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Pavo a la Dominicana [Recipe + Video] Dominican Turkey
4.8 from 34 votes

Pavo a la Dominicana [Recipe + Video] Dominican Turkey

This Dominican turkey, or pavo a la dominicana stuffed with rice and pigeon peas recipe is exquisitely seasoned, impossibly juicy, and a traditional dish rediscovered and improved to make your Christmas shine.

Prep Time
1 hr
Cook Time
3 hrs
Total Time
4 hrs
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 816 kcal
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: South American, Dominican

Ingredients

For seasoning turkey
  • 1 red onion chopped, small
  • 6 clove garlic
  • ¼ cup capers
  • 3 tablespoons salt
  • 1 bunch parsley
  • lime or lemon, juice of 1
  • ¼ cubanelle pepper or bell pepper, chopped, aka cubanela
  • ½ tablespoon black pepper freshly cracked, freshly-cracked or ground
  • 1 whole turkey About 9 lb [4 kg] unbrined turkey, thawed
For moro de guandules
  • 1 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon cilantro chopped
  • ½ teaspoon garlic mashed
  • 1 cubanelle pepper chopped, aka cubanela
  • 1 pinch oregano dry, ground
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1½ cups pigeon peas boiled or canned (drained, also called guandules
  • 2 cups rice
For roasting
  • 1 tablespoon of browning (affiliate link)
  • ⅓ cup butter at room temperature, divided, salted

Instructions

Seasoning turkey (a day before roasting)
1. Making the marinade:
    Cup of Yum
  1. Mix the ingredients (onion, garlic cloves, capers, salt, parsley, lime juice, cubanela, and black pepper) for the seasoning and blend in the food processor to obtain a coarse paste.
2. Separate skin
  1. Slowly work your hand between the skin and the turkey meat, making sure not to pierce through the skin, separating as much as possible all the way down to the legs and neck (we're not skinning the turkey, just making space to rub seasoning under the skin).
3. Seasoning the turkey
  1. With a sharp knife carve 4 small holes into each side of the breast meat (don't pierce the skin!) and stuff them with the seasoning. Rub the rest of the seasoning under the turkey skin and inside the cavity. Place the turkey in a lidded container, or cover with aluminum foil, and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. Take out of the fridge a couple of hours before roasting to let it reach room temperature, while it does, make the stuffing.
Making the stuffing (right before roasting the turkey)
1. Sauteing seasoning
  1. Heat the oil in a ½ gal [2 lt] iron pot over medium heat, and add the cilantro, garlic, peppers, oregano, and salt and cook and stir for a minute. Add the peas, also while stirring. Once well heated, add 1¼ cups of water and bring to a boil.
2. Cooking rice
  1. Stir in rice and simmer over medium heat, stirring regularly and removing as much as you can of the rice that sticks to the bottom. When all the water has evaporated, set aside half of the rice (still not fully cooked!) to stuff the turkey, and cover the pot with the remaining rice with a tight-fitting lid and simmer over very low heat.
3. Finish cooking
  1. Simmer for 20 minutes. Move the rice from the bottom to the top so it cooks uniformly. Cover again and simmer for another 5 minutes.Uncover and taste for doneness. The rice should be firm but tender inside. If necessary, cover and simmer another 5 minutes over very low heat. Spoon into a serving bowl and keep covered until it's time to serve.
Roasting
1. Prepare for roasting
  1. Heat the oven at 325 ºF [160 ºC].Spread ¾ of the butter under the turkey skin. Stuff the holes you carved with some butter, and set aside the rest of the butter for later use.Stuff the turkey with the partially-cooked rice.
2. Stuffing
  1. Place on a baking tray with a wire rack (see below the recipe). Pull the skin to cover the turkey all over. Tie the legs with twine. Tie the wings tight against the skin by wrapping twine around the turkey.Paint all over the skin with browning.
3. Roasting
  1. Roast the turkey for 2½ hours, brushing all the exposed skin with butter every half hour. If any part starts to brown faster than the others, cover it with aluminum foil.
4. Check for doneness
  1. Once the 2½ hours have passed, test the turkey breast with a meat thermometer (see below the recipe). It should have reached 165 °F [74 ºC] when you hit the bone. You should also test inside the leg where it hits the ribs. If it hasn't reached that temperature, cook for another 20 minutes, and test again.If you don't have a meat thermometer, stab inside the thigh all the way to the bone, it is done if the juices run clear, and there's no sign of blood or pink meat. Cook for another 20 minutes, if necessary, and test again.
5. Serving
  1. Once done, remove from the oven and cover the pan with a clean tea towel. Let it rest for 20 minutes before serving.When it is time to serve, mix the stuffing with the rest of the reserved moro, heat the mixture until steam comes out, and stuff again, leaving part of the rice visible.

Notes

  • For easy cleaning, line the bottom pan with aluminum foil, as in the photo.
  • You don't need to stuff the turkey with moro de guandules, but let me tell you, you really ought to, it soaks up those flavors like a sponge. I could stuff my face with it all day.
  • You don't really have to use the browning, but it gives the turkey a really nice color. I recommend it if you can buy it.

Nutrition Information

Calories 816kcal (41%) Carbohydrates 48g (16%) Protein 85g (170%) Fat 30g (46%) Saturated Fat 11g (55%) Cholesterol 281mg (94%) Sodium 3539mg (147%) Potassium 1052mg (22%) Fiber 4g (16%) Sugar 1g (2%) Vitamin A 516IU (10%) Vitamin C 17mg (19%) Calcium 83mg (8%) Iron 4mg (22%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 8 servings

Amount Per Serving

Calories 816

% Daily Value*

Calories 816kcal 41%
Carbohydrates 48g 16%
Protein 85g 170%
Fat 30g 46%
Saturated Fat 11g 55%
Cholesterol 281mg 94%
Sodium 3539mg 147%
Potassium 1052mg 22%
Fiber 4g 16%
Sugar 1g 2%
Vitamin A 516IU 10%
Vitamin C 17mg 19%
Calcium 83mg 8%
Iron 4mg 22%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.