Pecan and Sausage Stuffed Turkey Breast
For the last couple of turkey seasons, I’ve made it a habit to put in a little extra work once I get back to the house by plucking feathers and keeping the skin. Who knows why, but for as long as I can remember, I’ve cut the breasts out of the bird without saving the skin and that has been a huge mistake on my part. By taking an extra 10 minutes to pull the breast feathers out, you’re quite literally left with a different main ingredient to use. Turkey skin is outstanding when crisped up right and adds another layer of complexity to your dish, regardless of how you’re preparing it. Now, don’t worry if you didn’t save the skin off of your last bird, you can make this dish without it and it will be just fine. With the holiday season knocking on the door, it’s always the right time to use up the last of that spring gobbler for friends and family.
Side note: Whenever I decide to work on a new recipe which uses turkey as a main ingredient, I really try to introduce some kind of fat and saltiness to the dish to make it more exciting. As delicious as turkey is on its own, it usually leaves us wishing that it had some more flavor. Inspired by Porchetta, one of my very favorite Italian dishes, I use pieces of prosciutto and sausage to add fat, flavor and salt back to the turkey. This turkey breast recipe is a winner any time of the year and can even be dressed up to become a new addition to your Thanksgiving or Christmas feast.
Recipe
Ingredients
1 boneless turkey breast, skin on, about 2 pounds
1 medium shallot, diced
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/2 pound of pork breakfast sausage or ground sausage
1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper
1 tablespoon of fresh rosemary, finely chopped
4 slices of prosciutto, torn
Zest of ½ lemon
6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, divided
3 tablespoons of butter
½ cup of finely chopped pecans
3 tablespoons of honey
Kosher salt
Fresh cracked pepper
To start, add the chopped shallot and garlic to a hot skillet, along with a good bit (2 tablespoons) of olive oil and begin to sauté. If your pan is good and hot, this will literally only take two or three minutes. Once both the garlic and shallot are slightly tender and beginning to get lightly colored, add the ground sausage to the pan. I really like using pork breakfast sausage for this recipe since it already is nicely spiced, but other types of sausage can be substituted too. To give just a bit more added “zing”, I also add a teaspoon of crushed red pepper. Once browned, stir in the chopped rosemary and pecans and remove from the heat. Your stuffing is now complete.
Now that the stuffing is out of the way, it’s time to talk turkey. First and foremost, ensure the bird is good and clean before moving forward by giving it a rinse in the sink. I know, it seems elementary, but there’s nothing worse than getting a feather, a pellet or a piece of fat when you’re eating. Once rinsed and dried, lay out the turkey on a cutting board. At this point, it really goes on a case by case basis. The goal is to make sure that the turkey breast is an even thickness the whole way through and you might even need to butterfly part of it, depending on the piece. On this particular bird, I actually butterflied a small section and then used a skillet to pound it to about a half inch thick throughout.
From here on out, everything is really quite simple. Season the inside(skinless) section of turkey with salt, cracked pepper and the zest of half a lemon. You might think that the amount of lemon seems a bit aggressive, but trust me, it helps brighten the entire dish, especially once it’s stuffed.
Once seasoned, tear pieces of prosciutto onto the turkey. Once most of the turkey breast is covered, add the sausage mixture on top. Now, you’re ready to roll; literally. This next step can seem daunting, but because the turkey is thinner than it was when you started, it will be much easier to roll. Depending on the shape of everything, I try to flip the bottom(narrow end) of the breast to the inside. This helps the rolling process, as well as helps to keep the stuffing inside. Once rolled, take pieces of butchers twine and tie everything up so that it’s good and secure for cooking. Season the outside with a good dose of Kosher salt and cracked pepper. Also, don’t worry about how much twine you use, just make sure that it’s packaged together so that it won’t fall apart.
Using that same skillet that you made the stuffing mixture in, heat over a medium-high flame and add the butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan. Once hot, add the stuffed turkey to the pan. The goal here is to slowly brown the skin, without burning it. Let the pan and heat do the work, and once the turkey releases itself from the pan without sticking, it’s time to roll to the next side. Once the entire piece is browned nicely, transfer to a pre-heated 400 degree oven to finish cooking.
Depending on the size of the bird, it usually takes about 25-35 minutes to finish cooking. Cook until the internal temperature reads 165F. Once the bird reaches this point, drizzle 3 tablespoons of honey to the top of the skin and flip the broiler on. Here, it’s crucial to keep an eye on everything because you can very quickly go from crisp to burned. The honey will become tacky and will begin to brown. Once it begins to bubbly and brown, remove from the oven and let it rest. For me personally, I will let this sit on a cutting board for at least 10 minutes before slicing to let the juices absorb back into the bird. Slice into 1-1.5 inch pieces and serve alongside your favorite fall vegetables and roasted potatoes.
