Turducken

5 from 1 vote

An amazing Thanksgiving turducken with layers of cornbread stuffing made from scratch with an approachable guide.

Prep Time2

Cook Time4

rest time1

Total Time1 5

Servings:

Calories: 600kcal

16 pound turkey
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 boneless skinless chicken thighs
2 boneless skinless duck breasts
2 boneless skinless duck legs (you probably need to remove the skin and bones yourself)

We need to remove some but not all of the turkey bones. The bones must be removed in this order- backbone, thigh bones, rib cage. Check the photos above for a visual guide.
Removing the backbone is the easiest part. Flip the turkey so the breast side is down. The backbone is now front and center. This is easiest with a pair of strong kitchen shears. You can just cut the bone right out!
The thigh bones are the hardest step. You need to remove these without disturbing the skin or the drumsticks. Just find the bones and follow then with your knife gently until they are free and can be removed.
Finally the ribcage. Again, run the knife along the ribcage edges to clear the breast meat from the ribs. Mostly this is easy, but the point where the breasts meet at the top and center of the turkey is only connected by skin, and if you pierce the skin here the presentation will be ruined.

Warm up one quart of the broth and stir in the salt. Bring to a simmer until the salt is dissolved. Remove from heat and pour this mixture into a large pot with the cold water and remaining chicken stock. Allow to cool fully.
In a bag or whatever vessel you have that can fit in the fridge, add the butchered turkey, along with the chicken and duck pieces and pour the brine over them. Make sure everything is covered. Put into the fridge overnight.

Cook the sausage in a frying pan to brown, then add in the butter, celery, onion, and carrot. Cook for 5 minutes to soften the veggies. Add in the herbs and cook 2 minutes, then remove from heat.
Cut up the cornbread into cubes, but it will basically crumble as you mix it. Add the sausage mixture to a bowl with as much of the cornbread as you need to make it a good ratio. Store bought cornbreads are different sizes.

Take all the meats out of the brine and pat them dry.
lay the turkey out on the work surface in front of you and spread a thin layer of stuffing over it.
Top with the chicken pieces, breasts in the center and thighs on the outside.
More stuffing, then the duck is next.
Finish it with a little more stuffing, then fold up your turkey like a burrito with the meats and stuffings inside. You probably need a friend to help with this step! Use some kitchen twine to tie the turducken shut.

Preheat oven to 500
Flip the turducken so the breast side is up. Place it into a roasting pan and tie the legs together to help seal the filling in, and expose the legs to the oven air so they will brown nicely. Pat everything dry with paper towels and allow to air dry as the oven heats up.
Brush the skin with some high heat oil like peanut oil and season with salt and pepper.
Get the turducken into the oven and close the door. Turn the oven to 350.
After an hour and a half, check on the turducken and rotate if needed. Adjust heat if needed depending on how brown the skin is looking.
Cook until an internal temp is 150. You will need to check in a bunch of different places, and make sure the thermometer is hitting the center of a piece of meat.
Allow to rest about 30 minutes before slicing. Skim off the excess fat from the drippings and add them to your gravy. (I put a link to the gravy recipe in the post)