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Stewed Turkey Giblets with Turnips
Clean and blanch a pair of turkey giblets. Divide the neck and gizzard each into four pieces, and cut the pinions and legs in two. Cut one-half pound of streaky bacon into slices one inch thick, then divide them into pieces one and one-half inches long; place them in a stewpan with a piece of butter and fry till they are lightly browned. Take the bacon out, put in the giblets and fry them. Put the bacon back into the stewpan with the giblets, add one pound of turnips cut to the shape of corks, ten or twelve button onions and one ounce of butter. Fry the above ingredients until browned, then put in fifteen peeled potatoes, a bunch of sweet herbs and one quart of water; season with salt and pepper and let the whole simmer gently by the side of the fire for an hour and a half. Ten minutes before dishing the stew, put in the turkey livers. When cooked, take the bunch of sweet herbs out of the stew and skim off the fat. Turn the giblets onto a hot dish, arranging them with the heart, livers, gizzards and legs in the center of the dish, place the pieces of neck round them, put the pinions on top, pour over the remainder of the stew, and serve at once.
A frugal braise dressed up for a hotel kitchen: the parts of the bird nobody carves, given an hour and a half with root vegetables. A few of its terms and its heat source need translating.
- What a "pair of giblets" meansProbably a full giblet set: neck, gizzard, heart, liver, and the wing tips and feet; older usage sometimes meant one bird's set and sometimes two, so the quantity is uncertain. Supermarket packs today hold neck, gizzard, heart and liver only, so buy several packs, or ask a butcher for turkey necks and wings separately.
- Pinions and legsPinions are the outer wing joints; the "legs" here are most likely the scaly feet rather than drumsticks, though the recipe does not say. Both are rich in connective tissue, which helps give the stew body. Substitute a couple of turkey wings if feet are unavailable.
- BlanchingCover the cleaned giblets with cold water, bring to a boil, drain and rinse. This removes scum and blood so the finished braise stays clear, and it is worth doing rather than skipping.
- Streaky bacon an inch thickStreaky is British-style belly bacon. Cut an inch thick it is closer to slab bacon or unsmoked pancetta than to breakfast rashers; buy a half-pound piece and cut your own lardons about an inch and a half long.
- Turnips "to the shape of corks"Turned vegetables: trim each piece into a small barrel or cylinder, cork-sized, so they cook evenly and hold shape through ninety minutes. Uniform chunks do the same job with less knife work.
- Fifteen peeled potatoesSmall ones, egg-sized, whole and peeled. Full-sized modern potatoes would fall apart; use waxy new potatoes and add them halfway through if they look likely to break down.
- Bunch of sweet herbsA bouquet garni: parsley stalks, thyme and a bay leaf tied with string or in muslin so it can be lifted out whole, as the recipe instructs at the end.
- "By the side of the fire"A steady bare simmer, not a boil. On a modern range that is the lowest setting with the lid ajar, or a covered pot in a low oven for the same hour and a half.
- The livers lastTen minutes is right, and the instruction is the hinge of the dish. Livers cooked from the start turn grainy and cloud the sauce with their crumb.
- YieldWith a quart of liquid, a pound of turnips and fifteen potatoes, this feeds four to six as a main course. Skim the fat properly; a half-pound of bacon renders a good deal of it.
Giblet stews belong to the long tradition of using the whole bird, and they turn up in English and French household cookery well before they reach a New York hotel menu. What marks this version as professional kitchen work is the fussiness with shape and arrangement: turnips cut to the size of corks, potatoes left whole and uniform, and the finished dish built deliberately on the platter with hearts and livers at the center, necks around them and the pinions laid on top. Oscar Tschirky was maitre d'hotel at the Waldorf rather than its chef, and his 1896 book collects the kind of thing a large kitchen actually cooked, including the economy dishes made from what the carving station left behind. Turkey giblets in quantity implies a house roasting turkeys in quantity.