Thai Turkey Patties

These were simple and yummy, based on a James Martin recipe.  He used chicken mince in his version, but I went for turkey instead.  Both would work fine.  For 4 people, take 500g of turkey mince, and place in a bowl.  Now, using a mini chopper, blend a small onion, 3 juicy cloves of garlic and a large 'thumb' of peeled ginger, and blitz to a paste.  Tip into the bowl with 1 teaspoon hot chilli flakes (or a finely-chopped hot fresh chilli) and 2 heaped tablespoons of chopped coriander leaf.  Season well with salt and pepper - it needs quite a bit, and splash in a teaspoon of Thai fish sauce if you have any - don't worry if you don't.  I also added a splosh of Tobasco to make sure they were good and pokey.  Mix this well - your hands are the best tool here - making sure that the aromatic seasonings are evenly distributed throughout the mince.  Using wet hands, shape into patties - I got 16 out of this amount.  Allow to rest in the fridge for half an hour or so.  To cook: in a big non-stick frying pan, pour in about 1/2 a centimetre of sunflower or other 'tasteless' oil, and heat over a medium high-ish flame.  Carefully add half the patties - don't crowd them.  Leave them for 2 to 3 minutes to form a golden crust underneath - do NOT poke and prod!  Turn over and cook for another couple of minutes, again, leaving well alone to form a good crust.  Keep warm in a low oven on sheets of kitchen paper to drain whilst you cook the remaining patties.  Serve with bowls of sweet chilli sauce and lots of lime wedges to squeeze over.  If you have all the aromatics in the house, this could be classed as an 'under a fiver' as turkey mince is so cheap.

Chilli Turkey Meatballs

I have to say that I prefer meatballs made from turkey rather than beef.  As well as being lower fat, they have a better texture and remain soft and tender.  They also carry flavours better.  So, last night I made a big pot of chilli with them - 500g of turkey mince makes plenty for four people so we stashed half in the freezer.  Take said pack of turkey, and mix with 2 slices of bread, turned into breadcrumbs, 1 finely chopped onion, and 1 crushed clove of garlic, an egg, salt, pepper and a chopped red chilli.  Form into meatballs, whatever size you like.  I go for about a heaped teaspoon, which should yield 40 meatballs.  Saute lightly in a little olive oil until browned and drain well on kitchen paper.  Pop into a pot of simmering chilli sauce, made from: a sauteed chopped onion, red pepper and more garlic, 2 teaspoons ground cumin, 1 teaspoon (or to taste) of chilli powder, 3 teaspoons hungarian sweet paprika and 1 teaspoon dried oregano, a 400g tin of chopped tomatoes, a can of water and a splodge of tomato puree.  Last, but not least, a big can of kidney beans, drained and rinsed.  Simmer all of this, with the meatballs, until rich and reduced a little, then serve with carbs of your choice - I like plain rice, but you can pile it into a jacket potato, use taco shells, or mix your cultural influences and have it with pasta.  I eschew cheese and soured cream, but don't let me stop you!

Turkey Bolognese

I am sure no self-respecting Italian would consider this to be an authentic ragu Bolognese, which is usually made with a blend of pork and beef mince, chicken livers, lots of oil, milk (for a tender creamy sauce), red wine and hours of cooking.  Wonderful and rich, but not low fat if made in the tradiotional way.  But for a tasty, low-fat sauce for pasta, turkey makes a very acceptable substitute, especially if made with lots of garlic, red and green peppers, fresh oregano and basil - the turkey is like blotting paper, mopping up all the flavours.  The other benefit is that it is ready in an hour, and the meat is inherently tender - not always the case with minced beef.  Anyway, you all know how to make a Bolognese, you don't need me to tell you, but try it with turkey (good quality, organic British mince, please) and make sure it is well-reduced to avoid wateriness.  Yum!

Thai Minced Turkey

This has to be one of my favourite low fat dishes that I've cooked recently.  Turkey breast mince is very low in fat, but can be a bit bland - so, get good organic stuff and mix it with lots of strong flavours - Italian and Thai work very well.  In this dish, the turkey is stir-fried with a sliced red onion in a little oil (only about a teaspoon) and then you add chopped garlic, chilli and ginger, kaffir lime leaves, lemon grass, coriander (all frozen from Waitrose, brilliant time-saver) and some chicken stock.  Simmer for about 15 minutes until the turkey is tender.  Slake two teaspoons of soy sauce with two tablespoons of dark soy sauce, and stir into the pot.  Allow to bubble for a minute, then stir in a big handful of basil leaves.  Serve with Jasmine rice or rice noodles.  Just yummy.

Turkey Noodle Soup

On Christmas Day, I cut the legs off the turkey to speed up the cooking time (it was lovely and juicy as a consequence) and sacrificed one of the legs for a fresh stock.  It has been simmering away, to produce a lovely golden aromatic broth. Lunch for the next couple of days is this soup made with the stock, which has cooked for an hour with a couple of diced carrots and some diced swede, some diced celery and a couple of leeks, chopped.  Them some noodles are cooked in the broth for 10 minutes, and finally, chunks of cooked turkey reheat gently with a big handful of parsley right at the end.  Soothing, nutritious and restorative.

Turkey Tomato Gratin

We want something piquant on Boxing Day after all the richness of Christmas Day eating.  I also don't want to spend too much time cooking.  So, simply mix a jar of good tomato passata with a few tablespoons of double cream or creme fraiche.  In a wide shallow dish, lay thick slices of leftover turkey, and stuffing if you have any.   Add some frozen mixed peppers (or sauteed sliced fresh) and some sliced and sauteed mushrooms.  Pour over the creamy passata, top with breadcrumbs mixed with grated parmesan, and drizzle with a little olive oil.  Bake in a medium oven until the turkey is piping hot and the breadcrumbs are crisp and brown.  Nice with some crusty bread, pasta or even leftover roasties, heated up again until crispy.  Lots of green veg or salad seems essential too.  Soup and Thai green curry with the remaining bird.