This easy turkey casserole is the ultimate hearty autumn/winter comfort food and it is budget-friendly as the ingredients used are seasonal. Perfectly paired with a slice of crusty bread and a glass of red wine for that ultimate indulgence. Don't like turkey, no problem, simply replace it with your favourite meat and you might need to adjust the cooking time accordingly.
Let cook!
Ingredients I Used:
1.2 kg turkey meat cut into bite-size
4 tablespoon oil
2 medium onions diced
2 celery sticks diced
4 garlic cloves minced
2 tablespoons tomato puree
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
500 ml vegetable stock
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 to 3 bay leaves
1 sprig of fresh rosemary
Salt and black pepper to taste
12 small salad potatoes halved
3 medium carrots diced
About 1 cup of hot water
METHODS
Step 1
Preheat oven to 140 c fan oven.
Pour oil into an oven-proof pan and place on the stove on medium to high heat.
Once the oil has heated up, add the turkey pieces and sear until browned all over, you might need to do this in batches depending on the size of your pan. Do not overcrowd the pan as it will create water instead of browning. Once browned, remove the meat from the pan, place a plate, and set aside.
Step 2
In the same pan, add the diced onion and celery, reduce heat to medium, and sautee for about 2 to 3 minutes or until softened. Add in the minced garlic and sautee for another 30 seconds then stir in the tomato paste and flour, and cook stirring constantly for about 1 minute.
Step 3
Return the browned turkey pieces to the pot, pour in the Worcestershire sauce and vegetable stock, season with salt and black pepper then add in the herbs ( bay and rosemary) then bring it to boiling.
Step 4
Once boiling, Cover the pot with a lid and place in a preheated oven. Let cook for 1 hour.
After 1 hour, remove from oven, add in the potatoes and carrot, taste for seasoning, and add if needed. Pour in more hot hot just enough to cover everything if needed and return to oven and continue baking for about 1 hour or until the potatoes are fully cooked.
Step 5
Once ready, remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving. I garnished mine with baby basil and it was amazing but you can use any fresh herbs of choice. It is delicious on it own but goes well with a crusty bread.
Helpful tips:
I used turkey pieces from the turkey drumstick which I cut myself as seen in the image below. It is cheaper and the drumstick is the most flavourful part of the turkey in my humble opinion. Keep the bone in the freezer and use it when making broth.
To make the vegetable stock, I simply diluted 1 knorr vegetable stock pot veg stock in 500 ml hot water, cheaper than buying 500 ml liquid stock.
