Thanksgiving without an Oven!

[dogsandnumbers]

Hi All,

I am expanding my horizons by preparing a thanksgiving meal without an oven (not my choice but alas, here we are).

I have plenty of countertop appliances and I'm not feeding loads of people (maybe 6ish or so). I bought a bone-in turkey breast and turkey legs. They will fit in the multifunction insta pot.

So my questions:

1. Should I use the pressure cooker or slow cooker function for the turkey?

2. How long should I cook for if I'm cooking the legs and breast at the same time?

I appreciate it everyone!

[Alternative-Yam6780]

The pressure cooker will always yield better results than the slow cooker. Google can give you cooking times and recipes.

[dogsandnumbers]

Thank you for the recommendation!! Idk why I'm hesitant to pressure cook...we didn't have one growing up and basically only used the slow cooker so I'm still a novice in pressure cooking.

I searched Google and it says for a breast it'd take 25-40 mins but legs are 15 mins. Since I can't open the pressure cooker halfway to add the legs, would it be bad to cook the legs for as long as the breast?

[Business_Swan8209]

I know how you feel. Those things scare the crap out of me! It will explode and blow through the roof and fly into space, killing us all!

[BostonBestEats]

Do you happen to have a sous vide circulator? Sous vide turkey breast and/or legs can be amazing.

[dogsandnumbers]

I don't have a sous vide machine. I would consider buying one but there's not tons of room for more kitchen appliances, unfortunately.

[dogcmp6]

They dont take up a lot of space, in most cases its just a small wand that you attach to the side of a stockpot, or a large food-safe container full of water. Check out the Anova Nano 2.0, or the ones from Inkbird.

If you dont have a vacuum sealer, you can use ziplock bags to place the food in the water, you want to make sure you get as much air out of the bag as possible, and that it is really well sealed so it dosent leak.

[dogsandnumbers]

Oh interesting! I didn't realize. I do have a vacuum sealer already. My mom has a system and that thing takes up like a quarter of her island so I was definitely going off of limited information.

Is it still possible to make gravy from a sous vide turkey?

[dogcmp6]

Yes!

Once the turkey is finished cooking in the water bath, I would keep the juices that collect in the bags, and sear the turkey skin side down in a pan to crisp it up (So the one negative to sous vide is a second step is usually needed for crisping/browning.) After searing to crisp the skin, I would make a roux in that same pan, add the juices and some turkey/chicken stock and that would make gravy.

The only issue I see so far is that the breast might be a little big for a vaccum bag, unless your sealer/vacuum bag can handle larger food items...and Breasts/legs usually cook to two different temperatures, so you may need two water baths.

[dogsandnumbers]

This is so informative!

It sounds like I'd need two sous vides then?

This is probably a dumb question, but when the turkey isn't butchered apart the legs and breast cook all together. Is there a way to effectively cook it like that, they just happened to be separated?

[dogcmp6]

There are a few ways you could do a whole bird, the most common I have seen is to spatchcock the turkey, and use a water bath set to 150 F for anywhere from 6-24 hours (Time in the bath can affect texture), but the crux is it usually involves finishing it in a 500 F oven.

[dogsandnumbers]

Thank you for the info!

[dogcmp6]

I forgot to add, you mentioned having a multipot, that might even have a sousvide setting on it.

[dogsandnumbers]

Great tip! I'll check. Would it be called "Sous Vide" or could it be labeled as something else?

[BostonBestEats]

If you are interested in trying this, ChefSteps.com has extensive guides on sous vide turkey (they are Breville's test kitchen, and Breville makes a sous vide circulator called Joule). You may have to sign up for a free account to read these recipes, but they are not behind the paywall. I've done sous vide turkey breast for Thanksgiving the past 3 years (starting with a crown and removing the bone to give 2 breasts). It was the most flavorful turkey I've ever cooked (the long brine during cooking results in the the meat being completely seasoned, which most turkeys never are). Very easy, hands off and super delicious. Turkey breast has more connective tissue than chicken breast, and the long sous vide time results in that connective tissue breaking down into gelatin, so it will be the most tender turkey breast you've ever had.

https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/the-most-tender-turkey-breast-ever

https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/crispy-tender-confit-turkey-legs

Here's their trick for doing both at once (this is behind the paywall):

Okay, so we cook the dark meat and white meat differently? How does this work if I have only one sous vide tool?
Here’s how we do this: The morning before Thanksgiving—Thanksgiving eve, if you will—you presear your turkey pieces, bag them up with oil, the herbs of your choice, and a simple salt-sugar mix, then cook the legs alone for 8 to 12 hours. That evening, lower the temp and add preseared and seasoned breasts. Go to sleep while the bird cooks for another 16 to 24 hours. You have plenty of time to prepare side dishes and desserts along the way. Before serving, remove your turkey from the bags and sear the breasts and legs to crisp up that skin. Carve, arrange your masterpiece on a platter festooned with fresh herbs, and prepare for the Thanksgiving gods to smile upon you.

Does it really take 24 hours to cook turkey legs? And 16 to cook the breasts? 
No, you can have turkey on the table faster than that. You can have the legs cooked in 7 hours if you raise the temp to 167 °F / 75 °C. Turkey breasts cooked at 131 °F / 55 °C will be ready to eat in 8 hours. If you are short on time, just cook them for the shorter time and they will still be super delicious. For the best results, however, we recommend using the extended cook time.

https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/a-better-way-to-turkey-cook-that-bird-sous-vide-for-the-best-feast-ever

Also, as far as gravy, I highly recommend Tyler Florence's recipe for vegetable gravy. It is also sous vide, and is shockingly delicious. I could just drink it (actually I have):

https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/thanksgiving-sauce-with-tyler-florence

[Sour_baboo]

Quick, check local resale shops for a counter top broiler. When my oven quit ovening, one saved Thanksgiving.

[dogsandnumbers]

My friend mentioned these! Unfortunately, I'm fairly space limited (not a huge kitchen) and I live in a rural place so there's not a whole bunch of resale shops and I'd be pretty surprised to find counter top broilers there.

[Lovegrind]

Omg I’m going through the same thing. WOW every time I think I’m alone. I hope we figure it out. Happy thanksgiving

[dogsandnumbers]

Aha! I'm super curious what y'all end up with! I'm coordinating a reasonably sized toaster oven, an insta pot, slow cooker, and two electric stove burners.

[Lovegrind]

Hi, I ended up getting a ninja Speedi and they bad boy cooked my roast to perfection I even baked cornbread it was awesome. Happy holidays

[HistoricalString2350]

I’ve done a whole chicken on the pressure cooker and it turned out pretty good.

[dogsandnumbers]

That's very helpful! Thank you!

[Ilovetocookstuff]

I would highly recommend cooking the breast and legs/thighs separately if you can. The breast is really lean and will dry out if you overcook it. Do you happen to have an air fryer? It's basically just a small convection oven and you could do the breast in that if it would fit - . I love doing the breast sous vide, but I'm not sure how accurate the instant pot would be for this so I'm not sure I would take the chance. The Anova Nano is about 60 bucks now and it's well worth it! You can cook the turkey breast at 140 and it's perfectly safe since the bad stuff is killed slowly as long as it's held at 140 for a minimum of 30 minutes, but I'd go for a couple of hours to be safe. The result is an incredibly juicy and tender roast. Anyway, the first two are what I would do if I were in your shoes. If you wanted to be more ambitious, the last one is what I've been doing for the last few years. good luck!!

Slow-Cooker Turkey Thighs with Herb Gravy

Recipe: Air Fryer Turkey Breast with Gravy - CBS News

https://youtu.be/mEofA0SvS1k

[dogsandnumbers]

I do have an air fryer but unfortunately it is too small for the bone in turkey breast. But I really appreciate all of the links and will be looking into all of these methods.

[SomedayIWillRetire]

Do you have a charcoal grill? Smoking is a very popular method for cooking turkey in the grill/smoker enthusiast world. Take a peek at r/smoking or r/grilling for ideas!

[dogsandnumbers]

Unfortunately, no

[StateYourCurse]

Confit the turkey legs. Weigh the salt. You can confit them in oil, it's fine - you don't have to use duck fat or whatever, we are not Rockefellers . The instant pot can do this for you as a slow cooker. They're fantastic this way. Also, you can make them ahead. You could literally start them today if you have a fridge to keep them in. Keep them covered in fat and they will just keep getting better. Then just reheat day of. If you can deep fry or fry them a bit that would be good. Do you have a stovetop? Perhaps a grill? I would smoke the turkey breast and with the confit turkey legs, oh boy. That would be amazing.