Adobo Marinated Turkey (Pavo Adobado)

Adobo Marinated Turkey (Pavo Adobado)

Easy adobo marinade that is delicious for many dishes, including this turkey recipe! 

4.25 from 4 votes

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Course: Main Course, Turkey

Cuisine: Mexican

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 2 hours 10 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours 35 minutes

Servings: 8 Servings

Ingredients

Ingredients

For Adobo

• 5 chile guajillo peppers
• 2 chile ancho
• 1-2 chile morita or chipotles in adobo
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1 ounce achiote paste
• 1/2 cup pineapple, orange or cranberry juice
• 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/3 cup grapeseed oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Mexican oregano
• 1 ½ teaspoons cumin
• 1 ½ teaspoons pepper
• Salt to taste

You Will Also Need

• 10-12 pound turkey
• 1 large onion sliced
• 1 stick of butter sliced
• 2 lemon sliced
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme
• 3 sprigs fresh rosemary
• More salt and pepper

Instructions

Directions

• Remove the stems and seeds from the dried chiles and transfer them to a saucepan. Cover with water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for 10 minutes. Peel the garlic and add to a separate saucepan. Drizzle garlic with a little oil and heat to medium low. Saute garlic for 6-8 minutes and set aside.
• While peppers are cooling, gather your ingredients. In the blender, add the achiote, juice, cider vinegar, oil, oregano, cumin and pepper. Using a slotted spoon, add the chiles in water and the garlic. Season to taste with salt. Blend on high until smooth. If sauce is too thick, add a little more juice or water. Strain through a wire mesh strainer into a bowl, set aside.
• Wash off turkey with cool water and pat dry. Clean out the inside of turkey. Season the inside with salt and pepper. Add the lemon, onion, half of butter and fresh herbs. Use cooking twine to tie the legs together if you like.
• Carefully, place the turkey on rack inside of roasting pan. Pull the skin up in the breast area and spread the remaining butter directly onto turkey. Put the skin back in place. Pour the adobo all over, using your hands to make sure it is coated evenly all over the surface of turkey. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate overnight. 
• When ready to cook, remove the turkey from refrigerator at least one hour before. Add 4 cups of water to the bottom of the pan. Remove the plastic wrap from turkey and discard. Cover the turkey tightly with heavy foil paper. Transfer to oven and roast in a 350 degree preheated oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes. 
• Remove the foil paper and continue roasting, basting as desired,  until the internal temperature of breast reads 158-160. Inner part of thigh should be at least 175 degrees.  Remove from the oven and tent loosely with foil. Let sit for 25 to 30 minutes before slicing. When ready, slice turkey. Pour the strained(warm) pan juices over the meat. Or save pan juices for gravy.
  
• All ovens will vary as far as the cooking times. If your turkey has a built in thermometer, start watching for it to pop up after 1 hour and 30 minutes.  Keep your meat thermometer handy!

Notes

In the past I have roasted my turkey in an oven bag. First season the inside of turkey and add the onion, garlic, butter, lemon and herbs, To do that, you will place the turkey in the bag and position it on the roasting rack in the pan. Rub with butter and then add the adobo. You will have to use your hands to make sure the adobo coats the turkey evenly. Follow instructions on oven bags box.

Roast as usual, but without the foil paper. During the last 30 minutes, cut open the bag and place turkey back in the oven uncovered to brown the skin. 

Tried this recipe?Mention @pinaenlacocina or tag #pinaenlacocina!

Above, mi Mama hermosa(my beautiful mom) on Thanksgiving during the 70’s in Los Angeles. My parents were born and raised in Monterrey, N.L., Mexico and moved to California in the early 60’s. I love how my Mom embraced the Thanksgiving tradition year after year. They only spoke to us in Spanish my whole life and I am thankful for that. It is because of that reason that I can speak both Spanish and English fluently. The wrought iron chairs in the photo, my Dad built with his own hands, the leather strap of a Mexican purse hanging from it. That punch bowl filled with sliced oranges! It fancy when we were little kids. The ring my Mom is wearing, I wear it proudly now. Now and then as I am cooking, I look down at my hands and I see her hands. The stuffing recipe that follows is probably the first American written recipe my Mom ever tried. The story was that she found it in the Los Angeles Times newspaper. I still prepare that same recipe to this day. 

Moms’ Turkey Stuffing-Dressing https://pinaenlacocina.com/moms-stuffing-recipe-thanksgiving/ 

It may not look like much or too fancy, but oh the memories that coming flooding back with every bite!!! Thank you Mom!

Mashed Potatoes and More! https://pinaenlacocina.com/potatoes-on-the-side-potato-recipes/

More Recipes! Keep on scrolling! 

Turkey Gravy with Herbs

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
3 cups of turkey drippings with broth, strained
Fresh cracked pepper
Salt to taste
2 teaspoons parsley, finely chopped
2 teaspoons chives, finely chopped

Directions

In a medium saucepan at medium heat, add the butter. As soon as it melts, whisk in the flour and cook for 1-2 minutes.

Pour in the warm drippings with broth from turkey. Whisk to combine and continue cooking and whisking until it comes to a boil.

Season with salt as needed and fresh cracked pepper, to taste. Mix in the herbs. Reduce heat slightly and cook until the gravy becomes thick. Serve right away.

Cranberry Orange Relish

12 ounces fresh cranberries
Drizzle of grapeseed oil
1 cup sugar
Zest and juice of 1 orange
Pinch of salt

Directions

Mix all of the ingredients in an oven safe dish. Place in a preheated 400 degree oven and roast for 20-25 minutes, mixing halfway through roasting time. Want to add a kick to your cranberry relish? Before roasting, mix in a little diced red onion, dice jalapeño or smoky chipotle in adobo! Roast as usual.

Rice Medley with Cranberries and Mushrooms

Ingredients 

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
1 cup uncooked rice mix
1/3 cup shallots, minced
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/3 cup carrots, finely chopped
Salt and Pepper, to taste
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 small poblano, previously roasted and diced
1/3 cup mushrooms(cooked), finely chopped
1/3 cup craisins(dried cranberries)
1 tablespoon flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

Directions

Add the butter and oil to a skillet and heat to medium. Once the butter melts, add the rice mix. Saute and toast the rice for 3-4 minutes.

Add the onion, garlic and carrots and saute for another 3 minutes. Season lightly with salt and pepper.

Add the broth. Stir gently yo combine. Cover tightly and cook for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes, add the poblanos, mushrooms and cranberries evenly over the top of rice. Cover again and continue cooking for 5-6 minutes or until the liquid has completely evaporated. Remove from heat and let stand for 10 minutes. Fold in the parsley with a fork and combine all the ingredients. Yields 6 servings.

Garlic Green Beans with Almonds

Ingredients

1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed
Kosher Salt
2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 /4 C Shallots, minced
1 /3 C Carrots, finely diced
Fresh cracked Pepper
Zest of 1 Lemon
1/4 C Toasted Almonds

Directions

After cleaning the green beans, you want to blanche them for 3-4 minutes in some salted boiling water.

Remove from boiling water when ready and transfer them directly to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process. After 2 minutes, drain water completely. Set aside.

In a large saute pan add the oil and butter and heat to medium.

After a few minutes, add the garlic, shallots and carrots. Season lightly with salt and fresh cracked pepper. Saute for 3-4 minutes or until the carrots are soft.

Add the green beans. Saute for another 3 minutes. Add a little more salt and pepper. Mix in the lemon zest. Transfer to serving dish. Top with toasted almonds. Yields 6 servings.