Bragging Rights: Food Network
This is a turkey shot that I worked VERY hard at putting together. I did both the styling and the photography. WHEW!
If you watch "Ham on the Street" on Food Network (Wednesday nights... good show very entertaining), watch closely and you will see right before the title rolls down on the screen this particular turkey on your TV.
Woooot!
**Side Note: For those who think that all food stylist use bizarro
tricks to get their food to look great, not all of us food stylists do
that.
This is not a product of using tricks, artificial or inedible
ingredients. I do take pride in the fact that everything I style can
be eaten right off the set (and often is).
100% natural food and food styling. Food is beautiful enough on its
own without mucking it up with spray paint and other nasty garbage.
This image is Copyright Protected and may not be used for any reason
without express written permission.
© Kelly Cline All Rights Reserved.
www.kclinephotography.com
Comments and faves
Mardora, Jrea1990, aaannndddyyy, lecosetonde, and 16 other people added this photo to their favorites.
LynnInSingapore (76 months ago | reply)
Is this turkey fully cooked? how did you make the skin colorful without bursting? I basted the heck out of mine but the skin still split in a couple of places =o(
kcline (76 months ago | reply)
It took me 3 freaking turkeys to do it. My first one was spilt all over. The second one was cooked all the way through but it was white as hell because I had covered it for the entire cooking cycle to keep it from splitting and drying out.
What I did was cooked it uncovered for about 1/3 of the total time, but I basted it and rotated it CONSTANTLY. Then as I noticed the skin just starting to tighten that's when I basted it and immediately covered it with foil. Don't let the foil touch the skin because it will tear a hole in it, the other side of this bird has a hole on the leg because it cooked onto the foil.
You need to baste and rotate it by 1/8 turns and tightly recover it. This keeps the skin moist and supple while it steams the inside done.
When you know that the turkey is almost fully cooked (like 20-30 minutes from being completely cooked) you take off that foil and baste and rotate. The whole key is the damn rotating. The final basting I did with non-clarified butter mixed with honey as it crisped up and browned the skin perfectly.
When it is browned without splitting, take it out let it rest with a foil tent that does not touch the bird over the top of it. It will make the skin supple again while the bird finishes cooking through while it rests, this also let's the juices in the bird settle (kind of like when you cook beef or lamb) so it makes for the moisest bird.
This one isn't perfect on both sides :( But I was not going to cook a fourth turkey. I didn't eat turkey for a LONG time after this shoot ;)
Lynn your turkey is beautiful, I wish I had left the wings up and not turned under for this shot. One my first tries one I left the wings as they were and they spread out on me. The second one I tried tying them down and when I went to remove the strong it left a mark in the breast and tore off a good portion of the skin along with it. I love the turned up wings though, and the garnish is to die for!
But yes, to answer you question with a novella hehehe... It is fully cooked, just rotate the hell out of it and honeybutter baste it for that golden glow. Just don't let anything touch the skin during the entire cooking time or you are hosed.
LynnInSingapore (76 months ago | reply)
Oh my goodness, my head is spinning just reading your instructions. I did baste the heck out of that turkey, but did not rotate. Also, I'm sure the foil touched the turkey all over at some point or another. and the wings, I never figured out how to tie them back, haha!
three turkeys! that's dedication! What did you do with all of them??
kcline (76 months ago | reply)
The first turkey I butchered down into cubes and froze for soup and casseroles. The second turkey got butchered down and given to friends in big overstuffed pot pies that they could bake at home.
For this turkey I called ahead and asked a local homeless shelter if I could deliver a hot turkey to them. I've delivered food to them in the past, because I often times end up with so much excess that even with an army of hungry friends I can't get rid of it all and I HATE wasting food.
So I hurried up, got it on the set, shot it quickly then jumped in the car and popped over to the mission with the turkey and a big bag of onions, potatoes and carrots that a vendor of mine generously threw in for the mission. So when I got it there, volunteered a little time to help butcher it down, cut up some of the vegetables and we managed to get a total of 11 large stock pots of turkey noodle soup together to feed some folks. So much better than letting it go to waste I think. :)
LynnInSingapore (76 months ago | reply)
Now that is cool! But I do secretly feel sorry that such a beautiful turkey was turned into soup. Well, but it's for a good cause =o)
I really really hate wasting food, but as far as I know there isn't anything like soup kitchens or homeless shelters in Tokyo. Some of my classmates at Cordon Bleu even jokingly suggested handing out stuff to homeless people in the park, but this is Japan, and that would be considered very very strange.
rrrichard [deleted] (76 months ago | reply)
perfection! (i'll need to go back and read how you did this when i'm not so sleepy)
RoccoCio (76 months ago | reply)
Kelly, next time you need help eating the food, just let me know, I'm only 30 min away. For desserts, I'll be only 15 min away. :)
andipantz (76 months ago | reply)
congrats!! *jumps up and down for you!*
bruceley (76 months ago | reply)
You are awesome!
LarryB (76 months ago | reply)
I had the credits for Ham on the Street on my DVR (I always record Good Eats) and that's your turkey, alright.
I'm particularly impressed that it's really cooked, as I understand that most food stylists aren't above painting their birds. Brava!
And so glad to hear that the turkey went to a good purpose, too.
allsop8184 (75 months ago | reply)
WOW
aliza khan (36 months ago | reply)
yummy !!
fondant.com (32 months ago | reply)
Gorgeous bird! You did a fantastic job. p