Holiday turkey with low-carb stuffing and gravy
Be prepared to wow family and friends with this turkey! It’s loaded with fresh citrus flavor, and the earthy tones of sage. And the orange butter makes the meat unbelievably moist and juicy. Best. Thanksgiving. Ever. Our low-carb stuffing adds a double whammy of amazing deliciousness too! Happy Holidays!
USMetric
servingservings
Ingredients
Turkey
- 12 lbs 5 kg turkey
- 10 oz. 275 g celery root, roughly chopped
- 2 2 carrot, roughly choppedcarrots, roughly chopped
- 2 2 yellow onion, roughly choppedyellow onions, roughly chopped
- giblets from the turkey
- 2 tbsp 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 1 orange, juicedoranges, juiced
- 1 cup 225 ml water
- 2 tsp 2 tsp kosher or ground sea salt
- 1 tsp 1 tsp ground black pepper
Orange and sage butter
- 10 oz. 275 g butter, at room temperature
- 2 2 shallot, finely choppedshallots, finely chopped
- fresh sage 2-3 sprigs, finely chopped
- 1 1 orange, the zestoranges, the zest
- 1 tsp 1 tsp kosher or ground sea salt
- ¼ tsp ¼ tsp ground black pepper
Stuffing
- 3 tbsp 3 tbsp butter
- 2 2 yellow onion, finely choppedyellow onions, finely chopped
- 5 oz. 150 g bacon, diced
- ½ lb 225 g celery root, diced
- 1 1 apple, gratedapples, grated
- 2 oz. 50 g pecans, chopped
- 2 2 pieces of low-carb bread
- 1 cup 225 ml heavy whipping cream
- 2 lbs 900 g ground pork
- fresh sage 2-3 sprigs, finely chopped
- ½ tsp ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp 1 tsp kosher or ground sea salt
- ½ tsp ½ tsp ground black pepper
Gravy
- 2 cups 475 ml juices from roasting the turkey
- 2 cups 475 ml heavy whipping cream
- 4 oz. 110 g cream cheese
www.dietdoctor.com
Making low carb simple
Instructions
Stuffing instructions
- Crumble or tear the bread into pieces in a large bowl, and pour the cream on top. Let the bread absorb the cream for a few minutes.
- Sauté pork with bacon until cooked through.
- Add onion, and celery root to the pan with 2 tablespoons butter. Cook until vegetables are softened, about 5-7 minutes. Stir in the grated apple, sage, nutmeg, salt, pepper, and pecans.
- Stir bread into the mixture.
- Set aside and let cool.
- Butter a baking dish with remaining butter. Reserve a third of the stuffing mixture to stuff the turkey. Place the rest in the prepared baking dish, and refrigerate until 30 minutes before the turkey is done.
- Bake until browned and crunchy, about 25-30 minutes.
Butter and turkey instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine all of the orange butter ingredients.
- Using your fingers, gently loosen the breast skin and push in the orange butter. A good place to start is around the neck and thighs.
- Spread butter under the turkey breast and thighs.
- Reserve a third of the seasoned butter.
- Pat the turkey dry with paper towels. Remove the giblets, and reserve.
- Salt and pepper the turkey. Tie together the thighs with cotton cooking string. Place the turkey in a big roasting pan, breast up. Tuck the wings under the turkey so that they won’t dry out during roasting. Stuff a third of the stuffing mix into the turkey.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Place root vegetables, onion and giblets around the turkey. Salt and pepper and add olive oil on top of the vegetables. Sprinkle the sage on top. Add one cup of water.
- Place the rest of the orange butter on top of the turkey. Cover with squeezed orange juice. Roughly chop the orange into wedges, and add to pan.
- Place a piece of aluminum foil on the breast part to protect it from drying out. Place on lower rack in the oven and roast the turkey for 3½-4½ hours. Baste the turkey every hour with pan juices. One hour before the turkey is done, remove the aluminum foil to allow the breast skin to roast.
- Remove from the oven. Transfer the turkey to a large cutting board or serving plate. Tent with aluminum foil for 15–20 minutes, before serving.
Gravy
- Remove the vegetables and giblets from the baking pan. Pour the cooking juices through a strainer into a saucepan. Bring to a boil and reduce by 30–40 percent. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add heavy cream and cream cheese. Bring to a boil and lower the heat. Let simmer until desired consistency.
Tip!
The best way to thaw a frozen turkey is to let it thaw slowly in the refrigerator. This will take 2–3 days, depending on weight. Remember that the turkey should not be refrigerated when you place it in the oven. It should almost be at room temperature, or there’s a risk that it won’t be thoroughly cooked.
A turkey or chicken should reach an inner temperature of 160°F (72°C) to be thoroughly cooked. It’s a good idea to use an oven-safe thermometer, and insert the probe into the middle of the inner side of the thigh, without hitting the bone.
For easier holiday prep, you can make the orange butter and the stuffing the day before baking the turkey. You can prepare the turkey up to 1 day before, or just a few hours before roasting.
Meals
Breakfasts
Desserts
Snacks
Dairy free
Vegetarian
Bread
Only keto
You can use a whisk or mash up the cream cheese bits with a spatula.