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Lord Nelson Turkey

Poultry

A grand centrepiece of roast turkey with a piquant stuffing, presented in a decorative model ship made of paste. Created by Escoffier in tribute to Admiral Horatio Nelson (1758–1805), the British hero of the Battle of Trafalgar.


The croustade for Lord Nelson Turkey, from the 1852 edition of Soyer's 'Gastranomic Regenerator'.



Original Receipt from 'The Gastranomic Regenerator' by Alexis Soyer (Soyer 1845)

No. 510. Turkey a la Nelson,

Make a croustade resembling the head of a ship, as represented in the design; procure a very white nice young turkey, truss it as for boiling, leaving as much of the skin of the neck attached to the breast as possible, have ready the following stuffing: scrape an ounce of fat bacon (with a knife), put it into a stewpan, with a teaspoonful of chopped eschalots, pass five minutes over a moderate fire, then add twenty tablespoonfuls of white sauce (No. 7), let it reduce till thick, add twenty small heads of mushrooms, six French truffles cut in slices, and twelve cockscombs; mix all well together over the fire, season with a teaspoonful of powdered sugar, half ditto of salt, and a little white pepper; finish with the yolks of two eggs, stir over the fire a minute to set the eggs, and lay it out on a dish to get cold, then detach the skin on the breast from the flesh without breaking, and force some of the stuffing under the skin; put the remainder in the interior of the breast, roast it in vegetables as described for fillet of beef (No. 417), but just before it is done take away the paper and vege- tables, and let it remain before the fire till of a fine gold colour.


Detail of the croustade.


Fix the croustade at the head of the dish with a paste made of white of egg and flour, make a border of mashed potatoes round the dish, place the turkey in the centre, and have ready the following garniture: fillet three fowls, lard and braise the fillets as No. 792, form the legs into little ducklings as described (No. 1024), prepare six slices of tongue of the size and shape of the fillets, and dress them round the turkey upon the mashed potatoes to form a ship. For the sauce put two glasses of Madeira wine in a stewpan, with a tablespoonful of Chili vinegar, two minced apples, a small bunch of parsley, a spoonful of chopped mushrooms, and half an ounce of glaze; let it boil a few minutes, add ten tablespoonfuls of tomata sauce (No. 87), a quart of brown sauce (No. 1), and a pint of consomme, let it boil quickly until it adheres to the spoon, stirring it the whole time, finish with a tablespoonful of red currant jelly, pass it through a tammie into another stewpan, season with a little salt and pepper, boil it another minute, glaze the turkey, pour the sauce in the dish, glaze the pieces of tongue and serve.




Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson (1758-1805)



Original Receipt in the 'Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery ' by Auguste Escoffier (See: Escoffier);

For other dishes associated with Lord Nelson, see:
Nelson Balls





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