A turkey that tastes like Provençal lamb

Marinating a day ahead of time is the key to getting the flavor just right. Juices make an exceptional gravy

Why can’t turkey taste more like lamb — specifically, a Provençal-style leg of lamb, rubbed down with garlic, anchovies and rosemary?

This was the question my father asked whenever talk turned to Thanksgiving. He’d threaten to make something other than a bird for our group of 20 or more friends, relatives and neighbors — anyone who needed a place to go. But he gave in to tradition every time, grumbling at first, then lovingly fussing over each detail.

He liked to dabble in cooking trends, experimenting in an attempt to top the previous year’s effort. We ate our way through the Brining Years, the Slow-Roasting Era, the Spatchcocking Phase, the BastingWith-Butter-Every-30-Minutes Period, and a brief Cheesecloth-Over-theBreast moment. All the turkeys were juicy, with crisp brown skin. But he never rested. A better bird — more flavorful, more tender, more bronzed — was always in reach, if only he could find the right technique.

What my father was never able to try was treating the turkey as if it were a leg of lamb, and that’s what I’ve done here. Copying his (perfected) lamb-leg method, I pierced the turkey legs, making tiny slits in which to stuff a paste of garlic, anchovies and rosemary. After marinating the bird overnight, I roasted it until it was almost as gorgeously golden as his was. The garlic-scented drippings make the most wonderful gravy, which was not something he’d tried with lamb — no matter how much he loved experimenting.

Cooking tips: Turkey

• Even “fresh” turkeys are sometimes sold partly frozen. If yours has a cavity full of ice, give it a rinse with warm water to dislodge any icy chunks, then pat it dry and marinate as directed. It will continue to thaw as it marinates in the fridge.

• You’ll need to start marinating the turkey at least a day ahead, although two or three days is even better if you have the time and the space in your refrigerator.

• Chilling the turkey uncovered helps dry out the skin, yielding a particularly crisp and golden bird.

• Cutting tiny slits into the turkey legs helps evenly distribute the garlicanchovy paste, which flavors the meat all the way through.

• Some turkeys, especially heritage birds, can have pinkish meat even after they are cooked through. If you see a little pink around the leg joints even after roasting, fear not; as long as the temperature reaches 165 degrees at the thickest part of the thigh, the turkey is done.

Roast Turkey with Garlic and Anchovies

Yield: 8 to 10 servings with leftovers

Total time: 3 1⁄2 hours, plus overnight marinating

For the turkey:

8 garlic cloves

8 to 12 anchovy fillets, to taste 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary

1 tablespoon drained capers

1 tablespoon ground black pepper Kosher salt, as needed

1 (10- to 13-pound) turkey, giblets removed

1 small onion, thinly sliced

2 shallots, thinly sliced

1⁄2 small fennel bulb, diced

1⁄2 lemon, seeded and thinly sliced

1 cup dry white wine

1 to 2 quarts turkey or chicken stock, as

needed

Extra-virgin olive oil, as needed

For the gravy:

1⁄2 cup dry white wine