Servings: —
Source: Fine Cooking #60, pp. 81
Don’t throw away the neck and giblets that come with your turkey. They can be turned into a tasty broth that makes a classic pan gravy. There’s no need to simmer the broth for hours, either. Sweating the meat and onion in a little oil before adding water jump-starts flavor extraction, so your broth is ready in just about an hour. You can make the broth up to three days ahead. Yields about 3-1/2 cups.
Ingredients
Turkey neck, gizzard, tail, and heart
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 large onion, cut into 2-inch chunks
Kosher salt
1 small carrot, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 rib celery, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 bay leaf
2 large sprigs each fresh thyme and flat-leaf parsley
8 to 10 black peppercorns
Directions
Chop the turkey neck into three to four pieces with a cleaver. Chop the gizzard in half. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the turkey neck, gizzard, tail, and heart (don’t use the liver) along with the onion and 1/2 tsp. salt. Stir to coat with oil, cover, and cook gently for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally; the meat will release lots of juice.
Add 4 cups cold water and the carrot, celery, bay leaf, thyme, parsley, and peppercorns. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, cover, and reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Simmer until the broth is flavorful, 30 to 40 minutes. Strain the broth and use immediately or let cool. Pick the meat from the neck and tail to add to the gravy along with the chopped gizzard and heart, if you like.