Our genius artisan butcher friend Paul Burton from Westcombe Charcuterie has written this pro guide to help you perfectly carve your turkey this Christmas. What a lovely chap.
1. Start by running the knife along the natural crease between the breast and the leg, slicing down to the joint. Now fold the leg back as if you were opening a book all the way until the joint ‘pops’, then slice the leg away from the rest of the bird.
2. To take the drum stick from the thigh, place the leg on the board with the skin side down and you will see white line in the ‘V’ of the leg, slice ever so slightly to the drum stick side of this and you will go straight through the joint.
3. Leave the wings until last, as they act as stabilisers while you’re carving. They are removed in a very similar way to the legs.
4. Instead of slicing the breast meat away from the carcass, take the breast off a whole side at a time and slice on the board. To do this first cut around the wishbone at the neck end and remove. Then slice just to one side of the breast bone one from front to back going all the way down to the carcass. You will now be able to fold the breast away from the bone and lay on the board and slice across the grain giving more tender eating.
Paul Burton has set up Westcombe Charcuterie at Westcombe Dairy in Somerset.
6 December 2017
