Yahoo Lifestyle The Secret Ingredient for the Crispiest Turkey Skin Ever
Anyone who loves turkey will tell you that having a crispy skin is ideal. It adds texture and flavor that make turkey all the better! The brown, crackly skin offers a delicious contrast to the juicy meat, making each bite satisfying, but it also locks in moisture during roasting, helping your turkey stay tender, ensuring it's worthy of your Thanksgiving feast.
There are several ways to achieve ultra-crispy turkey skin, like making sure that the turkey skin is dry before seasoning and cooking. Moisture on the skin creates steam, which prevents crisping. To help dry out the skin and improve the flavor of your turkey, you can also do a dry brine, where you rub the turkey with salt (and sometimes other herbs and spices) and refrigerate uncovered for 24 hours.
While all of these are great tips, there are other ways to create crisp, flavorful turkey skin and Food Network (@foodnetworkkitchen) just shared one we hadn't heard of before. It sounds absolutely delicious, and it's easy, too!
The Food Network said that this Parmesan Roast Turkey "gets sooo crispy from a generous sprinkle of cheese that gets crackly in the oven," and we have to admit that we've never thought of adding cheese to a turkey, but it sounds amazing!
Related: The Best-Ever Thanksgiving Turkey Starts With a Surprising Pantry Ingredient
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Why You Should Add Parmesan Cheese to Your Roast Turkey
The crispy skin is definitely the draw here. In the video, the host scrapes along the outside of the bird with a knife, ASMR-style, to prove how shatteringly crisp the skin is. There's Parm in a butter mixture that gets rubbed under the skin to add flavor to the meat and then an entire cup of grated Parm gets added to the skin before the turkey heads into the oven. The cheese gets toasty and brown as the bird roasts, adding a cheesy crust and crisping up the skin. We're hoping it tastes a little bit like the browned spots on the top of a pizza, which is the best part.
Related: We Tried 13 Store-Bought Pie Crusts and the Winner Is Ina Garten-Approved
How to Make Parmesan Roast Turkey
To make this turkey, you'll make a parmesan butter that goes under the skin of the turkey. You will use a whole stick of butter, lemon zest, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper and parmesan. Mash them all together in a bowl.
For this recipe, they used a turkey that was "spatchcocked" so that it laid flat on the roasting pan. To achieve spatchcocking, they removed the bird's backbone and splayed it open. They said this allows your turkey to cook more evenly and faster. Pat the turkey dry with some paper towels and then use your hands to rub the butter under the skin, on top of the meat.
Rub the outside of the turkey with olive oil and season with pepper, salt and a cup of grated parmesan. Bake at 375 degrees for around two hours and let it rest for 30 minutes before carving. This method not only gives the turkey a crispy skin but also adds a nutty flavor to the turkey.
Related: We Tried 10 Different Cranberry Sauces and the Winner Wasn't the One We Were Expecting
What People Are Saying About Parmesan Roast Turkey
Of course, not everyone was on board with this recipe and comments on the Instagram post were mixed.
"Wow! That's impressive!" one person commented.
"That's not enough seasoning," another person said.
"This turkey recipe sounds delicious. It looks really good," another person chimed in, but yet another person wasn't so sure.
"I do like a crispy skin, but cheese is a no go." they said.
"Uhm. No. Some things are sacred and for a Thanksgiving turkey… no cheese," one person added.
"Since I learned of it, I never cook a turkey without spatchcocking it. It makes a world of difference and takes at least 1/2 the time!" another commenter added and whether or not you like the recipe, that method is genius!
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