Roast Turkey Legs Larded with Bacon and Gratinated Potato Gnocchi with Spinach
Larding is a great way to make otherwise drier meat juicier. Chef Roman Paulus shows that this technique works just as well with poultry – in this case turkey legs. While they roast, we prepare a side dish of potato gnocchi with cream, onion, blanched spinach and three kinds of cheese.
Prep: 3 h 30 min
Servings: 4
Energy: 290 kcal per serving
Method
01.
Cut the bacon into small blocks and briefly freeze them.
02.
Make several incisions in the turkey legs with a sharp thin knife and lard them with the lightly frozen bacon. Season with salt and pepper and place in a roasting tin. Add the root vegetables cut into pieces, the onion, garlic cloves and a sprig of rosemary. Season with pepper, pour over a little olive oil, add a splash of water, cover and roast in an oven preheated to 130 °C for about 2 hours until tender. Add more water as needed and you can turn the legs. Then roast uncovered at 160 °C for about an hour until golden brown.
03.
Tip: If you bought large legs and you are not big eaters at home, two legs will be enough for 4 portions.
04.
While the turkey is finishing in the oven, prepare the side dish.
05.
Cook the gnocchi in boiling salted water for 2–3 minutes.
06.
Melt the butter in a heated pan and sauté the finely chopped onion and garlic. Pour in the cream, season with salt and pepper and add the blanched (cooked in salted water for 2–3 minutes) squeezed spinach. Add the cooked gnocchi to the sauce, briefly simmer, stir and transfer to a baking dish.
07.
Sprinkle the mixture with the grated cheeses and a little breadcrumbs. Bake in an oven preheated to 220 °C until golden brown (15–20 minutes).
08.
Serve ideally in the middle of the table in the roasting tin, so each guest can help themselves.
