The Brace Issue 2: Christmas and Winter 17/18 | Page 6

THE BRACE MEET THE PRODUCER
SEASONAL RECIPES THE BRACE
The Brace Christmas turkey
MARK CHILCOTT’S
Top TURKEY tips
WITH GARLIC, SAGE AND STREAKY BACON
TIP 1 As soon as possible after
This delicious recipe by our chef Mark Vaughan will help make your Christmas meal simple
but mouthwatering. Serves six guests with the all essential leftovers.
collecting your turkey, remove all
the packaging and put in a fridge.
People often ask us if their bird will
be OK in the garage. It really won’t
be as the ideal storage temperature
for poultry is 0-4°C and garages are
seldom that cold.
INGREDIENTS:
1 sprig fresh sage
12 slices BoB smoked streaky bacon
1 bulb garlic, broken into cloves
TIP 2 We would also advise not
4 medium red onions, peeled
stuffing the cavity, but stuff the neck
instead and the breast. This stops
the meat drying out during cooking.
2 sticks celery, trimmed and chopped
1 handful breadcrumbs
1 handful dried apricots
300g BoB minced pork
1 lemon, zested
1 pinch grated nutmeg
1 large free-range egg
Sea salt
Meet the producer
Freshly ground black pepper
12 small sprigs of fresh rosemary,
plus a few extra
4-4.5 kg Chilcott Turkey, at room
temperature
2 carrots, peeled
Olive oil
MARK CHILCOTT CHILCOTT TURKEYS 2 tablespoons plain flour
Free-range turkey farmer Mark Chilcott makes sure that Brace of Butchers is supplied with the very best Bronze turkeys
in preparation for the most important dinner of the year. 1 litre chicken or vegetable stock
For the last 25 years, Mark and his family
have been fattening and preparing the birds in the
old-fashioned way from their farm in Owermoigne
near Dorchester.
Mark says: “We’re passionate about producing the
finest quality turkeys for our consumers.
“We start rearing slow-growing strains of turkeys
in June so by December they are fully mature and
well finished.”
This maturing process is the reason why Mark’s
turkeys are so moist and succulent with an
outstanding taste. Unlike supermarket produce, the
birds are grown to mature size and have a nice layer
of fat under the skin, which makes them almost self-
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basting. Mark adds: “The birds are housed in barns
on straw bedding and allowed to free-range from
eight weeks old. Traditional processing methods are
used on our farm and the birds are plucked, finished
by hand and hung in a cold store for at least a week
prior to dressing. This way of preparing the poultry
gives the best time period to make them much more
tender and flavoursome