Duration
2 hours
Wild turkey meat can be tough, especially the drumsticks. It’s why many hunters don’t even bother to keep their legs, which is a damn shame because they’re delicious. The best way to cook the drumstick also happens to be the easiest—pressure cook until the meat falls apart!
If you’ve ever made soup with the drumsticks before, then there’s a good chance you probably never did it again, am I right? Those pesky bones are the reason why I like to cook drumsticks separate from the rest of the bird. The bones I’m referring to are actually tendons that harden into bones through a process called ossification. When processing, some tendons can be removed at the joint where it connects to the foot using needle nose pliers, but there are still a bunch that can’t be taken out this way.
Cooking the meat in a pressure cooker with a little bit of chicken stock will cut the cooking time in half. Then, it’s easy to spend a couple of minutes picking out all the bones until you’re left with nothing but shredded meat. You can add the shredded meat to soup, such as the wild rice and turkey recipe, make a riff on chicken salad, or throw it in a taco.
For tacos, I like to season the shredded meat with my favorite taco seasoning, drizzle with oil, and then broil it in the oven at high heat to get crispy bits similar to carnitas. You can tuck these into tacos, sandwich between tortillas with loads of cheese for quesadillas, or stuff into empanadas like the ones in my cookbook, Wild + Whole. It’s excellent drizzled with a cilantro-lime crema and black bean and corn salsa.
Ingredients
- 2 turkey legs (thighs and drumsticks)
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 2 tbsp. avocado oil
- Taco seasoning
- Tortillas for serving
Black Bean & Corn Salsa
- 1 (15 oz.) can black beans
- 1 (15 oz.) can sweet corn
- ½ large red onion, finely diced
- 1 jalapeno, finely diced
- ½ bunch cilantro, finely chopped
- 1 lime, juiced
- Coarse sea salt
Cilantro-Lime Crema
- 1 cup Mexican crema or sour cream
- Zest and juice of 1½ limes
- ½ jalapenos, chopped
- ½ bunch cilantro, chopped
- 1 garlic clove
Special equipment
Preparation
- Place the turkey legs in a large pressure cooker and cover with stock. Lock the lid and pressure cook on high for 1½ to 2 hours or until the meat is tender. Release the pressure and steam, and remove the legs. Once cool enough to handle, remove all of the bones and shred the meat with a fork.
- Toss the meat with oil and season with your favorite taco seasoning. Spread across a baking sheet and place under a broiler for 2 to 3 minutes or until the edges get crispy. Remove and serve inside of the tacos with the salsa and crema.
Black Bean and Corn Salsa Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir to mix. Season to taste with salt and extra lime or jalapenos if desired.
Cilantro-Lime Crema Combine all the crema ingredients in a small food processor and pulse until smooth. Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate until ready to serve.
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Reviews
Wild turkey meat can be tough, especially the drumsticks. It’s why many hunters don’t even bother to keep their legs, which is a damn shame because they’re delicious. The best way to cook the drumstick also happens to be the easiest—pressure cook until the meat falls apart!
If you’ve ever made soup with the drumsticks before, then there’s a good chance you probably never did it again, am I right? Those pesky bones are the reason why I like to cook drumsticks separate from the rest of the bird. The bones I’m referring to are actually tendons that harden into bones through a process called ossification. When processing, some tendons can be removed at the joint where it connects to the foot using needle nose pliers, but there are still a bunch that can’t be taken out this way.
Cooking the meat in a pressure cooker with a little bit of chicken stock will cut the cooking time in half. Then, it’s easy to spend a couple of minutes picking out all the bones until you’re left with nothing but shredded meat. You can add the shredded meat to soup, such as the wild rice and turkey recipe, make a riff on chicken salad, or throw it in a taco.
For tacos, I like to season the shredded meat with my favorite taco seasoning, drizzle with oil, and then broil it in the oven at high heat to get crispy bits similar to carnitas. You can tuck these into tacos, sandwich between tortillas with loads of cheese for quesadillas, or stuff into empanadas like the ones in my cookbook, Wild + Whole. It’s excellent drizzled with a cilantro-lime crema and black bean and corn salsa.
Ingredients
- 2 turkey legs (thighs and drumsticks)
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 2 tbsp. avocado oil
- Taco seasoning
- Tortillas for serving
Black Bean & Corn Salsa
- 1 (15 oz.) can black beans
- 1 (15 oz.) can sweet corn
- ½ large red onion, finely diced
- 1 jalapeno, finely diced
- ½ bunch cilantro, finely chopped
- 1 lime, juiced
- Coarse sea salt
Cilantro-Lime Crema
- 1 cup Mexican crema or sour cream
- Zest and juice of 1½ limes
- ½ jalapenos, chopped
- ½ bunch cilantro, chopped
- 1 garlic clove
Special equipment
Preparation
- Place the turkey legs in a large pressure cooker and cover with stock. Lock the lid and pressure cook on high for 1½ to 2 hours or until the meat is tender. Release the pressure and steam, and remove the legs. Once cool enough to handle, remove all of the bones and shred the meat with a fork.
- Toss the meat with oil and season with your favorite taco seasoning. Spread across a baking sheet and place under a broiler for 2 to 3 minutes or until the edges get crispy. Remove and serve inside of the tacos with the salsa and crema.
Black Bean and Corn Salsa Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir to mix. Season to taste with salt and extra lime or jalapenos if desired.
Cilantro-Lime Crema Combine all the crema ingredients in a small food processor and pulse until smooth. Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate until ready to serve.