Grilled Apple-Oak Smoked Lemongrass Rosemary Garlic Turkey

This will probably be the last post for 2014. So with the last recipe of 2014, I wish you and your family a Happy New Year for 2015, and will see you next year with more recipes.

So the final 2014 recipe is for grill smoking a whole turkey with apple and oak wood that I made for my family’s Christmas dinner. You were probably expecting a photo of the whole cooked turkey in this post (it was impressive looking!), but since I was pressed for time cooking Christmas dinner, I wasn’t able to take any photos and the photo above is for the leftovers.

The turkey is made with a spice paste that is placed in the space between the skin and meat of the breast, thigh, drumstick, and back. The space is created by separating the skin from the meat using your hand or the end of a long cooking spoon. Even though the skin is separated from the turkey meat, it is still attached to the turkey, forming pockets for a spice paste. If using your hand to create the pockets, you have to be prepared to place your hand (and part of your arm) into the turkey. I use this method because I’m able to feel the interface between the skin and meat, and use my fingers to separate the skin from the meat without breaking the skin.

When I first thought about making the paste using a food processor, I wanted to use a fresh rosemary, garlic, kosher salt, and olive oil mixture. It’s a classic combination and I happen to have rosemary growing in my backyard. Lemons and lemon juice are typical additions, but I decided to give the paste an Asian twist by using lemongrass. Only the white portions of the lemongrass are used in the paste, and the inedible green portions, together with the rosemary stalks, are stuffed into the turkey cavity.

Inevitably, some of the spice paste gets on the outer skin when you’re putting the paste into the turkey. Don’t worry, since this adds to the flavor of the skin. The turkey skin is coated with a mixture of kosher salt, pepper, and baking soda. The idea and use of baking soda came from America’s Test Kitchen. The baking soda not only helps with browning, but also with crisping the skin. I used double the amount of ingredients called for in the America’s Test Kitchen recipe, keeping the 1:1:1 ratio of kosher salt, pepper, and baking soda.

Root vegetables can be cut up, coated with olive oil, and placed in the bottom of the roasting pan if desired. Pan roasted vegetables is a nice addition to the meal and doesn’t really add to the cooking time. The pan roasted vegetables also add some flavor to any gravy that is made from the drippings. I also put the turkey neck and organs on top of the vegetables in the pan to be cooked, but you can also omit these items and use them for stock or directly in the gravy.

A gas grill with a thermometer is necessary for grill smoking a whole turkey. Maintaining a constant temperature of 350⁰F (175⁰C) and previous experience with your gas grill will determine the total cooking time for the turkey. I have found that 12 minutes per pound (450 g.) produces the right results (again, previous experience determines total cooking time). So for a 14 lb. (6.4 kg.) turkey, a total of 3 hours is needed to cook the turkey.

The size of your gas grill also matters since that will determine how many burners can be kept on for indirect cooking, which influences the ability to maintain a constant temperature. My gas grill is large enough to keep both end burners on during cooking, so I’m able to center the roasting pan with the turkey between two lit burners. For smaller gas grills, only one end can usually be kept lit for indirect cooking once the roasting pan with the turkey is placed on the grate, which might necessitate an increased cooking time. Regardless, the roasting pan should be rotated 180⁰ half way through the cooking time to even out any hot spots in your gas grill.

The turkey should rest for 30 minutes or more before carving, so don’t carve the turkey immediately after coming out of the grill since all the juices will not remain in the turkey meat and will just drain onto the cutting board. I consider a turkey just a large chicken, so you can follow the instructions for cutting a chicken in the Poached Chicken (白斬雞, Baak⁶ Zaam² Gai¹) with Ginger-Scallion Oil (薑蔥油, Goeng¹ Cung¹ Jau⁴) recipe to carve the turkey. Unlike the chicken, where all the meat will fit onto one plate, separate the turkey dark meat from the white and use two plates. In the end, the turkey was very tasty and my family was duly impressed with the flavor.

Enjoy!

Bean Sauce Chicken with Green Beans and Salted Radish (豆瓣青豆角雞, Dau6 Faan6 Ceng1 Dau6 Gok3 Gai1)

 

This is a basic bean sauce chicken and green bean stir fry with an added ingredient: salted radish. Unfortunately I haven’t been able to decipher the Chinese characters for this ingredient, so there’s no entry (as of now) in the English-Cantonese Ingredient Names page. The degree of saltiness varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, so the amount to use in the dish depends upon the brand you buy and your preference for saltiness in a dish. In general, I’ve found that those manufactured in Thailand are much saltier than those made in China. You’ll have to experiment with the amount to determine the right quantity to use. The salted radish not only provides flavor to the dish, but also texture since it’s crunchy. Use too little and you’ll probably not notice the salted radish in the dish. Use too much and the dish will be too salty.

Enjoy!

Grilled Cumin and Sichuan Peppercorn Lamb Leg Steaks (燒烤孜然花椒羊肉, Siu1 Haau1 Zi1 Jin4 Faa1 Ziu1 Joeng4 Juk6)

Lamb leg steaks are sometimes available at my local market. I can always find either bone-in and boneless whole lamb legs, but unless I want to grill a whole leg (recipes: Grilled Butterflied Lamb Leg and Grilled Mesquite-Smoked Garlic Rosemary Lamb), lamb leg steaks can be more convenient to cook. The spice paste used to season the lamb is not hot, but spicy and flavorful. You can apply the spice paste one hour before grilling, but the lamb will taste better if left to marinate overnight in the refrigerator. If you want more heat, just add and grind dried red chili peppers to the mixture.

Enjoy!

Basil Shallot Sauce Chicken and Chinese Sausage Chow Mein (紫蘇紅蔥醬臘腸雞炒麵, Zi2 Sou1 Hung4 Cung1 Laap6 Coeng4 Gai1 Caau2 Min6)

I made this noodle dish for a Thanksgiving lunch that I was invited to. Since I wasn’t able to respond until the night before, I had to think about which dish I could make the next morning, since the dish couldn’t take too long to make and I had to use ingredients that were on hand. Fortunately I had some chicken marinating in the refrigerator, but it wasn’t enough to be the only meat ingredient in the dish. So I decided to add some Cantonese pork sausage, which adds a nice flavor to any dish. All the other ingredients needed for a noodle dish were in my pantry or in the refrigerator. The shallot sauce was a nice flavorful addition to my normal noodle dish finishing sauce.

 

The recipe has been scaled down to produce a more normal sized dish since I made a large amount of noodles for the lunch. Finally, since I was pressed for time, I didn’t get a chance to take pictures after I cooked the dish. It was only after I came back home from the lunch that I got a chance to take pictures of the cold leftovers (of which, there wasn’t much).

 

Enjoy!

Fermented Bean Curd Green Bean Chicken (腐乳青豆角雞, Fu6 Jyu5 Ceng1 Dau6 Gok3 Gai1)

 

Fermented bean curd is one of those ingredients that goes well with chicken. I used the non-spicy version of fermented bean curd, but added red chili peppers to make the dish more visually appealing (the amount to use is a personal preference). I used regular green beans, rather than long beans, since I had them on hand. The rest of the ingredients are readily available at your local Asian market.

Enjoy!

Oysters and Ground Pork with Chinese Broccoli (芥蘭豬肉鮮蠔, Gaai3 Laan4 Zyu1 Juk6 Sin1 Hou4)

Seafood and ground pork are a classic combination in Chinese dishes. In this case, fresh oysters are the seafood with the contrasting texture comes from the Chinese broccoli. The oyster liquor, which is the juice from the oyster, is added to the sauce to further enhance the oyster flavor and to increase the amount of sauce (which goes well over rice).

 

Enjoy!

Grilled Ground Chili Garlic Oil Pork Rib Eye Chops

Indirect heat from a charcoal grill is used to roast these spicy pork chops. The pork chops should be cut at least 1-inch (2.5 cm.) thick so that they will stand on their own on the grill grate without the need of a rack to support them. The pork chops are placed on the cool side of the grill (the side opposite the lighted charcoal) with the pork chop’s flat bone on the grill grate, rib bone facing the heat, and fat cap facing up. A rack to support the pork chops will be required if the pork chops are too thin or if the pork chops are cut at an odd angle (so the pork chops will lean to one side or the other, and subsequently fall over during cooking).

Enjoy!

Grilled Dry Rub Pork Baby Back Rib Fried Rice (燒烤排骨炒飯, Siu1 Haau1 Paai4 Gwat1 Caau2 Faan6)

So if you have leftovers from the Grilled Dry Rub Pork Baby Back Ribs recipe and cooked rice, you can remove the meat from the ribs and make fried rice. I added red serrano chili peppers to the dish to spice it up even more, but that can be omitted depending upon your preference for spicy food.

Enjoy!

Hot Fermented Bean Curd Chicken (辣椒腐乳雞, Laat6 Ziu1 Fu6 Jyu5 Gai1)

Fermented bean curd can be purchased with or without chilies. I decided to use the hot version in this dish together with red serrano chili peppers to give the dish an added kick of heat. You can, of course, leave out the added red chili peppers and even use the non-spicy version of fermented bean curd if you don’t like the spiciness of the dish.

Enjoy!

Hot Bean Sauce Turkey (辣豆辦火雞肉, Laat6 Dau6 Faan6 Fo2 Gai1 Juk6)

Hot bean sauce gives this dish its spiciness. The serrano peppers also contribute to the spiciness, but also help to give the dish some color together with the red bell pepper. The black or cloud ear fungus gives the dish a slight crunchiness which contrasts nicely with the texture of the ground turkey. You can substitute ground pork for the turkey if it’s more convenient and you’ll probably not notice the difference.

Enjoy!

Shredded Spice Tofu Baby Bok Choy Sprouts (五香豆腐絲白菜苗, Ng5 Hoeng1 Dau6 Fu6 Si1 Baak6 Coi3 Miu4)

I posted similar recipes using shredded tofu and long baby bok choy sprouts: Shrimp with Shredded Spice Tofu (五香豆腐絲蝦, Ng⁵ Hoeng¹ Dau⁶ Fu⁶ Si¹ Haa¹), which adds seafood, and Baby Bok Choy Sprouts with Shredded Tofu (白菜苗豆腐絲, Baak⁶ Coi³ Miu⁴ Dau⁶ Fu⁶ Si¹), which uses plain shredded tofu.

Long baby bok choy sprouts resemble spinach in form, but retains its crunch when cooked, and are the young long sprouts of the bok choy plant. The long sprouts go well with shredded tofu which is also long in length. I used spiced shredded tofu instead of the white version, which is more common, to give added flavor to the dish. If you can’t find long baby bok choy sprouts (also called long bok choy muy) at your local Asian supermarket, you can substitute baby bok choy (小白菜, siu² baak⁶ coi³). Regular firm tofu, cut into strips, can be substituted for the shredded tofu.

Enjoy!

Hot Bean Sauce Bitter Melon Chicken (辣豆辦苦瓜雞, Laat6 Dau6 Faan6 Fu2 Gwaa1 Gai1)

The bitterness of the bitter melon goes well with the spiciness of the hot bean sauce in this dish. The other ingredients, the chicken and fried tofu, complete the dish. The bitterness of the bitter melon can be controlled by salting the wet bitter melon pieces for up to 10 minutes; more than 10 minutes and the bitterness is mostly removed, so it doesn’t take the salt too long to remove the bitterness. The salt can be omitted if you like the full bitterness of bitter melon.

Enjoy!

Garam Masala Long Bean Shrimp (胡荽豆角蝦, Wu4 Seoi1 Dau6 Gok3 Haa1)

Garam masala powder is the basis for this dish and I think of it as a spicier version of curry powder. I think I got the translation into Chinese correct for garam masala, but I’m not certain. The use of prepared curry powder is common in Cantonese American dishes, so the use of garam masala is a variation on the more common dish that uses curry powder. This is actually a good dish to have over rice.

Enjoy!

Steamed Lemon Garlic Black Bean Pork Baby Back Ribs (檸蒜蓉豆豉蒸排骨, Ning4 Syun1 Jung4 Dau6 Si6 Zing1 Paai4 Gwat1)

Steaming is one of my favorite methods to cook pork spareribs since the cooking time is relatively quick when compared to other methods. Using salted black beans with garlic is a classic Cantonese preparation with steamed pork spareribs, which are usually cut into 1- to 2-inch pieces. I also use this method for whole pork baby back ribs, which are just as tasty. The added twist to the recipe is the addition of lemon juice just before steaming, which adds another flavor to the dish. You can prepare this dish ahead of time (i.e. the night before) and even used a prepared black bean garlic sauce (I recommend the Lee Kum Kee brand), but don’t add the lemon juice until just before the dish is steamed.

Enjoy!

Pea Sprouts with Duck Eggs (豆苗鴨蛋, Dau6 Miu4 Aap3 Daan6)

Pea sprouts are the shoots that are usually discarded after pea pods are picked from the plant. This classic Cantonese dish pairs the pea sprouts with two types of duck eggs – one salted and one preserved. The cooked salted duck egg is a duck egg preserved in salt, which results in a dark orange yolk and firm egg white. The preserved duck egg has a yolk that is dark green color and the egg whites are dark brown as the result of alkaline preservation. The preserved duck egg is also known as “hundred-year” and “thousand-year” old eggs. Be assured that preserved duck eggs are not that old! You can purchase all the ingredients for this dish at your local Asian market.

Enjoy!

Black Pepper Sauce Beef with Long Beans and Enoki Mushrooms (黑椒汁金菇豆角牛肉, Hak1 Ziu1 Zap1 Gam1 Gu1 Dau6 Gok3 Ngau4 Juk6)

Fresh enoki mushrooms come packaged as a single block with a base from which the individual enoki were grown. The mushrooms themselves have long stems with a very small cap. The enoki mushrooms are cut from the base, which is discarded, and then are added to the beef and long beans in this dish.

Enjoy!

Curry Cashew Long Bean Shrimp (咖哩腰果豆角蝦, Gaa3 Lei1 Jiu1 Gwo2 Dau6 Gok3 Haa1)

When you see a dish in a Chinese restaurant whose title contains the word, curry, it means that curry powder was added to the sauce. These dishes are usually stir fried (even when curry is used in a clay pot) and reflects the quick nature of Chinese wok cooking. This dish reflects that background using long beans and shrimp. The cashew nuts are toasted while the wok heats up, and then the ingredients are cooked quickly over high heat before adding the curry sauce. The one thing that a home kitchen can’t reproduce fully is the wok flavor imparted to the dish that comes from using high heat available in restaurant, the so called, “breath of the wok” (鑊氣, wok⁶ hei³).

Enjoy!

Tagu Choy with Dried Shrimp (蝦米塌古菜, Haa1 Mai5 Taap3 Gu2 Coi3)

Tagu choy (sometimes called taku choy) is a long stemmed vegetable available at your local Asian market. It makes a good change of pace from using another Asian leafy vegetable in a stir fry. If tagu choy is not available, you can substitute any Asian leafy vegetable in its place. Dried shrimp always adds a good flavor to vegetable dishes and, if desired, the rehydration liquid adds flavor to the sauce.

Enjoy!

Chili Oil Bean Curd Long Bean Chicken (紅油腐乳豆角雞, Hung4 Jau4 Fu6 Jyu5 Dau6 Gok3 Gai1)

I’m always on the lookout for new ingredients at my local Asian market. The market started carrying a new fermented bean curd in chili oil made by Laoganma. So I bought it, adding to my already full pantry of Chinese ingredients, and made this chicken and long bean dish with it. I also made the dish with a good amount of sauce, using the Shiitake mushroom rehydration liquid. The chili oil is not very hot, at least in my opinion, but it does add another flavor to fermented bean curd and the dish.

Enjoy!

Hot Bean Sauce Bell Pepper Chicken (辣豆辦青椒雞, Laat6 Dau6 Faan6 Ceng1 Ziu1 Gai1)

The sweetness of the bell peppers contrasts nicely with the spiciness of the hot bean sauce, and the combination of chicken and mushrooms is a classic taste pairing. The hot bean sauce also gives this dish its deep colored sauce. Together all these ingredients make this quick cooking dish.

Enjoy!

Black Pepper Sauce Oyster Mushroom Chicken (黑椒汁蠔菇雞, Hak1 Ziu1 Zap1 Hou4 Gu1 Gai1)

I had a can of oyster mushrooms available, but you can use any mushrooms, whether rehydrated, canned, or fresh, to make this dish. Black pepper sauce makes a good basis for the sauce and goes well with the chicken. If you like things spicy, add some red chili peppers for both heat and appearance.

Enjoy!