Cheap Meat = Good Eats

Pulled meat poultry. Who does love pulled meat? You can do so much with it.

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Christmas has come and gone. Except the expenses are still here. 

With everything so expensive, we need to save money anywhere we can. You can make the cheaper cuts of meat tender as can be, through the use of marinades, brine or slow-cooking.

Through the year, they’ll often have turkey drumsticks out for cheap. The drumstick part of a turkey is the toughest part of the bird, with hard, inedible sinew chards that don’t break away easily, which is likely why it’s one of the more inexpensive meats on the market.

Of the slow-cooking methods, some are easier than others. Braising involves searing (browning) your meat first in a frying pan, then slow simmering in liquid for a few hours. Turkey drumsticks, with their awkward shape, just don’t easily fit this type of cooking. Instapots and pressure cookers will do the job of tenderizing the meat well, but not everyone has one of these. 

For those that don’t have a pressure cooker or an instapot, this is the easiest way.  It’ll take three to five hours, so during the cooking time, you will need to add water to the pot a couple of times. Use a deep soup pot if you have one.

Photo by Becca Tapert on Unsplash

First, brine your turkey leg(s) for at least 2 hours or up to a day. Overnight is the easiest. 

For the brine mix: use enough water to cover the poultry pieces, equal amounts salt and sugar, about 1 quarter to 1 half cup each. If you want to add an acidic element (optional), you can add a couple of tablespoons of wine or cider vinegar, or lemon or orange juice. Put it in the fridge for up to a day.

When you’re ready to start cooking, take it out of the fridge, pour out the brine mix (down the sink). 

Place the turkey meat into a soup pot, large enough to cover completely with flavored liquid. You can use any stock or broth, or you can add into water, a package or two of soup mix for flavor, or you can add some vegetables.  Any mix of onion, celery, carrot, garlic, bell pepper or all of them if you have a well stocked fridge. It’s all great flavour. 

Bring to a boil and simmer for 3 or 4 hours in this flavored liquid. You will need to add water a couple of times. If the water you add is already boiling, your cooking will be more consistent. When then meat is just about falling off the bone, pull it out of the pot and place it in a large bowl until it’s cooled down enough to handle.

*For food safety reasons, don’t let the meat sit out on the counter too long, before you start ripping it apart. If you put it into the fridge to cool down, the more it cools, the tougher it will get to pull apart. 

As soon as it has cooled enough to handle, separate the good meat from everything else. Shred it up, put in a frying pan to reheat if using right away. Flavor with whatever you like. It’s ready to eat or use in another recipe.

Photo by Davey Gravy on Unsplash

You also now have a good soup stock if you want, you can puree the vegetables if you put any in, and put your pulled turkey meat back in the broth. You can add rice, barley, beans, pasta if you want to thicken up this delicious soup 

You could also use this shredded turkey in another soup, stews, goulash, meat sauces, tomato sauces, tacos, pulled meat sandwiches/buns, and so many other things. It freezes very well for later use, as well.

Bon Apetit !!