Turkey Day

[Mikey]

What's your Thanksgiving menu, and how are you going to fix your turkey (assuming you'll be having one)?

I haven't worked out the whole menu yet but there are a few staples that we always have:

Turkey (stuffed)
Mashed potatoes
Peas
Some kind of sweet potato dish
Relish plate with an assortment of both fresh and pickled veggies
Pumpkin pie
Mincemeat pie

I'm going to brine my turkey and roast in the oven. I've been brining for the past 3 or 4 years and have found it to be the best way of preparing the bird. I'm going to maybe try a different brine recipe this year. Yesterday I ordered one of those fresh free-range turkeys that lived a happy life before getting slaughtered.

[Ruff]

Never stuff the turkey. Never.

You may end up with good tasting stuffing, but you will ruin the bird.

bake your stuffing in a seperate dish. The stuffing in a bird acts as a huge sponge and dries out the meat. Horrible.

I prefer to brine the bird and grill on the weber.

All of the other traditional dishes are inclueded on our table:
stuffing
mashed potatoes
sweet potatoes
cranberry relish
pie, pie pie

[Mikey]

The stuffing in a bird acts as a huge sponge and dries out the meat. Horrible.

Not if you do it right.

[trev]

Our usual is:

Turkey
Dressing
Gravy
Mashed potatoes
Peas
Cranberry sauce
Rolls/Butter
Pumpkin Pie

But, I'm going to try some new things this year. Maybe a pecan pie.
And researching some new side dishes.

[Ruff]

The stuffing in a bird acts as a huge sponge and dries out the meat. Horrible.

Not if you do it right.

Feel free to share. Or not.

A turkey cooked w/o stuffing will always be more moist and tasty than a stuffed bird.

[Mikey]

The stuffing in a bird acts as a huge sponge and dries out the meat. Horrible.

Not if you do it right.

Feel free to share. Or not.

A turkey cooked w/o stuffing will always be more moist and tasty than a stuffed bird.

Well now, "more moist and tasty" is one thing (and maybe true for all I know). But that's a lot different than saying any stuffed bird will automatically be "horrible". I've cooked plenty of stuffed Thanksgiving turkeys and none of them have ever been horrible.

That being said, you've convinced me (well, partly you) to try it "unstuffed" this year. Several reasons besides the fact that I'm now afraid of producing a horrible stuffed bird.

- Less cooking time

- Easier prep

We usually try to eat in the early afternoon on Thanksgiving. This means, especially with a large bird, getting up early in the morning to prepare the bird, prepare the dressing, and get it in the oven. There's more work in getting the dressing made than there is in getting the bird ready. Leaving the dressing out will take a lot of the early morning time pressure off, so I can start drinking sooner and make the dressing later.

In this article from Wednesday's LA Times they compare four ways of cooking a turkey, side by side, and they didn't stuff any of them. Steam roasting, high temperature roasting, brining and dry-salting. Apparently the dry-salted one came out best, but only after screwing it up once and doing it over. I'm still gonna do the brining.

The Great Turkey Smackdown!

This is the recipe I'm going to try this year, but I'm going to make gravy out of the drippings. I would try doing it on my rotisserie, but I'd be very unpopular here if I cooked a turkey without any gravy

You got any wonderful tips to avoid a horrible turkey?

RECIPE: Roast heritage turkey

November 15, 2006

Total time: 3 hours, 20 minutes, plus overnight standing time

Servings: 12 to 16

Note: From Christian Shaffer, chef-owner of Auberge at Ojai and Avenue in Manhattan Beach. A free-range turkey may be substituted for the heritage turkey.

2 cups plus 1 tablespoon kosher salt, divided

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 onion, sliced

2 heads garlic, divided

2 bunches fresh thyme, divided

1/2 teaspoon celery seed

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided

1 (13- to 15-pound) heritage turkey

7 parsnips, peeled, divided

1 carrot, peeled

1 onion

1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter, divided

12 small Forelli or Seckle pears, cored and seeded, but left whole

1 tablespoon salt

1/2 cup, or more, chicken broth

1. In a large pot, bring 2 quarts water to a boil with 2 cups kosher salt, the sugar, sliced onion, 1 head garlic, 1 bunch thyme, the celery seed and 1 tablespoon black pepper. Boil for 15 minutes. Add 1 1/2 gallons cold water. Prick the skin of the turkey in a few places on the breast and thigh and place the bird in the brine. Refrigerate, covered, in the brine for 24 hours, turning the bird a few times.

2. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Remove the turkey from the brine and rinse with cold water inside and out. Dry the interior and exterior well using paper towels.

3. Roughly chop 1 parsnip, the carrot and the onion. Cut the head off the garlic crosswise. Season the turkey cavity with 1 teaspoon salt and one-half teaspoon pepper. Place the parsnip, carrot, onion, garlic, 1 bunch thyme and 4 tablespoons of cut-up butter into the turkey cavity. Secure the legs and wings with butcher twine.

4. Season the exterior of the turkey with the remaining salt and pepper and dot with the remaining butter. Place into a heavy roasting pan and roast for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, basting every 15 minutes. The internal temperature when a meat thermometer is inserted into the deepest part of the thigh, not touching the bone, should be 165 degrees.

5. About 30 minutes before the turkey is done, add the remaining parsnips — sliced into quarters lengthwise — and the pears. Continue basting.

6. Remove the turkey and let rest for 15 minutes before slicing. Remove the pears and parsnips and keep warm.

7. Remove any burned bits from the bottom of the roasting pan, if necessary. Add about one-half cup chicken broth and heat, stirring up any browned bits in the bottom of the roasting pan. Strain the juices through a fine mesh strainer, if desired.

8. Carve the turkey and arrange on a platter, then cut the pears into quarters or halves and arrange them around the turkey with the parsnips. Spoon jus over all.

Each serving: 604 calories; 64 grams protein; 23 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams fiber; 27 grams fat; 10 grams saturated fat; 229 mg. cholesterol; 1,052 mg. sodium.

[Ruff]

Wise decision Mikey. Everyone would do well to heed my sage advice.

The problem is compounded by the increased risk of food poisoning. When you stuff a bird, you put bread cubes into a raw turkey. The risk of contaminating the stuffing with Salmonella is greatly increased.

The only way to eliminate the risk it to cook the stuffing to a safe temp of 165 degrees. By the time your stuffing is reading 165 your meat is dry, and tastes HORRIBLE!

[Ruff]

You got any wonderful tips to avoid a horrible turkey?

Sorry, missed your question.

The best recommendation I can give you is to not overcook the meat.
Turkey is wonderful, flavorful, moist and delicious if you don't overcook it.

Your recipe looks good. When I brine my turkey I start by thawing the bird in a medium sized cooler, just large enough to hold the bird and a bag of ice.
This works best for me because around Thanksgiving time I've always got enough other stuff in my fridge that I have a hard time thawing a turkey in it.
So, a couple days ahead of cooking I put frozen bird and ice into plastic cooler. (You'll probably need to check it occasionally and add more ice/drain water. I don't live in LoCal and have no idea what 80 degree days in November are like.) The night before cooking the bird I unwrap the turkey from it's bag. It may still be a bit frozen, but the brining will thaw the rest. I brine right in the same plastic cooler, for same reasons mentioned above.

Follow the rest of your recipe. The only other recommendation would be to use an electronic thermometer with a steel cable/remote probe. These devices are a must. (see Must have Kitchen gadget thread.) It sounds an alarm when the designated temperature is reached.

Good luck.

[indyfrisco]

For anyone interested in fried turkey, I'll give up the family recipe for injection.

After eating it fried, I will never eat another roasted turkey again, even if I'm a guest somewhere else.

[Mikey]

You got any wonderful tips to avoid a horrible turkey?

Sorry, missed your question.

The best recommendation I can give you is to not overcook the meat.
Turkey is wonderful, flavorful, moist and delicious if you don't overcook it.

Your recipe looks good. When I brine my turkey I start by thawing the bird in a medium sized cooler, just large enough to hold the bird and a bag of ice.
This works best for me because around Thanksgiving time I've always got enough other stuff in my fridge that I have a hard time thawing a turkey in it.
So, a couple days ahead of cooking I put frozen bird and ice into plastic cooler. (You'll probably need to check it occasionally and add more ice/drain water. I don't live in LoCal and have no idea what 80 degree days in November are like.) The night before cooking the bird I unwrap the turkey from it's bag. It may still be a bit frozen, but the brining will thaw the rest. I brine right in the same plastic cooler, for same reasons mentioned above.

Follow the rest of your recipe. The only other recommendation would be to use an electronic thermometer with a steel cable/remote probe. These devices are a must. (see Must have Kitchen gadget thread.) It sounds an alarm when the designated temperature is reached.

Good luck.

You're using frozen turkeys? Horrible.



I'll be picking up my fresh turkey on Tuesday night. No thawing required. No preservatives, no hormones, no added broth or anything else.

To brine it I'll put it in a clean trash compactor bag, add the brine, twist tie it off and put it in a large cooler, with ice around it to keep it cold. I won't need to refrigerate, or add/remove water. Just check to make sure there's still ice around it. Won't need to wash out the cooler so thoroughly when I'm done either.

[SunCoastSooner]

My Thanksgiving menu will consist of...

A Ham sammich, Bud Light, and football.

Tha holidays kind of suck when your single without a family... but I'm looking forward to Christmas cause I'll have my daughter for that.

[Mikey]

My Thanksgiving menu will consist of...

A Ham sammich, Bud Light, and football.

Tha holidays kind of suck when your single without a family... but I'm looking forward to Christmas cause I'll have my daughter for that.

Roasted, grilled, or fried?

[fix]

Otis's rule: If you do nothing else, the most important step to cooking a good bird is.

After you wash tbe turkey, before you put it into the pan, cover it in a coating of mayonaise.

It'll keep the juices inside when you cook the bird.

And then just follow along...

For whole bird, remove giblets and neck from body cavity. Rinse turkey and pat dry with absorbent paper. Fill neck cavity loosely with desired stuffing/dressing. Do not pack, as stuffing/dressing expands during roasting. Fold neck skin over stuffing/dressing in cavity opening and fasten securely to back with skewers. Stuff body cavity loosely. Lock wings behind the back and tie drumsticks to bird with kitchen twine or heavy string. Place turkey on a metal rack coated with non-caloric vegetable cooking spray in a shallow ungreased roasting pan. Insert a meat thermometer, if desired, into the thickest part of the breast or inside thigh. Brush entire bird liberally with mayonnaise or melted butter. Sprinkle bird lightly with salt and pepper. Add ½ to1 cup water and chicken bouillon cube(s) to pan. Baste bird frequently during roasting. Place a tent of aluminum foil, shiny-side turned in, loosely over bird. Allow a hole in the foil for the meat thermometer or pop-up timer. Bake in a preheated slow oven (325 degrees F.) until done, about 4 ½ to 5 hours. Allow 20 to 25 minutes per pound for roasting. Meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast should register 170 degrees F. or thermometer inserted into the area between the body and thigh should register 180 degrees F. Cut string holding legs when bird is two-thirds cooked. Remove foil during the last 30 to 40 minutes of roasting, basting frequently with pan liquid. Remove turkey from oven when done and cover tightly with aluminum foil. Allow turkey to rest for 20 to 25 minutes for easier carving. Arrange turkey on heated platter, garnish as desired, and serve.

[JCT]

Couple things.

1. pop up timers. - Throw them in the garbage and spend the 15 bucks on a pyrex probe digital thermometer. How is a pop up timer that is two inches long going to tell you what the temp is is the center of the thigh?

2. Basting. - Useless, all you're doing is lowering the temp of the oven everytime you open the door thus causing a longer cooking time and uneven cooking. KEEP THE DOOR CLOSED. You are not, I repeat, not making the meat moist. You're making the skin wet and dropping the temp of the oven.

3. Dark coloring? - Easy. For the first 30 min cook at 450. THEN cover the breast with a double layer of foil, drop the temp to 350 and cook until the alarm on the thermometer hits 166. Then rest the meat for 30 min.


Sin,

The restaurant opened by my great grandmother, The restaurant owned by my grandfather, The restaurant my father is the cook for, The restaurants I have cooked for and worked at.

[The Whistle Is Screaming]

sin,
Mona Lisa JCT



The restaurant opened by my great grandmother, The restaurant owned by my grandfather, The restaurant my father is the cook for, The restaurants I have cooked for and worked at.