Turkey Crown Gravy

A turkey crown is the sensible modern choice and it has one real drawback: no carcass, no giblets and hardly any drippings. The fix is to sit the crown on a bed of turkey wings and onions. They roast underneath, catch every drop that comes off the breast, and give you a proper tin residue by the time the bird is done.

Ingredients

Makes about 700ml, enough for six plates

• 600g (1lb 5oz) turkey wings chopped through the joints
• 2 onions thickly sliced into rounds
• 1 carrot halved lengthways
• 1 stick celery halved
• 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
• 3 tbsp (45g) plain flour
• 150ml (5fl oz) dry white wine
• 700ml (1 1/4 pints) hot chicken stock
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp white wine vinegar
• sea salt and black pepper

Kit

• Roasting tin
• Whisk
• Fine sieve
• Warm jug

Method

1. Toss the wings, onion rounds, carrot and celery with the oil and spread them in the roasting tin so they form a rough platform. Sit the crown directly on top. It should be lifted clear of the tin base, which also stops the underside stewing.

2. Roast the crown as usual, generally about forty minutes plus twenty minutes per kilogram at 180C fan, until a probe in the thickest part reads 70C and the juices run clear. Check the wings halfway and if they are getting too dark, spoon a little stock into the tin.

3. Lift the crown onto a warm board, cover loosely and rest it for thirty minutes. A crown is all breast meat and it dries out fast, so the rest is not optional. Meanwhile the tin has everything you need.

4. Lift the wings out with tongs and set them aside, keeping the onions and vegetables in the tin. Pour off the fat down to about three tablespoons, leaving all the dark residue and the stickiest onion.

5. Set the tin over a medium heat. Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and fat and stir it in with a wooden spoon, mashing the onions as you go. Cook for two minutes until the flour is toasted and there is no dry powder left.

6. Pour in the wine and stir hard while it bubbles, scraping the base until it is clean and the mixture has gone dark and thick. Add the hot stock in three goes, whisking each one smooth, and bring to a simmer.

7. Simmer for ten minutes, then push it through a fine sieve into a clean pan, pressing the vegetables hard so the onion pulp thickens the gravy. Add the resting juices, bring back to a simmer for one minute, finish with the Worcestershire sauce and vinegar and season.

Tips worth knowing

• Buy the wings when you buy the crown. Supermarkets sell them cheaply in December and they are the single best fix for the crown gravy problem.
• Pick the meat off the roasted wings once they have cooled. It is the cook's lunch on Boxing Day and it is better than the breast.
• A crown reaches temperature much faster than a whole bird, so start the gravy prep before it comes out. You will have less resting time to work with than you are used to.
• If you did not use a trivet and the tin is nearly dry, deglaze it with the wine anyway, then build the rest of the gravy in a pan with butter and a finely chopped onion to make up the shortfall.

Keeping and reheating

Cool quickly in a shallow tray and keep three days in the fridge or three months in the freezer. Reheat once, to a rolling boil, loosening with stock as it comes back together. The onion pulp keeps it thick, so you will probably need a splash.

Questions people ask