Dry Turkey - Salvage Your Overcooked Bird

Have you ever eaten dry turkey or chicken? Don't even answer that. I know already. The problem with roasting whole turkeys and chickens is that the various parts aren't ready to take out of the oven at the same time. By the time the dark meat of the bird is beautifully cooked, the breast is overcooked and dried out.

There are a number of ways to avoid this unfortunate culinary result. However, this article assumes that you have already overcooked your bird. Of course, you can't uncook it. What are your options? You can serve the bird, smile sweetly and let everyone choke it down. I have done this on a number of occasions, but I don't recommend it. You can make extra gravy. This is certainly helpful. However, there is another option that will improve your meal much more.

Carve the overdone turkey or chicken into slices as you would for serving. Place them in a casserole dish. In a sauce pan, combine the pan drippings with one to two cans of chicken broth. Bring the mixture to a boil and pour over the sliced poultry in the casserole. Cover the casserole with foil and heat in the oven for about five minutes. This will moisten the meat significantly. At this point, you can place the slices on a serving platter and pretend you roasted it perfectly in the first place.

You can try this technique on a beef roast as well. Use beef broth instead of chicken broth. The result is not as dramatic with beef as it is with turkey or chicken, but it can improve the meat.

For pork, I use chicken broth, but that is a matter of taste. Try different broths; even vegetable broth.

Barbara O'Brien is an author, cook and mother of two young chefs. She enjoys helping other people make the most of their time in the kitchen. For more information and great recipes, visit Incredibly Good Recipes and Secrets of Soup

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