Thanksgiving Turkey with Balsamic Onion Gravy

Turkey time is here! I have this astoundingly awesome Thanksgiving turkey recipe that I really want to share with you guys. It originally came from epicurious.com years ago, and was one of the easier recipes in my collection to be adapted to be GFCF. The thing that makes this recipe great is you make the gravy from scratch right alongside the turkey. On the one hand, it’s a teeny-tiny bit of extra work, but on the other hand, you’re not going to find a premade gravy or mix of any kind that’s gluten-free, so you’re kind of stuck doing that anyway. And trust me, if you’ve never had truly homemade gravy, prepare to be blown away by the difference in taste.

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But first, the turkey. You’re going to want one that’s about 16-18 pounds, and comes with the giblets included. Pull that little package of giblets out of the cavity of the turkey, and set it aside. Then rinse the whole turkey off under the faucet, and pat it dry with paper towels. You will look ridiculous trying to strongarm this huge bird in and out of the sink, so don’t even try not to. Set it in a pan that’s at least an inch deep, and tuck the wings down underneath the legs. Most turkeys will come with this little piece of metal to hold the legs together, but if not, just tie yours together with a bit of string so it’s not flopping bird parts all over the place.

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If you’re not the kind of person who ever buys fresh herbs, now is really the time to give in. You’ll need a handful of both rosemary and sage. Stick one or two sprigs of each into the turkey cavity, and finely chop up the rest. Throw a couple pinches of salt and pepper into the cavity too, for good measure.

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In a small pot, melt 4 Tablespoons of Fleischmann’s Unsalted margarine – not the “Original” (salted) flavor, which has casein. [As always, the brands I use were GFCF at the time of posting, but manufacturers can change formulas without notice. Always check your labels!] Other non-dairy butter substitutes you could use are palm shortening, coconut oil, or plain old lard. (Hey, if it was good enough for your great-grandma…) Also mix in 3 Tablespoons each of chopped rosemary and sage, 1 Tablespoon of black pepper, and 4 teaspoons of salt.

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Now here’s the fun part. Take another two Tablespoons of your non-butter, and cut it up into about eight small pieces. Make tiny cuts all over the skin of your turkey, and insert these little knobs underneath.

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Just shove them right in there between the skin and the meat, so they look like a mouse under a rug. Once it goes in the oven they’ll melt and spread out, and you will end up with the most amazingly moist turkey you ever sank your teeth into.

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By now your herb concoction on the stove should be nice and melty, so it’s time to brush it all over the surface of the turkey. Go ahead and use it all, even if it’s dripping down the sides already, because you’ll be basting up from the bottom of the pan later in the cooking process.

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Place your turkey in a 325 degree oven, and let it roast untouched for 1 hour. After that, reach in and baste it every 20-30 minutes or so while it cooks for another 2 hours and 45 minutes. Adjust by 15 minutes in either direction if you have a slightly smaller or slightly larger turkey; in any case it’s done when a meat thermometer jabbed into the thigh reads 180 degrees.

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But don’t walk away from the kitchen just yet! You probably have some other side dishes you want to start working on, yes? You can do that for now, but later, when the turkey has about an hour and a half left to cook, it’s time to get started on the gravy.

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In a large pot, dump in the contents of your giblets bag, along with 5 1/2 cups of gluten-free chicken broth, one onion cut into quarters, and one bay leaf. Bring this to a boil and let it simmer for about an hour. It should hopefully be reduced to about 3 cups of liquid in this time. Strain all the big pieces out and throw them away.

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In a large pan, melt another 6 Tablespoons of dairy-free margarine. Dice up two more onions as finely as you can manage, and start sauteeing them over low heat. About ten minutes in, add 1 Tablespoon each of rosemary and sage, and continue sauteeing until the onions are golden brown and caramelized.

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Sprinkle in 1/3 cup of the gluten-free flour of your choice (I’ll probably be using Bob’s Red Mill All-Purpose, but I may end up trying sorghum flour this time since it’s a little finer-grained. The onion and herbs should overpower any slight flavor your flour might impart, so it shouldn’t really matter what you use.)

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Give the flour about a minute to cook while you stir continuously, and then gradually whisk the turkey stock into the pan with the onions. Remember the turkey stock? Hopefully it’s still sitting back there on your stove, and hasn’t been stolen for a delectable soup by some roving chef. Simmer the gravy pan for a few minutes to thicken it. Add in another teaspoon of rosemary and sage if you’re so inclined.

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Now then! Your kitchen should be smelling amazing at this point, and the turkey should be about ready to come out of the oven. Carefully transfer that behemoth to your serving plate, and make a tent out of foil to keep it warm until it’s time to eat.

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Then carefully, carefully pour the juices from the roasting pan into a large container. A measuring cup would actually be more ideal, but for some reason I used a bowl here. After it’s been sitting for a few minutes, the fat will all rise to the top and you can skim it right off with a spoon and throw it away. Or if you were smart and used a measuring cup, you can just pour the fat off instead. They even make special measuring cups that let you easily pour the good stuff out from under the fat instead.

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While your pan juices are resting and separating, pour 1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar into a small saucepan, and simmer until it’s reduced to 1/4 cup, which should only take 3-4 minutes. And of course, make sure you’re using real 100% balsamic vinegar, and not some weird “balsamic-flavored” vinegar that might contain gluten. The word malt should not be anywhere on the bottle.

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Here comes the tricky part. We’re going to add small amounts of both the turkey juices and the balsamic vinegar to adjust the consistency and flavor, respectively. Start by adding one Tablespoon of the balsamic vinegar, then about 1/4 cup of pan juices.

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It’s very hard to give exact measurements here, because it’s impossible to know if your turkey stock reduced to exactly three cups, or how thick your gravy has gotten while we were cooking this turkey. If you overdo it on the turkey juices, you can always let it simmer a little longer and thicken again. But once the balsamic’s in, it’s in, so you can go even slower than a Tablespoon at a time if you’re not sure it will agree with your palate. I generally stop at 2, personally. But be brave and don’t skip the balsamic vinegar altogether, because it really adds an incredible depth to this amazing gravy. Just keep tasting, and stop when it’s perfect!

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Pour the gravy into some nice boat-like serving container, carve your turkey, and make sure Uncle Wally doesn’t take all the mashed potatoes before everyone else has had a chance. And then be prepared for a lot of lavish thanks, as your family admires your astoundingly awesome Thanksgiving turkey.

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Happy Eating!

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GFCF Thanksgiving Turkey with Balsamic Onion Gravy

For the turkey:
1 16-18 lb. turkey (with giblets)
6 Tbs Fleischmann’s Unsalted Margarine, divided (not Original flavor)
3 Tbs fresh rosemary, plus a whole sprig
3 Tbs fresh sage, plus a whole sprig
1 Tbs black pepper
4 tsp salt

For the gravy:
5 1/2 cups GF chicken broth
giblets from turkey
1 onion, quartered
1 bay leaf
6 Tbs Fleischmann’s Unsalted Margarine
2 onions, diced finely
1 Tbs rosemary
1 Tbs sage
1/3 cup Bob’s All-Purpose GF flour
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar