Jamaican Style Turkey Neck (Ghetto Oxtail)
This Jamaican Turkey Neck recipe is a classic Sunday dinner favorite for me. Its fall-off-the-bone texture and flavor will have you going for seconds and thirds.
Equipment
- 1 Pressure Cooker Pot
Ingredients
- 2-3 lb turkey neck cut into medium pieces
- 1 tbsp ginger grated
- 2 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tbsp Maggi all-purpose seasoning
- 1 tbsp browning sauce
- 2 large spoons of green seasoning blend (you can also use store-bought)
- 1 small onion chopped
- 1 small bell pepper sliced into matchsticks
- 1 scotch bonnet pepper
- a few Pimento berries
- 2 tsp tomato paste or 2 tbsp ketchup
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 stalks scallion
- 1 large carrot sliced into matchsticks
- Coconut oil
- 1 tsp brown sugar optional
Spinners Dumpling:
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt optional
- water to combine
Instructions
Directions for Spinners:
- In a bowl, sift the flour and add salt. Mix to combine.
- Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add water in stages to form a dough.
- When it’s time to add spinners to the pot, pinch small pieces of dough, rub between your palms, then drop each piece into the pot.
Directions:
- Wash meat with vinegar and lime. Remove any membrane and fat from each piece.
- Season turkey neck pieces with all-purpose seasoning, cumin, pimento seeds, browning, ginger, and green seasoning blend. Marinate for up to 2 hours or overnight.
- Heat oil in a pressure cooker pot over medium heat. Add brown sugar. Burn slightly. Brown turkey neck pieces for 1 minutes on both sides. Remove from the pot and set aside.
- Re-add meat to the pot and cover with boiling water. Seal the pressure cooker cover and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Once cool, check the meat to ensure it’s tender enough. Return to the flame and add the remaining ingredients: thyme, escallion, onion, ketchup, carrots, bell pepper, and scotch bonnet pepper.
- Stir to combine, then add spinners last. Adjust to taste.
- Cover and allow to cook for 10-15 minutes.
- Serve as desired.
Notes
Notes for Cooking Turkey Neck:
- Try not to overcrowd the pot when browning the meat. This gives it a nice color at the end.
- Adding sugar is optional. I’ll do this sometimes if I want a richer gravy and sweet, savory flavors.
- If you’ve never used a pressure cooker before, then you may always cook this dish in a dutch oven over medium heat. However, this will take much longer, as you try to soften the bones of the meat.
- Add broad beans instead of spinners or both for a heftier meal.