Spatchcocked turkey roasted on bed of stuffing--anyone done this?

[nofunlatte]

I'm planning to this for Thanksgiving, but would like any advice from people who might have done this in the past. I've looked at some websites and one suggests placing the turkey on a sheet of aluminum foil with holes to regulate pan drippings (her stuffing was too soggy for her tastes). If that were to happen, would a quick run under the broiler help crisp up the top?

I roasted last year's bird (spatchcocked) on a bed og onions, carrots, and celery, but would like to try it on top of stuffing. FWIW, the bird will be a 10-pounder.

[fourunder]

Rather than over aluminum foil with holes punched in.....I roast on a grill grate over the stuffing. I also suggest low to moderate heat to avoid any chance of burning the stuffing. If you do a high heat blast at the end to brown the skin.....the heat should be sufficient enough to crisp and form a crust on the bottom of the stuffing if you use a metal pan.

[nlgardener]

I have used this technique with large chickens and have often considered using a small turkey. I cut the chickens in half with poultry shears. I would ask my butcher to cut the turkey in half for me.

The bread dressing I use under the chicken is stale cubed French bread, onions, carrots, celery, fennel and shiitake mushrooms. The only seasoning I use is Bell's poultry mix. I put a thick coat of butter on the bottom and sides of the roasting pan. Use a pan that just fits the bird so all of the bread is covered. Roast at 350 until the bird is done. I never cover it. I don't put any liquid or egg in the bread mixture. The veggies steam and the poultry juices baste the dressing.

[Will Owen]

You avoid over-moistening the stuffing by seriously under-moistening it going in; yes, I have had Stuffing Soup under split birds before! Thing is, cooking it dry only improves the flavor anyway, so the risk is pretty much nil.

[The Dairy Queen]

That sounds so delicious. But I envision a spatchcocked turkey would be huge! What do you cook it on, a jelly roll pan? Does it fit?

~TDQ

[nofunlatte]

I have a big roasting pan and the bird is pretty small (10-lbs), so it does fit! It took even less time to cook than expected last year--sitting it on stuffing might slow down the cooking.

[AmyH]

When I do Julia Childs' laid back turkey I do it on a jelly roll pan. And doing it on the stuffing doesn't slow it down if you broil the underside first to partially cook it.

[Nanzi]

This sounds great, but what about the lack of turkey drippins for gravy? Canned gravy just doesn't cut it without the drippins.

[lcool]

Should be easy to solve.
nofunlatte still has the neck,back,wing tips and giblets,plenty to roast for drippings and or make strong stock for gravy.Same answer for the folks that deep fry.

[nofunlatte]

I make the gravy ahead of time using those wings (purchased separately)--never knew you could do that until last year!

[nofunlatte]

I make the gravy the weekend before and freeze.

[nofunlatte]

Amy and kim2310--thank you! I might try making a separate batch of stuffing and mixing the two together. That is a great idea!

[kim2310]

I did it last year for the first time. It was amazingly delicious (both the turkey and the stuffing). I put the butterflied turkey on top of the stuffing and made a separate batch of stuffing outside the turkey. I ended up mixing both stuffings together since one was super moist from the turkey drippings, almost too moist; so I combined them and it was perfection!

[AmyH]

I have not done it spatchcocked, per se, but have done Julia Childs' boned turkey over a bed of stuffing and it's fantastic. It's from the book "The Way to Cook" and it's called "laid back turkey" if I recall. It's not hard at all to bone the turkey. You lay it out and broil the meat side of the turkey, then flip it over on top of the stuffing and roast it. When it's time to serve you can just slice through and everyone gets stuffing and turkey together. I haven't made it in quite a few years because I have a few vegetarians at the table and it's easier for me to keep the stuffing separate and meat-free, but one of these years I'd like to go back to making it this way.

[FED]

i've done it and it's good. i also stuffed under the skin over the breast to insulate to make sure the breast didn't overcook. just have to be sure none of the stuffing slips down to the hip joint, but that works great, too.