The stuffed turkey is a very common dish for family Christmas meals. In these meetings with so many diners, choosing the filling for the most suitable turkey will be the key for all guests to enjoy a delicious dish.
Best Turkey Filler
Peacock is one of the lean meats that can bring important nutrients into the diet. Specifically, as collected by data from the FoodData Central – United States Department of Agriculture, it contains proteins of high biological value, fats, B-complex vitamins, selenium, zinc, potassium, magnesium, and other important nutrients.
However, it is essential to bear in mind that its calorie content varies greatly according to preparation. Therefore, when choosing ingredients to fill it, it is important to look for alternatives that respect the concept of a healthy and balanced diet. Here are two options.
1. Filling With Longaniza and Nuts
First, we show you how to prepare the turkey filling with a mixture of rather blunt ingredients that will help no one get hungry behind the main course.
Dry fruits such as nuts, which stand out in this recipe, provide unsaturated fats, high-quality plant proteins, fiber, minerals, tocopherols, phytosterols, and phenolic compounds, according to information published in the journal Nutrients.
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons of butter (120 g)
- 2 cups chopped onion (400g)
- 4 cloves of garlic crushed
- 1 teaspoon ground achiote (5 g)
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin (5g)
- 1/4 cup minced beef (30 g)
- 1 cup of chopped longaniza (240g)
- 3/4 cup chopped bacon (180g)
- 1 apple peeled and in cubes
- 1 cup of an assortment of chopped mixed nuts (150g)
- 1-2 cup chopped nuts (60 g)
- 1 cup sliced olives (120g)
- 3 twigs of fresh herbs to taste
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder (3 g)
- 2 chicken broth pills
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (2 g)
- 1 cup white wine (250 ml)
- 2 cups of breadcrumbs (120g)
- 2 beaten eggs
- Salt and pepper (to taste)
Preparation of the filling
Despite the large amount of ingredients, the filling preparation is quite simple.
- First, we melt the butter in a pan and add the onion, garlic, achiote, cumin, and salt. We’ll cook the mixture until the onion is golden.
- We mix the eggs well and add salt and pepper. We set aside.
- We incorporate the herbal twigs into the pan.
- Add the breadcrumbs and eggs to the pan so the mixture is fluffier.
- We will continue to cook all this mixture for another ten minutes and, after this time, remove the herb twigs from the mixture.
- Then we add the minced meat, the longaniza, and the bacon.
- Afterward, we incorporate the nuts, the apple, the nuts, the olives, the cinnamon, the nutmeg, and the white wine.
- To finish this filling, we prepare the chicken broth with water and the cubes in a separate saucepan and pour it over the previous mixture.
- We let it reduce a little and put the whole set in an oven mold.
- Finally, we bake the entire filling for about 30 minutes at a temperature of 180 ºC.
2. Filling With Rice and Fruit
As a second option to prepare the filling for the turkey, we show you how to make it using a mixture of rice and fruit. This will be fresher and lighter than the previous one, with softer flavors.
Ingredients
- 1 cup bacon in pieces (200g)
- 3 tablespoons of butter (60 g)
- 1 large chopped onion
- 3 garlic cloves chopped
- 4 chopped celery stalks
- 1 cup dried cranberries (150g)
- 2 cups of brown rice (300g)
- 1 1-2 cups white wine (360 ml)
- 2 peeled apples, no seeds, and cubes
- 3 cups chicken broth (750ml)
- 2 twigs of rosemary
- 2 twigs of thyme
Before you go, read: Bad Chicken: How to Identify and Prevent Risks
Preparation of the filling
- First of all, we’ll fry the bacon until it browns and, once it’s ready, we’ll remove it from the pan and book it.
- In that same pan, we’ll add the butter and with it, we’ll skip the onion, garlic, and celery.
- We will continue to remove the mixture until the liquid is reduced.
- Meanwhile, we will taste the rice to make sure it is cooked, as we add salt.
- Once the rice is ready, add the bacon, the blueberries, and another cup of chicken broth. We will remove the mixture and, once integrated, pour the rest of the rice and the last cup of broth.
- After this, we’ll add a cup of rice and wine. We’ll cook the rice until all the liquid has evaporated, after which we will add a cup of chicken broth and let it evaporate again.
- To finish this option for the turkey filling, we add the apple cocks to the mixture and stir the set again.
- In this last step, we can also add the herbs and let the set be cooked covered, at least heat, for about five minutes.
- Once this time passed, we put out the fire and removed the herbs.
As you can see, preparing the filling for the turkey is a simpler task than you might think and gives you the possibility to create the combination of flavors that best suits your needs, tastes, and desires. Let your imagination fly.