Roly Polys (small). Larger stag (male) birds of each breed are ideal if you have a lot of people to feed.