Crispy turkey baked in bacon butter

• turkey, ready for roasting↗5kg-6kg kg

  (neck and giblets removed and saved for Sticky Port sauce (see “Fits”, far right))

• sprigs of thyme↗2
• onion↗1

  cut in half

• lemon↗1

  cut in half

• bay leaves↗2
• head of garlic↗1

  cut in half

• coarse sea salt↗85g g
• fresh thyme leaves↗2 tbsp tbsp
• ground black pepper↗1 tsp tsp
• smoked bacon strips6

  or pancetta, diced

• butter↗140g g

  soft

• maple syrup↗1 tbsp tbsp

Step-by-step instructions

1. 1

   If you have time a day before cooking, salt the turkey. Prepare a salty mixture by grinding the salt together with thyme leaves and pepper in a spice grinder or using a mortar and pestle. Place the turkey in a roasting pan and season it all over, inside and out, using about two‑thirds of the salt. Leave the turkey in the pan, breast side up, cover with film and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. If you don’t have time or space in the fridge, simply prepare the salt and generously season the turkey just before roasting.

2. 2

   To make the bacon butter, gently fry the bacon in a dry pan for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the fat renders and the bacon becomes crisp. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Transfer the bacon and fat to a food processor together with the butter and maple syrup. Blend until smooth, scraping the sides occasionally. Wrap the butter in film, shape into a log and place in the fridge. It can be prepared a few days ahead or frozen for up to 1 month.

3. 3

   Remove the turkey from the fridge one to two hours before cooking. Take the bacon butter out of the fridge so it softens. Preheat the oven to 180 °C/160 °C convection/gas 4. Calculate cooking time: 40 minutes per kilogram for the first 4 kg of turkey, plus 45 minutes for each additional kilogram.

4. 4

   Carefully slide your fingers under the turkey skin, starting at the neck, until you can push your hand along the breast. Ensure you don’t tear the skin. Using your hands, spread the bacon butter under the skin, covering the entire breast area and also filling the gap between the thigh and the main body. Insert a sprig of thyme under the skin of each breast, then smooth the skin with buttery hands. Place the onion, lemon, bay leaves and garlic into the cavity.

5. 5

   Cover the pan loosely with foil and roast for the calculated time – 30 minutes before the end of cooking increase the oven temperature to 200 °C/180 °C convection/gas 6, remove the foil, baste the turkey and return to the oven. When the turkey reaches a beautiful golden colour and is cooked inside, remove it from the oven and let it rest on a warm plate, covered with foil, for up to 1 hour.

6. 6

   Pour the fat from the roasting pan, leaving only the juices. If your pan is fire‑proof, pour the Sticky Port sauce (see “Fits”, right) into it to heat together with the juices; otherwise transfer both to a saucepan and reheat. Serve the remaining salty mixture as a condiment with the rest of the dish.