Turkey Green Chile Stew

Ingredients

For roasting:

1 14 lb turkey

1 apple cut in half

1 medium onion cut in half

2 carrots cut in quarters

2 stalks celery cut in quarters

1/4 C olive oil

2 Tbsp melted butter

3/4 tsp black pepper

1 sprig thyme

For the stock:

2 bay leaves

1 Tsp dried minced garlic

1 Tsp peppercorns

2 large carrots cut into 2 inch lengths

2 stalks of celery cut into 2 inch lengths

1 medium onion quartered

For the stew:

6-8 whole fresh Hatch green chiles prepped & chopped up - medium to hot heat OR 1 C Bueno frozen prepared Hatch Green Chile.  Fresh or frozen. NO canned stuff.

8 medium red potatoes rinsed and quartered

Pinch of cumin

2 Tsp Kosher salt

Roasting the turkey:

• Remove giblets and neck.  Set aside or discard as you please.
• Rinse turkey and pat dry with paper towels.  
• Put 1/2 apple in the cavity near where the neck was.
• In the larger cavity put in the other half of the apple, the quartered carrots and celery and onion.
• Season with black pepper and thyme. 
• Mix the olive oil and butter and spread over the skin of the turkey.
• Cover with foil and put into a pre-heated oven set at 325F.  (Gas Mark 3 for those in Europe)
• Roast at 325F for 3 hours.
• Remove foil and baste using the pan drippings.
• Continue cooking for another 45-60 minutes until a meat thermometer says the internal temp is 165F when placed in the breast and 175F when placed in the meaty part of the thigh.

Remove from pan to a large platter and cover.  Let cool 45-60 minutes, cover tightly with foil and put overnight in the fridge.

Use the pan drippings to make your favorite turkey gravy & store.  --- After all, not ALL of the turkey is going to be used in this stew! 

After refrigerating your turkey overnight, you will be breaking it down:

• Carve off  the right half the breast, wing, both drumsticks and left thigh from the bird and set aside for other meals. 
• Remove the left breast half and divide that in half and add that to the set aside as well.   (Try to carve the breast meat as close to the breast bone as you can when you're doing this.)

You should be left with about a generous cup or so of white meat, the meat of 1 thigh, 1 wing,  the whole carcass as well as whatever meat is left on the carcass. 

Fill the stockpot 3/4 full with filtered water and add the stock ingredients:

• 2 bay leaves
• 1 Tsp dried minced garlic
• 1 Tsp peppercorns
• 2 large carrots cut into 2 inch lengths
• 2 stalks of celery cut into 2 inch lengths
• 1 medium onion quartered

Pick off all the remaining skin and any visible fat from the carcass, thigh and wing. 

Dispose the skin and fat or add to a bowl for feeding pet dogs or cats later.

Break the carcass in half and add it the stock pot.  Add the thigh and wing bones as well.

Cook covered on a medium heat for about a 2 hours.  It should look like it's gently bubbling but the liquid should not be splashing out of the pot.  

Using tongs remove the carcass and all bones from the stock pot. 

Pick off any remaining meat from the bones and return the meat to the pot.  Dispose of the bones.

You should now have a good rich turkey broth with lots of tender meat in it.  Next add in the green chile, a pinch of cumin, the salt and the potatoes.  Cook on a medium heat for about 30-35 minutes until the potatoes are fork tender.

Serve.  Enjoy..