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1
Put oven rack in lowest position and preheat oven to 500u00b0F.
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2
If using turkey wings, halve at joints with a cleaver or large knife. Transfer turkey parts, skin sides down, to a dry large heavy roasting pan and roast, turning over once, until golden brown, 30 to 45 minutes total. Transfer to a large stockpot, then add onions, celery, and carrots to roasting pan (arrange onions cut sides down) and roast, stirring once halfway through roasting, until golden, 10 to 20 minutes total. Transfer vegetables to stockpot.
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3
Straddle roasting pan across 2 burners, then add 2 cups water and deglaze pan by boiling over high heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, 1 minute. Add pan juices to stockpot along with remaining 4 1/2 quarts water and remaining ingredients and bring to a boil, skimming froth as necessary. Reduce heat and gently simmer, partially covered, 3 hours. Cool stock, uncovered, to room temperature, about 1 hour.
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4
Pour stock through a large fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl, discarding solids. Measure stock: If there is more than 9 cups, boil in cleaned pot until reduced. If there is less, add enough water to total 9 cups stock.
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5
If using stock now, let stand until fat rises to top, 1 to 2 minutes, then skim off and discard fat. If not using now, cool completely, uncovered, then chill, covered, before removing fat. Reheat stock before making turkey gravy.
