Pulled Turkey with Spiced Yoghurt & Flatbread

Ingredients

• 900 g turkey thighs or drumsticks, bone-in, skin removed
• 300 ml chicken stock
• salt and black pepper
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 0.5 tsp cinnamon
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 250 g plain yogurt
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 4 flatbreads, warmed
• shredded red cabbage and fresh coriander, to serve
• Chopped salad, to serve

Method

1. Heat the oven to 170°C fan. Mix the cumin, smoked paprika, ground coriander, garlic powder and cinnamon in a small bowl. Pat the turkey dry — water means steam, and steam means no browning — then season generously with salt and pepper and rub the spice mix all over every surface.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large casserole over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Brown the turkey in two batches, 3–4 minutes per side, until deeply burnished and the spices smell toasted rather than raw. Don't crowd the pan — all at once and the meat steams in its own juices instead of building that dark fond on the base. The bloom happens here too: those 30–60 seconds of contact let the cumin and paprika taste of themselves rather than dusty.
3. Lift the turkey out. Drop the onion into the pan and let it soften for 3–4 minutes, scraping up the spiced stuck bits. Pour in the chicken stock to deglaze, sliding a wooden spoon across the base so every bit of fond lifts into the liquid — that's where the depth lives. Settle the turkey back in.
4. Cover tightly and braise in the oven for 80–90 minutes, until the meat is collapsing off the bone and the juices are dark and glossy. You're looking for a fork to slide in with no resistance.
5. Lift out the turkey, discard the bones and shred the meat finely with two forks. Return it to the braising juices and toss until every strand is slick and coated. Taste, season, taste again — adjust now, not at the table. The juices should hum with salt and warm spice.
6. While the turkey rests, stir the yoghurt with the cumin, crushed garlic and a good squeeze of lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper and taste — it should be tangy, garlicky, and just sharp enough to cut the rich meat. Go easy on the raw garlic; it bites harder than cooked.
7. Warm the flatbreads in a dry pan or low oven until pliable and just starting to blister.
8. To serve: swipe each warm flatbread thickly with the cumin-garlic yoghurt, pile the pulled turkey on top, scatter generously with shredded red cabbage, and finish with torn fresh coriander.