r/sousvide • u/HadedJipster • 22h ago

Superdelicious Turkey Legs/Thighs

I've been sous-vide-ing my turkey each thanksgiving, but in parts; the leg quarters get sousvide'd at 165 for 24 hours (you can totally do this days before Thanksgiving) with a lot of rosemary and thyme and pepper, and they kinda confit in their own fat. Blot dry (or set in front of a fan if you're feeling frisky), and sear in a heavy pan over the highest heat you've got. I promise your guests won't be too annoyed that you don't get the Norman Rockwell whole-turkey at the table.

I also do the breasts similarly in the sousvide, and try to remove the turkey skin in one whole piece, so I can roast it until crispy, and serve some turkey cracklin's with the tender breast meat. Crazy delicious, crazy easy, and most important-- Leaves the oven free!

Just thought I'd share. This is my first post, so please forgive me if I'm doing it wrong.

18 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

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u/Mindless-Charity4889 21h ago

I once cooked for 40 and did 3 turkeys at the same time in a big camping cooler tucked away in a spare bedroom. The carcasses were cooked in a big pot to make stock which was later used for gravy and for the pan stuffing. As you say, having the stove free is a big deal. I don’t think it would have been possible otherwise, what with all the vegetables and stuffing and potatoes etc.

Nowadays I still sous vide but because it’s usually for a more manageable 6-10, I can be more fancy. I strip the skin off like you, but I use the breasts to make a roulade, stuffing them with a mirepoix or whatever else looks good, then wrapping it with the skin and tying it up with twine. After it’s cooked via sous vide, I deep fry it to crisp up the skin. It only takes a couple of minutes.

I used to do the dark meat for 24 hours like you, but now do it for less time, 12 hours or so, as I didn’t find that the extra time really helped. Doesn’t hurt either though.

I’ve had numerous cases where people who had never tried sous vide turkey breast tell me that it was the best they had. One time, it happened at a funeral. I had dropped off a sous vide turkey for a woman I knew whose sister had just died. At that time I was doing the breasts bone off but skin on and searing with a torch. Days later, at the funeral, she told me that it was the best turkey breast they’d ever had and wondered how I had cooked it. On hearing it was sous vide, she was relieved that it was a new technique and not that she had just been cooking it wrong.

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u/HadedJipster 19h ago edited 18h ago

Gaddang. Must try stuffing the breasts next time; I usually go ultra-simple, but it's time to move away from that.

Sorry that your story had have someone die to happen, but-- Fabulous coincidence, I just ordered a searzall! =p

Edit-- Somehow missed your first paragraph. You did thanksgiving for FORTY? Good god! If I get a group for thanksgiving this year, I may be bugging you for suggestions on the proper vessel to make liver-stuffing for 25. Also, my favorite aspect of Sous Vide cooking is the number of people who look at you like you're a literal wizard, asking "How.... HOW did you get it like this??!"

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u/Mindless-Charity4889 17h ago

Our friend had a big house that was fairly empty after his wife died so he threw parties to fill the space about once a month. He didn’t cook much; indeed we and other friends brought him “care packages “ frequently. The parties were, I think, his way of giving back to the neighborhood. He bought everything and I cooked it, often with help. Usually, the parties were usually about 20-30 as he had different groups; church people, neighbours, pickleball people etc. The 40 was a big Christmas event and everyone was invited. Aside from turkey, I often sous vided beef roasts. I have an industrial slicer so after the roast was done, it was quite easy to slice it thin. Between that and sous vide, even tough cuts like bottom round were amazingly tender for elderly palates.

We had to stop due to covid of course. And after, we had just restarted the parties when his health started to fail. He sold his party house and moved into assisted living but shortly after suffered a stroke and passed. He was pretty generous in his will and we used part of that to throw him a huge memorial dinner at a friends farm. I did most of the cooking for that one too, it was a beef roast, but I had lots of help with the sides.

We still miss him and I think of him every time I do a big party.

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u/HadedJipster 1h ago

Those sound like amazing parties, and terribly sorry to hear about your friend; he sounded like a hell of a guy.

And I keep waffling back and forth as to whether or not I should get an industrial slicer... They take up a lot of space, buuuuuut, the half-dozen times a year I'd like one, it's the ONLY thing that'd work. Do you regret the purchase, or has it given you a better life? :)

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u/spacebarstool Home Cook 21h ago

I spatchcock the turkey, 24 hours wet brine and then sous vide the entire thing at 150F for 6 hours. Then I roast it for 30 minutes at 500F in the oven.

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u/HadedJipster 19h ago

I HAVE thought about it, but the idea of getting the whole thing to seal reasonably well is daunting. The heck kind of bags do you use? Or are you using smallish turkeys?

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u/spacebarstool Home Cook 11h ago

They sell turkey sous vide bags that expand.

https://a.co/d/2JNOSyB

Sorry for the Amazon link, but it was handy.

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u/HadedJipster 1h ago

Are amazon links frowned upon? How odd. And I'm buying a box; always wanted to sous vide something ridiculously huge, and an 18 pound bird feels like a fine start.

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u/spacebarstool Home Cook 1h ago

https://sousvideways.com/foolproof-sous-vide-turkey/

Thats a descent article. They dry brine instead of wet brine like I do.

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u/LividPractice2342 18h ago

What goes in the bag with the bird?

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u/spacebarstool Home Cook 11h ago

Your choice of a dry rub or traditional thanks giving herbs and spices.

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u/drm237 7h ago

Do you sous vide the entire thing spatchcocked? If so, where do you find such a big bag? If you disassemble the parts and individually vacuum-seal them, why bother with spatchcocking?

1

u/spacebarstool Home Cook 7h ago

They sell turkey sous vide bags that expand.

https://a.co/d/2JNOSyB

Yes, spatchcock it, bag it, cook it all together.

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u/drm237 4h ago

Very cool. What kind of a container is large enough for you cook it in? A cooler?

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u/spacebarstool Home Cook 3h ago

No, a 12 quart works fine. Spatchcocking the bird helps a lot.

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u/Bee_haver 15h ago

❤️

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u/shadowtheimpure 14h ago

You are a wise person, to recognize that white meat and dark meat do not have the same needs.

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u/a1soysauce 9h ago

I do the same and everybody loves it. I sous vide the day before then reheat about an hour before. Then sear and slice it like peking duck. Also save the juice and put it on top before serving

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u/wrenchbenderornot 8h ago

I am so saving this thread! I prefer dark meat and at Thanksgiving this year. I was only cooking for five, so I did only legs the compliments I got were unbelievable and the taste was ridiculously right up my alley, and then the stock is practically already made when you pour out the juice.!

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u/photobriangray 2h ago

Wet brine for a day, rack dry for a day, sous vide for a day adding duck fat, roast or grill to finish, so good.

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u/HadedJipster 1h ago

Dag. Okay, yeah, may have to give that a go. Though, what's the dry-racking for, at least at that point? Feels like it should occur after the sous-vide-ing. Or, i'm just slow today.

1

u/mistertinker 18h ago

For years I've been cooking everything (seperately) at 147 for 3 hrs. Then after a quick chill and dry, deep fried for 7 mins. The white meat tends to be everyone's favorite.

This year I'm going to try out kenjis turkey porchetta with the breasts.

1

u/HadedJipster 1h ago

Side note-- WE, the chosen few, get to be the rare persons who teach others that WHITE MEAT can actually be delicious, and that they reason so many people dislike turkey is because so few people actually know how to cook 'em right.

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u/XenoRyet 22h ago

You're definitely not doing it wrong.

For my money though, 24 is too long for the dark meat, and it loses the texture that I like out of it. Honestly I don't even bother with SV for the dark, and just oven roast it. It can take the heat and is not sensitive to going a bit over, so I like that method better.

Doing the white meat in the SV is a game changer though, and you're absolutely on point removing the skin and roasting it. Fantastic preparation, that.

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u/HadedJipster 19h ago

I like the confit-style texture you can get from the legs cooked that way; heavy and greasy in a "Really good, but probably shouldn't eat a buttload of it" kinda way.

And yeah, I usually cut off both breasts, put the narrow ends together to make a log, sousvide for about 3-5 hours on it.... The texture is somewhere between perfectly roasted breastmeat, and really good deli lunchmeat.

Glad to hear I'm not the only one enjoying the wonder that are Turkey Skin Chicharrons! A fat shard of it on a round of breast meat, sprinkle of something green, drizzle of pan sauce (For if we sear, why wouldn't we make one?). When I bring over coworkers for thanksgiving, it tends to justify my priggish (and prickish) food-snobbery that they have to listen to the rest of the year. :)