Cuban Thanksgiving Turkey Recipe

• 12-14 lb Size turkey
• 8 tbsp Unsalted butter
• Fresh ground pepper as needed
• Salt as needed
  
  Marinade
• 1 Garlic head, break in cloves and peel
• 1 Cup Lime juice or sour orange juice
• 1 tsp Fresh ground pepper
• 1 -1/2 tsp Ground cumin
• 2 tsp Dried oregano
• 1 tbsp Salt

• The day before, remove giblets and any lumps of fat from the turkey cavities.
• Rinse the turkey properly and blot dry.
• Season the inside with salt and pepper and loosen the turkey skin from the meat.
• To do this, begin at the neck and tunnel your fingers, then whole hand, under the skin to separate the skin from the breast meat.
• Slide your hand down to loosen the skin over the thighs, drumsticks and back carefully, so as not to tear the skin.
• For the marinade, mash the garlic and salt in a mortar to make a fine paste.
• Add pepper, cumin, oregano and all the lime juice or sour orange juice and puree the ingredients.
• Now add 3 tbsp marinade to the main cavity and 1 tbsp to the neck cavity.
• Put rest of the marinade under the skin and work over a roasting pan to catch any runoff from the marinade.
• Keep the bird in a big plastic bag with any excess marinade and marinate the turkey overnight into the refrigerator, turning some times.
• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
• Thinly cut the butter and put half of the slices under the skin.
• Melt rest of the butter.
• Tie the turkey and put it on a rack in a roasting pan, breast side up.
• Brush the skin of the turkey with some melted butter.
• Loosely drape a big piece of cheesecloth over the skin and pour rest of the butter and marinade over the cheesecloth.
• Roast it for about 2 hours and baste it with the juices and butter that gather in the pan.
• Lift the cheesecloth from time to time to keep it from sticking to turkey.
• Raise the oven temperature to 350 degrees F and roast for about 1 hour.
• Now again raise the heat to 400 degrees F and take away the cheesecloth from the turkey.
• Roast for about 15 to 20 minutes, basting often.
• When cooked, the skin will turn to golden and the leg juices will run clear when pierce with a fork.
• The internal temperature should be 185 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer and the drumstick should loose when wiggled.
• Shift the turkey to a tray or cutting board.
• Let stand for about 15 minutes before carving.
• Now strain the pan juices and serve it on the side.