Extracted from Eat Well for Less: Happy & Healthy by Jo Scarratt-Jones (BBC Books, £14.99). Photography by Andrew Burton.
Pulled Turkey Burger with Crispy Sweet Potato Fries
Slow cookers are traditionally used for stews, but they work well for large joints too
Strip the turkey meat from the bones and stir back through the sauce for an easy pulled turkey. Serve any leftover meat with some steamed rice or pasta.
Serves
3 (with leftover turkey)
Preparation Time
20 minutes
Cooking Time
6-10 hours
Ingredients
- For the Turkey (makes 15 portions)
- 2 red onions, sliced
- 2.5kg turkey bone-in thigh joints
- 100g reduced-salt and-sugar brown sauce
- 50ml cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp sweet smoked paprika
- 50g clear honey
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- For the sweet potato fries
- 1 egg white
- 3 medium-sized sweet potatoes, scrubbed and cut into batons 1cm thick
- 60g panko breadcrumbs 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- To serve
- 3 small burger buns, split in half
- 1/2 Little Gem lettuce, leaves separated
- 2 medium tomatoes, sliced
- 3 gherkins, sliced
Method
- Preheat the slow cooker on the high setting, according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Tip the onions into the slow cooker, then place the turkey joints on top. Season well with black pepper.
- Pour the brown sauce into a small bowl, add the vinegar, smoked paprika and honey and mix well until smooth. Pour over the turkey then cover with the lid.
- Leave the setting on high or turn it down to low, then leave the turkey to cook for six to eight hours on high, or for 8–10 hours on low.
- When the turkey has 45 minutes left to cook, prepare the sweet potato fries.
- Preheat the oven to 220C/200C fan/Gas 7 and line 1 large or 2 medium baking trays with baking parchment.
- Tip the egg white into a bowl and whisk with a fork until just foamy. Toss the sweet potato batons in the egg white until coated all over.
- Tip the breadcrumbs, smoked paprika and plenty of black pepper into a separate bowl and mix well. Add the sweet potato batons a few at a time and coat in the crumbs then place on the lined baking tray(s).
- Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, turning the fries halfway through, until golden and tender.
- When the turkey is ready, remove from the slow cooker, discard the skin and pull out the bones. Return to the cooker and shred the meat into small strands, using a fork and spoon. Mix with the cooked onions and sauce until totally coated.
- Lay the bottom half of the burger buns on serving plates. Add the lettuce and tomato, then add a generous 2 spoonfuls (about 150g) of pulled turkey on top. Top with the gherkins and the top half of the bun. Serve the fries alongside.
Decant the remaining turkey into sealable containers – you will have about 12 portions. Allow to cool to room temperature before transferring to the fridge, where it will keep for three days, or transfer to the freezer for up to three months. Defrost overnight in the fridge, transfer to a heatproof bowl, cover with kitchen paper and heat on high in the microwave for two minutes, then stir well.
Extracted from Eat Well for Less: Happy & Healthy by Jo Scarratt-Jones (BBC Books, £14.99). Photography by Andrew Burton.
