This tandoori turkey crown is a great play on the traditional turkey dinner.
Personally, I prefer to cook a whole turkey as I love the brown meat you get from the legs, thighs and wings. Many people prefer the white meat and this tandoori turkey crown is a great way to get just that… white meat. It’s also the perfect size for cooking succulent, juicy turkey in a tandoor oven.
If you prefer cooking a whole turkey, you can use this tandoori turkey crown marinade for that too. It will take longer to cook of course.
About this recipe.
Turkey crowns serve fewer people which was exactly what I did with this recipe for Thanksgiving. There were only five of us around the table this year so there was no need to cook a whole turkey and I wanted to cook my tandoori turkey crown in my new Doori tandoor oven.
So I applied the same marinade I do for chicken and whole turkey to the crown and let it marinate for one hour before skewering it and letting it cook in the tandoor. The result was sublime with a delicious smoky flavour and very juicy, delicious breast meat. What’s more, it was ready to serve in just over an hour!
Do you have to cook this tandoori turkey crown in a tandoor oven?
No but if you have one, use it. You can also roast your tandoori turkey crown over indirect heat on you barbecue or in a conventional oven. To do either, get your cooking temperature up to 175°C/350°F and roast it until the internal temperature reaches 74°C/165°F. Then transfer it to a cutting board and let it rest for about 15 minutes before carving.
Can you cut the turkey into tikka (small bite sized pieces) instead of cooking the whole crown?
Yes. how you cook and serve the turkey is down to your personal preference. When serving a group, I like to serve the whole roast but if you prefer, you could cut the turkey breasts off the bone and marinate it that way before skewering and cooking.
You can cook the turkey tikka on skewers in a tandoor or over hot coals on a barbecue as I do with chicken here or even fry it in a pan as with this stovetop tandoori chicken tikka recipe.
Why have you not added yoghurt the marinade?
If you have been reading my blog or read my books, you might know that I don’t always add yoghurt to my tandoori marinades.
It just isn’t needed unless you plan to marinate the meat for longer than 2 hours. Most tandoori marinades include lemon or lime juice and/or vinegar. These are all natural tenderisers but if left to marinate for too long, they will have the opposite effect.
If you have the time to marinate your tandoori turkey crown for longer, 24 to 48 hours, it will be even better but be sure to add anywhere from 4 tbsp to 200g/1 cup of whisked Greek yoghurt if you do. This will counter the effect of the lemon or lime juice and allow you to marinate longer.
How do you skewer a whole turkey crown for the tandoor oven?
This is a bit tricky but not what I would call difficult. I use two skewers which I weave through the crown at angles so that they cross each other.
There is a photo of this below. Then you need to place a potato at the end of each skewer for extra security. You don’t want your beautiful turkey crown to go sliding into the coals!
How do you set up the tandoor for cooking?
Before placing a large joint of meat like this in a tandoor, it is important to move all the coals to one side. You want the tandoor to be hot but that heat should be focussed on one side of the tandoor. The radiating heat will then cook the turkey without burning. You will need to move the turkey around in the tandoor from time to time so that it cooks evenly.
Watch the turkey crown as it cooks carefully. If it looks like the skin it getting too charred, simply turn the skin away from the the fire.
How important is the cooking heat?
I prefer to cook my turkey at 175°C/350° but maintaining this exact heat isn’t aways easy in a tandoor or some barbecues. No worries. Try to keep it about that temperature using my instructions below.
If you get any flare ups while cooking, or the tandoor is too hot, don’t panic! You can simply take the turkey out of the tandoor and let it rest on top over the heat until the flames subside and/or you adjust the heat.
How do you cook a whole tandoori turkey?
Turkeys can be quite large so they are not usually suitable for a small home tandoor. So when cooking a whole turkey, I place it over indirect heat on my barbecue and cook it at 175°C/350°F until it reaches an internal temperature of 74°C/165°F.
There is something else I do which I highly recommend doing when cooking a whole turkey. Large whole turkeys require a longer cooking time and the meat can turn dry if you’re not careful.
When cooking a whole bird, I add an additional 100g /3.5oz soft butter to the marinade and ensure I get a lot of that marinade under breast, leg and thigh skin. This will help ensure the meat stays moist and also adds a nice flavour.
How long can you store leftovers in the fridge?
You can store any leftovers in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. They are great hot or cold in sandwiches or you could cut them up and stir them into a pasta sauce or curry.
Step by step photographs.
Get all of your ingredients prepared and ready before you start.
Run your hand under the skin at the neck end to separate the skin fron the meat and then continue using a rubber spatula or similar.
How do you separate the skin from the meat of the turkey crown for cooking in a tandoor oven?
When cooking in a tandoor oven, you need to do this a little differently to how you would do it if you were cooking the crown flat in a barbecue or oven.
When cooking the turkey in the oven, breast side up, you can loosen the whole skin from the turkey meat. When cooking a crown, you do not want to separate the whole skin. Leave about an inch or connected skin so that the buttery marinade doesn’t drip out while cooking.
Place all of the marinade ingredients in a mixing bowl and whisk until smooth. It should be creamy so add more soft butter or yoghurt if necessary.
Rub most of the marinade under the skin and in the slots left when the wings were removed. Any additional marinade can be rubbed on top of the skin.
Skewer the turkey from the neck end with two skewers by criss-crossing them through the breasts. Try to weave them through rather than simply sticking them straight through the meat. Season the skin with more salt and pepper.
Carefully lower the tandoor turkey crown into the tandoor with the skin facing the burning charcoal.
Leave to cook and begin crisping the skin for about 20 minutes. The ideal cooking temperature is 175°C/350°F but a little hotter is fine too.
How do you maintain a steady cooking heat?
Some tandoor ovens have adjustable vents so that you can adjust the temperature by allowing more or less air to come in from the bottom. Many tandoor ovens like the Doori don’t but you can still adjust the heat.
The Doori tandoor has a small air hole at the bottom. If you find that the temperature is too high, you can stick a ball of foil in the whole. You can adjust the size of the foil ball to allow more or less air to flow in.
Your tandoor will go to very high heats if the hole is left open. By cutting off the air flow, the temperature will drop. You will need to play with it some but it’s really not a difficult job.
Another way to adjust the heat is with the lid. Take the lid off or partially off to lower the heat. Place it securely on to to increase the cooking heat.
If you feel the skin is getting too charred, turn the skin away from the burning charcoal.
My tandoor was too hot for a while so I took the turkey out and placed it on top to continue cooking and smoking while the tandoor cooled some.
You can take this resting time to baste the turkey all over with more melted butter. It really does get that skin juicy and crispy.
When the internal heat reaches 74°C/165°, transfer it to a cutting board and let it rest for 15 minutes before slicing.
I will be cooking more turkey crowns like this. It came out amazing!
If you like this tandoori turkey crown, you might like to try some of these dishes that can also be cooked in a tandoor, BBQ or oven.
- Tandoori Salmon Tikka
- Turkish Chicken Wings
- Tandoori Monkfish
- Tandoori Whole Fish
- Turkish Chicken Kebabs
Have you tried this tandoori turkey crown recipe?
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Prep Time
20 minutes
Cook Time
1 hour
Total Time
1 hour 20 minutes
Ingredients
- 2.5kg (5 lbs) turkey crown
- 2 tsp each salt and pepper (approximately and optional)
- FOR THE TANDOORI MARINADE
- 70ml (1⁄4 cup) melted ghee or soft butter plus more for basting
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tbsp tandoori masala
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp amchoor (dried mango powder)
- 1 tbsp Kashmiri chilli powder (more or less to taste, or mild paprika)
- 2 tbsp garlic and ginger paste
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
- If time permits, rub a generous amount of salt and pepper into the skin about 12 hours before preparing the marinade. Leave the turkey on a plate, uncovered in the fridge. The turkey will release some red juices. Pour that out and pat the turkey dry.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk all of the marinade ingredients together. It should be quite creamy. If not, add more soft butter or a few tablespoons Greek yoghurt. I left the yoghurt out this time as I was only marinating the turkey for an hour but if marinating longer, you do want to add yoghurt.
- From the neck end of the turkey crown, carefully push your hand under the skin to detach it from the meat. If you are cooking in a tandoor, don’t push your hand all the way through. Leave about an inch of connected skin so that all your hard work doesn’t go dripping into the fire. I find that using a rubber spatula helps with this but be very careful not to rip the skin.
- Now start rubbing the marinade under the skin and on the bottom of the turkey crown. Also get it right into the holes on the sides where the wings were removed.
- If you want, you can make shallow slashes under the skin into the meat but I didn’t find this necessary.
- Preheat your tandoor to 175°C/350°F. In the Doori I use, there is an air vent at the bottom but it is not adjustable. No problem. If you find your tandoor is getting too hot, cut off some or all of the air flow by blocking it with a ball of foil. You can also often adjust the heat by removing or partially removing the lid at the top.
- Keeping a steady heat is all about that air flow so start by adjust the air flow at the bottom and then adjust with the lid if necessary.
- Once your cooking heat is steady, take two skewers and criss-cross them through the turkey. You should try to weave them through and not just stick them straight through. Then place a potato at the end of each skewer.
- Push all the hot coals to one side of the tandoor and then lower the turkey crown into the tandoor with the skin facing the burning charcoal. Leave to roast for about 20 minutes but watch it carefully. When the skin looks like it is browning nicely, turn it so that the skin is facing away from the flam and continue cooking.
- If at any time you find that the tandoor is getting too hot, don’t worry! Simply take the whole turkey out and let it roast, breast side up on top of the tandoor. It will continue to cook and the smoky flavour is amazing.
- While the turkey is resting on top, you can take this opportunity to baste it all over with melted ghee or butter.
- Lower the turkey back into the tandoor and continue cooking, maneuvering and moving as necessary until the internal heat reach 74°C/165°F.
- Transfer the cooked turkey grown to a cutting board and allow to rest for 15 to 20 minutes before slicing. This tandoori turkey crown is delicious served with coriander and chilli chutney.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6
Serving Size:
1
Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 173Total Fat: 15gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 11mgSodium: 1755mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 2gSugar: 3gProtein: 2g
