Roast Turkey with Cornbread Chorizo Stuffing

Roast Turkey with Cornbread Chorizo Stuffing is a delicious and simple roast turkey recipe. Adding zesty chorizo to your usual flavor palette adds the perfect pizazz to your best Thanksgiving turkey recipes.

Cooking Time4 hr 30 min

Cooking MethodSlow Cooker

Ingredients

12-pound turkey
1/2 cup sweet cream butter, softened
4 onions, coarsely chopped
5 celery stalks, coarsely chopped
1 pound chorizo, broken up
6 cups dry cornbread, crumbled
3 cups bread cubes, dry
2 cups frozen corn kernels, thawed
2 tablespoons cilantro, fresh, chopped
2 tablespoons parsley, fresh, chopped
salt and pepper, to taste
3 cups chicken stock, as needed
1 cup white wine

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Wash turkey under hot water. Pat exterior and cavities completely dry with paper towels.
Smear turkey with 4 Tbsp butter.
Saute onions and celery in the remaining butter over medium heat until translucent. Remove with slotted spoon to a very large bowl.
Saute the chorizo in the same pan until lightly brown.
Remove to same bowl and add remaining stuffing ingredients. Toss to combine completely. (If mixture seems dry, add chicken stock or apple juice.)
Salt and pepper the turkey's cavity and loosely stuff the cavity and the neck with the bread-chorizo mixture, leaving some room for expansion during cooking. (Extra stuffing can be refrigerated in a covered casserole and baked at 375 degrees for 40 minutes.)
Sew up and truss the turkey. Return to rack in roasting pan and turn turkey on its left side.
Add 1 cup stock and wine gravy to pan.
Place pan in preheated oven for 20 minutes.
Turn turkey onto its right side and continue roasting another 20 minutes.
Lower oven to 325 degrees F. Turn turkey breast-side-down and roast for 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Baste every 15 minutes or so, adding stock as needed.
Turn turkey breast- side-up and continue basting every 15-20 minutes. (For a 12 lb turkey, cooking time will be from 15 to 20 minutes per pound. The internal temperature should reach 180 degrees. The juices in the thigh should run clear when pierced with a fork.)
Remove to a heated platter to rest.
Skim off as much fat as possible from the pan drippings.
Transfer pan drippings, including brown bits, to a saute pan. Reduce to a gravy over high heat.
Carve turkey. Serve gravy and dressing on the side.