Thai Marinated Roast Turkey with Lemongrass Coconut Gravy

Instructions

Marinate the turkey

Pound peppercorns in a mortar and pestle until fine. Add the garlic and cilantro stems and pound into a fine paste. Add the palm sugar and pound until mostly dissolved. Add fish sauce, soy sauce, black/dark soy sauce and water, stir to combine.
½ tsp white peppercorns, ½ tsp black peppercorns, 6 cloves garlic, 8 cilantro stems, 1 Tbsp palm sugar, 3 Tbsp fish sauce, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 1 tsp black or dark soy sauce, ¼ cup water
Place the turkey breast and thigh into a flat dish just large enough to hold them (they can be in 2 separate dishes, that’s what I do), alternatively you can put them into separate zip top bags. Pour the marinade over the turkey, putting about ⅔ of it for the breast and ⅓ for the thigh. Flip the turkey over to thoroughly coat and then marinate for at least 3 hours and up to overnight.
1 turkey breast, 1 turkey thigh

Important: Make sure you flip the turkey halfway through your marinating time for even distribution.

Also important: A 24-hour marinade is fine for the breast but too long for the thigh and it is a bit too salty, so if you’re doing an overnight marinade, remove the thigh from the marinade first thing in the morning.

Roast the turkey

Roasting day: Remove the turkey from the fridge 2-3 hours before roasting so it is not fridge cold going into the oven.
Preheat the oven to 450°F and place the rack so that the turkey will be in the middle of the oven.

I recommend using an oven thermometer to make sure you are at 450°F; most ovens are inaccurate, and if it’s too hot, the skin might burn too quickly. My oven, for example, has to be set at 430°F to achieve 450°F.

Cut the lemongrass stalks in half then smash them with a pestle or the back of a knife until the stalks are split open and bruised. Place the lemongrass on the baking sheet or roasting pan, spreading them out enough to create a bed for your turkey. Scatter the galangal, lime leaves, shallots and ginger all around the herb bed.
8 stalks lemongrass, 15 thin slices galangal, 10 makrut lime leaves, 15 thin slices ginger, 2 heads shallots
Remove the turkey pieces from the marinade and reserve the marinade as we will need it for the gravy. Place the turkey on top of the herb bed, skin side up, leaving plenty of space between the two pieces to allow air circulation. Place the roasting pan in the oven, and then pour the water into the roasting pan so there's about ¼ inch (half a centimeter) of water in the pan; this will extract flavours from the herbs and prevent the drippings from burning. How much water you need depends on how large your roasting pan is, so add as much as necessary.
1-2 cups water
Roast the turkey for 35 - 45 minutes, timing will depend entirely on how big your pieces are so I would check them at 30 minutes. You want the internal temp of your breast to be 145-150°F (63°C), and the thigh should reach at least 170°F (77°C). You will likely need to remove the breast before the thigh. If they are browning too quickly, reduce the heat to 400°F (200°C).

Important: Keep an eye on the roasting pan and add more water as needed to ensure there is always a shallow puddle of water to extract flavour from the herbs and prevent the drippings from burning (but don’t add a ton of water). If you accidentally let the water dry up and the drippings have browned (as I did in the process photos above), as long as it's not completely burnt, that’s totally okay, just deglaze with water. Your gravy will just be darker and probably a little more flavourful!

Make the gravy

While the turkey roasts, start the gravy. In a pot, add the chicken stock and the reserved marinade and bring to a boil to cook the raw turkey juices in the marinade. It will curdle a bit, this is fine, just whisk it and the curdles will break apart. Hold it here and wait for the turkey drippings.
1 cup chicken stock
Once the turkey is done, place the meat on a plate to rest, then take the lemongrass and all the herbs and arrange them on a serving platter.
Finish the gravy: Carefully pour the drippings from the roasting pan into the gravy pot, and add the coconut milk. If when you get here, you have collected some juices from the resting turkey, you can pour that in as well. If you want the colour to be darker, you can add a little more dark/black soy sauce; but not too much as you don't want to make it too salty.
¼ cup coconut milk, Black or dark soy sauce
Bring the gravy to a boil, then taste for seasoning. If it tastes bland, boil it for a while to reduce until the seasoning tastes right. If it is too salty, add more unsalted chicken stock or coconut milk to dilute.
Once the seasoning tastes right, dissolve the cornstarch with a bit of water, then pour about half of the slurry into the gravy while you whisk. Bring the gravy to a full boil, whisking constantly, and assess the thickness of the gravy. If you want it thicker, add more cornstarch slurry.
3 Tbsp cornstarch
Do a final taste of the gravy, and if it could use a little acidity to brighten, add a squeeze of lemon or lime.
A squeeze of lime juice or lemon juice
Put the turkey on the herb bed on the serving platter, and there’s your beautiful turkey ready for the table! Make sure the turkey has rested for at least 20 minutes before slicing. Enjoy!