Turducken
20-25 lb whole turkey
4-5 lb whole duckling
3-4 lb whole chicken (or use a larger chicken and place the duckling inside it)
corn bread dressing
sausage stuffing
large roasting pan and rack
cotton string and cheese cloth
Place the cleaned turkey, breast side down, on a flat surface. Cut through the
skin along the length of the spine. Using the tip of a knife and starting from
neck end, gently separate meat from rib cage on one side. Toward neck end, cut
through meat to expose shoulder blade; cut meat away from and around the bone,
severing bone at the joint to remove shoulder blade. Disjoint wing between
second and third joints. Leave the wing bones and keep the wing attached to the
meat.
Continue separating meat from frame, heading toward the thighbone and being
careful to keep the "oyster" (pocket of meat on back) attached to skin, rather
than leaving with bone. Cut through ball-and-socket joint to release thighbone
from carcass (bird will be open on one side, exposing bones left to deal with).
Keep the leg attached to the meat.
Repeat boning procedure on the other side of the bird. Carefully remove carcass
and reserve for making stock. You should end up with a flat boneless (except for
wings and legs) turkey with the skin intact in one large piece. Cover the boned
turkey and set aside (or chill).
Repeat the process on the duckling and chicken, but cut off the first two joints
of wings, and debone both stumps of wings and leg drumsticks (cut through flesh
at thinnest point and trim around these bones with a knife until they can be
removed). Trim excess skin and fat from necks of birds. If it is your first time
deboning a fowl, it is advisable to practice first on the chicken rather than
the turkey. Both the chicken and duck will be stuffed inside the turkey and need
not be kept perfectly intact. Make stock from the chicken carcass.
Prepare seasoning mix and set aside:
3 tablespoons salt
1-2 tbsp. paprika
1-2 tbsp. garlic powder
1-2 tbsp. pepper
1-2 tsp. dried thyme
Prepare sausage stuffing: Melt butter in large skillet over high heat. Add 3
cups onions and 1-1/2 cups celery. Saute until onions are dark brown but not
burned, about 10 to 12 minutes. Add 2 lbs sausage (southern-style breakfast,
Andouille, Kielbasa, or spicy Italian sausage) to the skillet and cook about 5
minutes or until the meat is browned, stirring frequently. Add paprika (3 tbsp.)
and minced garlic (3 tbsp.) and cook about 3 minutes over medium heat, stirring
occasionally. Stir in 3 cups of chicken stock and bring to simmer. Continue
cooking until water evaporates and oil rises to top, about 10 minutes. Stir in 2
cups toasted bread crumbs and mix well. Add more bread crumbs if mixture is too
moist.
Prepare a similar amount of another stuffing such as corn bread stuffing.
At least 13 to 14 hours before dinner, assemble the Turducken.
Spread the turkey, skin down, on flat surface, exposing as much meat as
possible. Rub 3 tablespoons of seasoning mix evenly on meat. Spread sausage
stuffing over the turkey in an even layer approximately 3/4 inch thick.
Place duck, skin down, on top of stuffing. Season exposed duck meat with about 1
tbsp. of seasoning mix. Spread corn bread stuffing in an even layer (about 1/2
inch thick) over the duck.
Arrange the chicken, skin down, evenly on top of corn bread stuffing. Season
chicken meat with seasoning mix. Spread remainder of sausage and/or corn bread
stuffing on top of chicken.
With another person's help, carefully lift the sides of the layered birds,
folding the sides of the turkey together. Have a helper hold the bird while
sewing the opening down the back of the turkey together using cotton thread. The
bird may not close perfectly, and a strip of cheese cloth can be used to help
close the "crack" in the back of the turkey so stuffing will not leak out when
the bird is turned over.
Since the turducken has no skeleton, it must be trussed up or it may fall apart
in cooking. Tie cotton string around the bird, widthwise, every inch or so along
the bird's length. Turn the bird over and place in a roasting rack inside a
large roasting pan so it is oriented breast side up and looks like a "normal"
turkey. Tie the legs together just above the tip bones.
Heat oven to exactly 190 degrees F. Temperature control is critical since the
turducken is so massive that it has to be cooked very slowly at a low
temperature. Using an oven thermometer is highly recommended.
Place the bird in the center of the oven and bake until a meat thermometer
inserted through to center reads 165 degrees, about 12 to 13 hours. There will
be no need to baste, but accumulated drippings will have to be removed from the
pan every few hours so that the lower portion does not deep fry in the hot oil.
Remove the turducken from the oven and let cool in the pan for an hour before
serving. Make gravy according to your favorite recipe.
To serve cut bird in half lengthwise. Carve crosswise so each slice reveals all
3 meats and dressings. Will make 15 to 25 servings.