Southern-Style Smothered Turkey Necks

Turkey necks have entered the chat.  I have been hearing everybody talking about oxtails lately but turkey necks have always been my fave.  Trimming the fat and excess skin before cooking them was a game changer! They were beyond tender! After I seasoned them and seared all sides, I made brown gravy and simmered the turkey necks for a minimum of 3 hours.  Check out the Instagram reel here!

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Ingredients
2-3 lbs of turkey necks (fat and excess skin trimmed)
2 tbs of oil (I used Bacon-Up rendered bacon fat)
1/3 cup of corn or vegetable oil (for roux/gravy)
1/2 cup of all purpose flour
4 cups of chicken broth
2 yellow onions, diced finely
4 stalks of celer, diced finely
1 bell pepper, diced finely
2 tbs of minced garlic
Garlic Powder, to taste
Onion Powder, to taste
Badia Complete Seasoning, to taste
Adobo with Complete Seasoning, to taste
Black Pepper, to taste
Poultry Seasoning, to taste
Thyme, to taste
Parsley, to garnish
Kitchen bouquet
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
2. Wash the turkey necks with water and a tsp of lemon juice.
3.  Trim the excess fat and skin from the turkey necks, using kitchen shears.
4. Repeat step 2.
5. Pat the turkey necks dry with a paper towel and season with dry seasonings.
6. Add the Bacon-up or 2tbs of oil to a large, heavy bottomed roaster on medium-high heat.
7. Sear the turkey necks on all sides.
8.  Remove the turkey necks from the roaster and set aside.
9.  Add the remaining oil to the roaster and stir in the flour.
10. Continue to stir until the roux becomes dark brown in color.
11.  Stir in all of the raw seasonings, except the garlic.  Cook 2-3 minutes.
12. Stir in the garlic and cook an additional minute.
13.  Season the roux with the dry seasonings.
14.  Add the turkey necks back to the roaster.
15. Stir in the chicken broth until the gravy is uniform (meaning all of the roux is completely blended with the liquid). Optional: Add a tbs of kitchen bouquet to darken the gravy further.
16. Season the gravy with dry seasonings, to taste.
17.  Cover the roaster and bake for at least 3 hours.
18. Garnish the turkey necks with parsley.
19.  Serve over warm rice.