As I prepped our bird for Christmas, I wrote about the pleasures of having fresh sage in the garden. Having just downloaded some images out of the camera, I discovered I had some shots of our bird after it came out of the oven and I thought I should share.
Those dark, stripy bits on the breast are actually whole, fresh, sage leaves that I have inserted under the skin. It is a pretty simple process that adds visual appeal to your holiday feast, but also boosts the flavor. It doesn’t matter if you are stuffing the beast or not, nor does it matter if it is done before or after stuffing. More importantly, it is pretty simple to do.
Working from the arse end of the bird, gently slide your fingers between the skin and the turkey breast, working one boob at a time, taking care not to tear the skin. As you hold the space open with one hand, slide sage leaves, one at a time into the space. I usually find that 3 or 4 leaves fits best. Once you have done both sides, make sure the skin is pulled taught again. You may need to secure it with a toothpick. Just remember to remove said toothpick before carving.
That’s it. Simple stuff that wows the guests on the platter and the palate.
