Turkey meat has long been considered the mosthigh-quality and healthy type of dietary poultry meat. Turkeys are bred in many countries, including ours. Therefore, the beneficial and harmful properties of turkey meat have long been studied by many specialists.

Features and breeding

Turkey is a fairly large domestic animal.a bird of the pheasant family. Its homeland is America. Even the Aztecs ate turkey meat, it was their only domestic bird. In the 16th century, these birds were brought to Spain, and after some time they began to be bred in England, France and all over Europe. Turkeys are considered the largest domestic birds. Their live weight reaches: for males - up to 35 kg, for females - up to 11 kg. These birds have a wide tail and strong long legs. On the head and neck they have specific skin formations in the form of corals, and in males a fleshy appendage hangs from the upper part of the beak, which when the bird is excited reaches 12-15 cm. The plumage of turkeys can be bronze, white and black, depending on the breed and variety. Turkey meat is considered a very valuable type of meat in modern society and is second only to chicken in terms of consumption. Turkey meat is of very high quality in the USA, much higher than in any other country. In our country, the following breeds are mainly bred: North Caucasian White, North Caucasian Bronze, Black Tikhoretsk, White Moscow, Fawn and White Broad-breasted.

Application of turkey

Turkey meat is very common incooking. Turkey is a very tender and lean meat that does not require special culinary skills. Many dishes are prepared from it: it is fried, boiled, stewed, baked and added to salads. Turkey breast is stuffed with vegetables, fruits, mushrooms, nuts. In many European countries, stuffed Christmas turkey, baked whole for Thanksgiving, is quite popular. Escalopes are prepared from this type of meat, which are marinated in oil, lemon juice and spices. Turkey shashlik is incomparable, for which the breast and thighs are suitable. Those who do not like the smell of fried turkey are advised to put boiled or fresh vegetables or nutmeg inside the carcass before cooking. Boiled young potatoes, boiled rice, French fries, boiled or fresh vegetables are very good as a side dish. Turkey is served with dry white wine. In our country, this bird is not very common, as it loves heat. However, despite this, this meat is sold in many grocery stores both frozen and fresh.

Benefits and harm of turkey

Turkey meat is very healthy because ithas dietary properties. This bird is bred in many countries, and therefore its benefits and harms have long been studied and proven by specialists. The benefit of turkey meat is that it contains many vitamins A and E. It has a very low cholesterol content, which allows it to be very easily absorbed by the human body. Turkey contains a large number of trace elements: calcium, iron, potassium, and so on. The huge benefit of turkey is the protein content, which is very necessary for the human body. This meat contains much more sodium than veal and beef. The beneficial properties of sodium contained in turkey are that it helps to increase blood plasma and ensures normal metabolic processes in the body. Turkey meat is also useful because its fat content is moderate and contributes to the normal absorption of such an element as calcium, which plays a very important role in the formation of bone tissue. For this reason, this type of meat is recommended for the prevention of various diseases. For a long time, nutritionists have been discussing the benefits and harms of turkey, each time proving that it contains more iron than beef or chicken. Many doctors prescribe turkey to patients with anemia. There is also an opinion that turkey meat can prevent the occurrence of cancer. It is recommended to add turkey to your diet:

• to small children as complementary foods;
• pregnant women for whom the folic acid contained in this meat is important;
• lactating women;
• suffering insomnia, in which tryptophan contained in a turkey, has a hypnotic effect;
• suffering from depression and stress;
• people who experience heavy physical activity.

Turkey meat contains phosphorus, which isas much as in fish. It is also rich in vitamins A, B2, B12, PP, B6, calcium, potassium, magnesium, iodine, selenium, manganese and sulfur. Turkey meat has almost no contraindications. It can be harmful only if it is stale or of poor quality. Therefore, when choosing meat, you need to be careful to get the maximum benefit, not harm. To summarize, it can be said that turkey has almost no harmful properties. However, it should be remembered that turkey will not benefit people suffering from kidney disease or gout, since it contains a large amount of protein. Such patients need to limit the consumption of this meat. Also, due to the large amount of sodium, hypertensive patients are advised not to add salt to turkey during cooking. Otherwise, the harmful properties of turkey will outweigh its benefits. It is worth noting that turkey liver can be harmful to those who suffer from kidney failure or gout.

Tips for choosing, storing and cooking turkey

If you decide to buy turkey meat, you need to decide in what form you want to buy it, frozen or fresh. Today, supermarkets offer a wide selection:

• whole turkey;
• cut into pieces;
• loin section;
• in the form of minced meat;
• separately you can buy a shin, hips, wings, breast and offal.

When choosing this type of meat, you need to pay attentionPay attention to the carcass, which should be plump, meaty, the legs and breast should be thick. The skin of the carcass should be light, with a yellowish tint, moist and without spots. If you want your turkey to be the most delicious, you need to determine its freshness by pressing your finger on the carcass: if the dent is immediately restored, then the meat is fresh, and if it does not recover, then you should not buy it. Fresh turkey meat should be stored in the refrigerator in a plastic bag, only if you are going to cook it soon. Turkey cannot be stored for a long time, no more than a day. If you defrost the meat, you need to cook it right away, since at room temperature microbes begin to multiply in it quite quickly and if re-frozen, they will remain there. There are many recipes for cooking turkey. It is fried, baked, boiled, stewed and smoked. This meat is also steamed. Cutlets, canned food, pates and sausages are very tasty from this type of meat. Turkey is often included in the diet of children. Each country uses its own methods of preparing dishes from turkey meat. For example, in Great Britain they prepare turkey stuffed with berries and mushrooms. In France, the turkey carcass is stuffed with truffles, mushrooms and rosemary, and before serving the finished dish is poured with creamy sauce. Italians stuff turkey with oranges. Turkey eggs are very healthy, and the down and feathers of this bird are used to make clothes and stuff pillows and blankets. It takes quite a long time to cook this type of meat in the oven. When cooking it, you need to preheat the oven to 200 degrees and bake the turkey for about 3 hours. But turkey does not take long to cook. To do this, you need to put it in cold water and cook for half an hour. If you are preparing a second course, you can put the meat in boiling water and cook it for about an hour and a half. If foam forms, you need to remove it. It should be noted that during cooking, the carcass shrinks and loses up to 30% of its liquid. If you are going to fry a turkey, you need to salt it on all sides and, if desired, rub it with garlic and black pepper. To make the meat juicier, you need to grease it with sour cream and, during frying, pour the fat formed during frying from time to time. This takes about 2 hours. To fry it, you need to turn it over. You can determine the readiness of the turkey by piercing it. If clear juice comes out, you can consider the meat ready.

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