http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/nelsonmail/4801748a19255.html

Big birds ripe for the plucking
By SALLY KIDSON - Nelson | Tuesday, 23 December 2008

Gordon Ramsay named his after celebrity chefs; rearing a Nigella, a Jamie and a Delia in the backyard of his London home. However, Brightwater man Philip Gibbs isn't on first name basis with his birds.

"They are nice birds, they've got a bit of personality, but the only animals we have with names are the cats."

Gibbs has raised turkeys on and off since the 1980s and admits to having a bit of a soft spot for the creatures, even though he says they give a new meaning to bird-brained.

Gibbs says turkeys start laying eggs in spring around September, so the turkey which people are planning to buy for Christmas dinner was probably killed in April and has been frozen for a good few months by the time it makes it on to the dinner table.

His birds are small enough to mate naturally, but Gibbs says commercially raised turkeys are the Dolly Partons of the bird world, being selectively bred to have huge breasts. This means the boys are so big they can't mount the girls, so commercially raised turkeys are often artificially inseminated, he says.

Gibbs says adult turkeys make notoriously bad mothers, so to ensure the birds actually make it on to your dinner table, eggs are taken from the adult birds and placed in an incubator. They take about 28 days to hatch. "If they hatch out the eggs themselves you can pretty much ensure the chicks are dead in a week."

Whisking the eggs away from the adult birds also ensures the birds keep laying.

Gibbs says after the eggs hatch, the babies, or poults, are kept under lights for three to four weeks to keep them warm.

He then keeps the birds in a large enclosed run until they are about two months old.

This is necessary to save them from themselves, he says, as the birds are temperamental and can "drop dead at the drop of a hat".

For example, if they get scared and they bunch up against a house or building, they can bunch up so tightly they suffocate each other, he says.

If a bird beats the odds and makes it to about five months, it's then time for the "royal treatment" and the birds are killed, he says.

To make this easier on himself and the birds, which are heavy by the time they are ready for the freezer, he's bought a humane slaughterer from the United Kingdom which breaks their necks.

While he likes the birds, he says they can be quite aggressive, and can be especially intimidating for young children.


Tips for getting the best out of your turkey this Christmas

Keep it moist
Because turkey meat is so lean you need to protect it from drying out during cooking. The simplest ways to do this are using steam, covering it or basting.

Steam - cook the turkey on a rack in the roasting pan and pour water into the bottom of the pan, keeping it topped up during cooking. Or try stock mixed with wine, fruit juice or herbs in place of water.

Basting - spoon fat and cooking juices over the breast of the bird at regular intervals during the roasting process every 20-30 minutes, using a basting brush, a spoon or a turkey baster. The disadvantage with basting is that the oven needs to be regularly opened, which lowers the temperature and interrupts the cooking process, so you need to work quickly.

Stuffing
Stuffed turkeys take longer to cook. If you are using stuffing, make sure the stuffing has been prepared and chilled beforehand. Don't overstuff as stuffing expands during cooking. The stuffing also needs to be sealed in so either use small skewers or a large needle threaded with cotton string (plastic string melts) and sew the flaps together. Stuffing can alternatively be cooked in a separate baking dish and served as a side accompaniment.

It's best to stuff the bird just before you start cooking unless you can store the turkey in the refrigerator until cooking begins. Don't stuff the day before as harmful bacteria inside the turkey can multiply during storage.

Cooking time
The recommended cooking time is 15 minutes per 500g of bird plus an extra 15 minutes, when cooking at 180C. A 5kg bird takes 2 3/4 hours and a 5 1/2kg turkey takes about three hours. To test if cooked, pierce the thickest part of the turkey thigh with a skewer, if the juices run clear the turkey is cooked. You can also give the drumstick a wiggle and if cooked the leg should move freely.

Leftovers
Leftovers should be refrigerated and eaten within two or three days. Leftovers can also be frozen and used within a month.

From www.croziersturkeys.co.nz.