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STOCK UP ON ALL OF YOUR AYOH RIGHT HERE](https://eatayoh.com/) [![the-club-logo\]](https://mollybaz.com/wp-content/uploads/the-club-logo.png)](https://mollybaz.com/club/) [](https://mollybaz.com/club/recipes) × - [The Club](https://mollybaz.com/) - [All Recipes](https://mollybaz.com/club/all-recipes/) - [My Faves](https://mollybaz.com/club/faves/) - [Win Stuff](https://mollybaz.com/club/win-stuff/) - [Discounts](https://mollybaz.com/club/discounts/) - [Meet Mollz](https://mollybaz.com/club/meet-mollz/) - [More is More](https://mollybaz.com/more/) - [Cook This Book](https://mollybaz.com/cook-this-book/) - [Drink This Wine](https://drinkthiswine.com/) - [Eat Ayoh\!](https://eatayoh.com/) - [My Account](https://mollybaz.memberful.com/account/subscriptions) - [Club Questions](https://mollybaz.com/club-questions/) # Spicy Maple-Braised Turkey #### SERVES: 12 There are two ways to go about making this turkey (which, I should add, my husband claims is the best turkey he has ever had in his life). Option A: season the turkey on Tuesday, braise it on Wednesday, cool it overnight, and then warm it through and crisp it up an hour before serving on Thursday. Option B: Season it on either Tuesday or Wednesday, braise it all day on Thursday, serve it on Thursday afternoon. I’m a fan of option A as it frees up oven space on the big day for other very important dishes. Whatever you do, do not skip the advance seasoning step. It takes 5 minutes and is the difference between dry bland meat and moist seasoned meat. I promise. You can either buy the turkey in parts, or buy a whole turkey, and ask the butcher counter at the grocery store to break it into 2 breasts, 2 drumsticks, and 2 thighs. Or do it yourself! It can be butchered exactly like a chicken. Braising in parts is the only way to ensure truly tender moist meat. It’s far superior to a whole roast turkey, and I’ll stand by that ‘til the end. #### Active Time: 40 Mins #### Total Time: 3 1/2 hrs, plus overnight brining [Shop This Recipe](https://mollybaz.jupiter.shop/u/mollybaz?recipe_source=https://mollybaz.com/spicy-maple-braised-turkey/)  ## Produce - One (3-pound) kabocha squash - 1 pound shallots (about 8-15, depending on size) - 2 naval oranges - 2 heads garlic - ½ bunch thyme, plus more leaves for garnishing ## Pantry - Diamond Crystal kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper - ⅓ cup maple syrup - 2 cinnamon sticks - ⅓ cup chile crisp, plus more for serving if desired - 1 bottle dry white wine - ⅓ cup soy sauce - Extra-virgin olive oil ## Dairy - 6 tablespoons unsalted butter ## Protein - One 8 to 14 lb turkey, broken into 2 thighs, 2 drumsticks, and 2 breasts (wings reserved for stock or gravy) ### 1\. Brine the bird: - Place the turkey pieces in a roasting pan large enough to fit them. Take note of the total weight of the turkey pieces (once butchered, excluding backbone, neck, giblets, etc) as you'll need this info to calculate the salt amount for the next step! (You can also brine the turkey in Ziplocks.) Pat the turkey dry with paper towels. - Measure 2 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt per pound of turkey in a bowl and add a lot of freshly ground black pepper. For example, if the total weight of your turkey pieces is 8 pounds, use 16 teaspoons salt. Good to know: there are 3 teaspoons in 1 tablespoon. (Note! If using anything other than Diamond Crystal salt, use half as much.) Sprinkle the s\&p mixture on all parts and under the skin of the turkey (use your pointer finger to slide under the skin to create space), rolling the pieces in any excess in the pan to coat. - Combine ⅓ cup maple syrup and ⅓ cup chile crisp in a bowl and spread over all the pieces until well-coated. Cover and refrigerate overnight or up to 2 days in advance. ### 2\. Do some prep: - Preheat oven to 450 degrees. - Place 6 tablespoons butter on the counter to come to room temperature or soften in the microwave at 3 second intervals. Cut a 3-pound kabocha squash in half lengthwise. Remove the seeds with a large spoon and slice into 1 ½-inch wedges. Peel 1 pound shallots and cut into halves or quarters if large. Remove the zest from 2 naval oranges with a vegetable peeler (reserve the oranges for juicing in a few mins!) Break 2 heads garlic into cloves (no need to peel). Transfer everything to a large Turkey roasting pan. Arrange the turkey pieces in the pan, scooting the veg aside to make space. - Add ½ bunch thyme, 1 bottle white wine, ⅓ cup soy sauce, 2 sticks cinnamon, the juice of the naval oranges, and 1 ½ cups water. Drizzle everything with olive oil, dot the top of the turkey with 6 tablespoon of butter and season the veg with salt and pepper. ### 3\. Braise: - Cover the roasting pan with tin foil or a lid. Transfer to oven and immediately reduce temperature to 325 degrees. Braise, basting the meat with cooking juices after 1 ½ hours — at this point the liquid should be simmering. If it’s not, that’s an indication your oven temp is too low (this happens a lot on thanksgiving due to all the things going in and out!) This is a great moment for an oven thermometer, but don’t sweat if you don’t have one. Bump the oven temp by 25 degrees if you aren’t simmering. Re-cover with foil and continue to braise until the thighs and drumsticks are super tender and the meat falls away from the bone, total cook time start to finish should be between 2 hours 30 minutes to 3 hours 30 minutes, depending on how much your oven is opening and closing on Thanksgiving\! - Remove from oven. (Braising the bird can be done several hours in advance of eating, left at room temperature if you don’t want to cook it start to finish and need some space for other things mid day. Alternatively, you can let cool completely and refrigerate, covered, up to 1-2 days in advance; let come up to room temperature or warm gently in the oven before proceeding with browning step.) ### 4\. Brown the bird: - About an hour before you’d like to serve, preheat oven to 450 degrees. Uncover the roasting pan, return to the oven and roast, basting halfway through, until turkey is caramelized all over and juices are reduced, about 30-45 minutes. - For thicker juices, remove turkey to a cutting board or serving platter and continue letting the juices reduce in the hot oven or on the stovetop until thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper. ### 5\. Serve: - Cut the meat off of the thighs and drumsticks; remove breast bone from breast plate and slice. Season with salt and pepper and arrange on a large serving plater, along with the roasted squash and shallots. Douse with big spoonfuls of the cooking jus. Garnish with thyme leaves and serve with additional chile crisp, if desired. #### Filed Under: [Braised](https://mollybaz.com/category/braised/), [Thanksgiving\!](https://mollybaz.com/category/thanksgiving/) # Spicy Maple-Braised Turkey November 8, 2024 by [Molly](https://mollybaz.com/author/hellomollybaz-com/) [93 Comments](https://mollybaz.com/spicy-maple-braised-turkey/#comments) Filed Under: [Thanksgiving\!](https://mollybaz.com/category/thanksgiving/), [Braised](https://mollybaz.com/category/braised/) Tagged With: [thanksgiving](https://mollybaz.com/tag/thanksgiving/), [turkey](https://mollybaz.com/tag/turkey/) ## This is Part of ## THE CLUB [Join the Club](https://mollybaz.memberful.com/checkout?plan=73407 "Join the Club") [Gift the Club](https://mollybaz.com/gift-two-for-one/ "Gift the Club") [Sign In](https://mollybaz.com/?memberful_endpoint=auth "Sign In") [Club Questions](https://mollybaz.com/faqs/ "Club Questions")  ## Nonstop deliciousness every dang week. 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There are two ways to go about making this turkey (which, I should add, my husband claims is the best turkey he has ever had in his life). Option A: season the turkey on Tuesday, braise it on Wednesday, cool it overnight, and then warm it through and crisp it up an hour before serving on Thursday. Option B: Season it on either Tuesday or Wednesday, braise it all day on Thursday, serve it on Thursday afternoon. I’m a fan of option A as it frees up oven space on the big day for other very important dishes. Whatever you do, do not skip the advance seasoning step. It takes 5 minutes and is the difference between dry bland meat and moist seasoned meat. I promise. You can either buy the turkey in parts, or buy a whole turkey, and ask the butcher counter at the grocery store to break it into 2 breasts, 2 drumsticks, and 2 thighs. Or do it yourself! It can be butchered exactly like a chicken. Braising in parts is the only way to ensure truly tender moist meat. It’s far superior to a whole roast turkey, and I’ll stand by that ‘til the end.