Stuffing

Rinse the inside of the bird with cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Season the insides of both cavities with salt and pepper and a generous amount of butter. In the interest of food safety with a turkey it is recommended to stuff the neck or breast end only.

In the body cavity place a quartered peeled onion and lemon together with a stick of celery, a few batons of carrot with some sprigs of fresh parsley and thyme which will pervade the bird with aromatic flavour.

Allow about 225g prepared stuffing for each 2.25kg of dressed bird. Either use a home-made stuffing, or doctor two packets of a good quality Sage and Onion stuffing mix: make up with boiling water as directed, adding a good knob of butter and plenty of seasoning. When quite cold, mix well with 900g of sausage meat (taken from good quality sausages).

Stuffing must be cold before being used and it is recommended to stuff the bird just before cooking. If liked, prepare the stuffing ahead of time, and then refrigerate or freeze it, but stuff the bird with stuffing at room temperature just before you are ready to roast it. Additional stuffing can be cooked in a separate dish, and given several bastings of turkey roasting juices as it cooks.

It is not recommended to truss a bird, this allows free circulation of heat to all parts.

Use bathroom scales covered with clingfilm to weigh the stuffed bird. Remember to weigh the bird after stuffing to calculate the correct cooking time.