Beer Braised Turkey with Potatoes
Hello there! It's summer time, and just when I think the days couldn't possibly fly by any faster, they do.
I love having the girls home with me, and we've been having lots of fun playing board (bored?) games, staying up late, camping in the backyard, and running through the sprinklers.
and we're only in week number two!
Today, though, my 7-year-old has the flu, and there is nothing worse than hearing friends outside riding bikes when you're stuck inside on the couch.
She's a good sport, though, and is watching RV on loop (cute movie, ages 7+; quite a few bathroom-related jokes....) while I catch up on computer work.
Although we're in June, and slow cooker fare usually conjures up snowy/rainy days and crisp fall weather, I implore you to NOT forget about your slow cooker during the summer months. It keeps your kitchen cool, and provides more opportunity to play!
Beer Braised Turkey with Potatoes.
The Ingredients.
serves 4-6
- 2 pounds potatoes, washed and quartered (no need to peel)
- 1 onion, peeled and thinly sliced
- 3 pounds turkey drumsticks, or a bone-in turkey breast
- 4 tablespoons butter (melted, or just toss in the half-stick)
- 1 tablespoon dried basil (or 1/4 cup finely diced fresh basil leaves)
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 (12-ounce) bottle of beer (Redbridge, by Anheuser Busch is gluten free.) If you'd prefer to not cook with alcohol, you can use a non-alcoholic beer.
The Directions.
Use a 6-quart slow cooker.Place the potatoes and onion into the bottom of your insert, and add turkey on top.
Frozen is okay--- and I did try to peel away some of the skin from my legs since I have weird skin issues.
Plop in butter, basil, and lemon juice.
Sprinkle on salt, and pour in the beer.
Cover, and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours.
The Verdict.
I served our turkey dinner with steamed Brussels sprouts, although if I had gotten my act together earlier in the day would have preferred to roast them or make the world's best Brussels sprouts.The turkey was beautifully moist, and the drippings made a fabulous gravy (thicken by reducing in the stove, or by whisking in a cornstarch slurry--1 tablespoon cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water).
Save your turkey bones to make soup!
Turkey and Wild Rice Soup
Turkey Stew
Here's to the BEST. SUMMER. EVER!! What are your plans?
Thanksgiving Slow Cooker
32 included recipes, a Thanksgiving Timeline Cheatsheet, a 30-Minute “Company’s Coming” Cleaning Guide
Get my ebook!
Beer Braised Turkey Breast
Yield: 6
Prep time: 45 MinCook time: 8 HourTotal time: 8 H & 45 M
Ingredients
- 2 pounds potatoes, washed and quartered (no need to peel)
- 1 onion, peeled and thinly sliced
- 3 pounds turkey drumsticks, or a bone-in turkey breast
- 4 tablespoons butter (melted, or just toss in the half-stick)
- 1 tablespoon dried basil (or 1/4 cup finely diced fresh basil leaves)
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 (12-ounce) bottle of beer (Redbridge, by Anheuser Busch is gluten free.) If you'd prefer to not cook with alcohol, you can use a non-alcoholic beer.
Instructions
- Use a 6-quart slow cooker.
- Place the potatoes and onion into the bottom of your insert, and add turkey on top. Frozen is okay.
- Plop in butter, basil, and lemon juice.
- Sprinkle on salt, and pour in the beer.
- Cover, and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours.
I use my crockpot year round. There's just nothing better than coming home from work to a meal that's ready with minimal cleanup! I don't care if it's 100 degrees outside.. that's what my air conditioning is for. :P
ReplyDeleteI'm new to your site and can already tell you I'll be cooking a ton of your recipes! I love my crock pot (and dutch oven) too and cooking huge hunks of meat with wine/beer/veggie or chicken stock plus potatoes and veggies is a common occurance in my household. Most of the time, I default to the same ol recipes, so I'm psyched to try yours! Oh and the beer braised turkey sounds AMAZING!
ReplyDeleteThis is on the menu plan for next week. And the cabbage rolls are going to be tested tomorrow! I tell people about your site at least once a week. Thank you for the great recipes.
ReplyDeleteHope your little one feels better, and that you have a great summer. We are off to NYC next weekend, and I'm so excited to have family time. I looovvee summer and having my brats home, and I love throwing dinner in the slow cooker so I have more time with them and less to worry about. This sounds like a must make dinner!
ReplyDeleteI love my Crock Pot and you have so many yummy ideas. Can I use broth in place of the beer?
ReplyDeleteI am passing on the Sunshine Award to you. You can pick it up at http://jazzyallergyrecipes.blogspot.com/2012/06/sunshine-award.html.
oh im sorry your daughter is sick! thats no fun:( your potatoes look delicious btw!! yumm!
ReplyDeleteI've been looking at this recipe for a oouple days, mourning the fact that I am trying to limit carbs and was worried that I would eat too many of the potatoes. Just now it hit me -- I can substitute sweet potatoes for the small whilte ones! What can I say, I'm a bit slow sometimes. lol
ReplyDeleteI plan to start a blog!
ReplyDeleteAnd make lots of cold picnic pies and have picnics, either out of doors or on the living room floor. Slow cookers make the best pie fillings - turkey leg and bacon is awesome.
I just want to say THANK YOU! I was desperate to find a way to cook outdoors (other than the grill) that doesnt involve condensed soup or processed MSG, Nitrate loaded seasonings. Oh and gluten free!! A friend posted your blog on our mom's board on facebook. I can't wait to give a few recipes a try!!
ReplyDeleteHelp! I made this the other night in my 6 qt tall/thinner crock. On slow for 8+ hours. my meat and onions were cooked perfect but my potatoes were barely cooked? This happened with a beef roast recently too. Is my crock dieing?
ReplyDeleteI honestly think I use my slow cooker more in the summer than the winter! I avoid the hot oven at all costs and am constantly trying to adapt our favorite meals to be cooked in the slow cooker to avoid that dreaded oven (cuz really grilling in triple digit heat is no fun either).
ReplyDeleteI was just thinking what I could make in the crockpot that I had not yet made and here you go a new recipe :)
ReplyDeleteThank you :)
I realize that this post is not a new one, but I finally got to try this recipe yesterday, and it was a winner! My fiancee loves turkey, and since we only ever have it at Thanksgiving, he was in heaven! The flavors were good, and we have plenty of leftovers to make turkey sandwiches!
ReplyDeleteMade this for dinner tonight as a celebratory dinner for our 24th anniversary. I followed the recipe exactly! I cooked it for 3hours on low and the meat was still completely raw so I turned it up to high for 3 hours. Unfortunately the turkey breast was an little on the dry side.. The flavor was amazing! Next time I will start on high for a couple of hours then turn to low for 4. Can't wait to make this again! I put the turkey breast bones and some chicken bones from the freezer and some veggie scraps back into the crockpot and filled it with water and turned it to high to cook overnight.. Tomorrow I will strain it, add the leftover turkey and some veggies to it and make some soup for the freezer.
ReplyDelete