Turkeycaust 2013!

[Herschel]

The experts usually suggest no more than 3-4 different cheeses.

But I'm with you on this'un- screw the experts and bring out the Quesocopia!

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

View attachment 59819

You, sir, are a gentleman of refined taste and high upbringing.

I'll tell you what, though...I am a big fan of smoked Goudas, one almost always finds its way to our cheeseboard.

But recently, I ate a black truffle Gouda. DAYum! The thing disappeared like a snowflake in an Arizona summer's day. I now have to figure out where I got it from...

 

[Umbran]

But I don't brine or baste, and my butter is no-salt (in fact, I use zero added salt of any kind when doing this). I also don't buy the same brand of turkey all the time, either. I aim for low sodium, but we buy based primarily on price- turkeys at 55-77¢/lb with a $20 purchase is hard to pass up...

Well, these days, unless you are specifically buying "natural" (and usually paying a premium) it is probably doctored with salt and water, and may not need brining.

The combination of the 30min of 425F heat at the beginning of the process helps with that- there will be more browning while the air is dry.

Yes, that would be a help.

Of course, the cayenne pepper and paprika in my seasoning mix add a bit to the nutty-brown color as well...

Browning is not about color. It is about the Maillard Reaction[/quote], which produces a ton flavorful compounds.

(Which you probably knew, but some readers may not.)

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Well, these days, unless you are specifically buying "natural" (and usually paying a premium) it is probably doctored with salt and water, and may not need brining.

I DO aim to buy the bargain turkeys with the lowest sodium because of that! If given the choice between a 55¢/lb 230mg/oz turkey and one that is 77¢/lb 160mg one, I'm going for the latter.

[mostinterestingmanintheworld]The organic ones that are 60mg/oz rarely go on sale, but when they do...[/mostinterestingmanintheworld]

 

[Grumpy RPG Reviews]

My family is very traditional, or at least we keep to our own traditions. This years on Thanksgiving, as always we got together and ate a turkey. I hope next year the traditions changes. And that we can finally kill, clean and cook it first.

 

[Scorpio616]

Oven long dead, had to make due.

Forced a 14.5lb turkey ( 8% meat stealing salt water ) into my Ronco Rotisserie. Basted with browning sauce and cooked until charred. I like beef bleeding, but I'm not undercooking a 50¢/lb bird for my family.
Fried the giblets after soaking them in the browning sauce.
Fried canned corn in the giblet's grease.
No one else volunteered to peel potatoes, so they get instant mashed.
Boxed stuffing, only since we have too many boxes of it. I have a few fossilized breads just waiting for the mallet.
Steamed broccoli topped with a hint of margarine and MSG
Steamed carrots
Canned yams boiled for a few minutes.
Instant gravy packet. ( I screwed up and added way too much sage, turning it light green, Doh! )
Old school gravy. ( Turkey drippings and flour )
Store bought cherry pie (was good, but tart).
Cranberry sauce stayed in the can, maybe another day.


Gonna push my luck with forcing a 15.2 lb bird into the Rotisserie later today.
Veggie soup on the side. If the bird is too big, it gets dismembered and tossed into the soup pot.

• turnip greens
• celery
• carrots
• potatos
• onions
• yellow squash
• zucchini
• chicken bullion
• potato flakes for thickening
• Italian seasoning
• sage
• lots of garlic powder
• shot of rooster sauce
• maybe turkey wings and legs

 

[Gilladian]

There were only 3 of us this year, so we made cornish game hens (pretty good, but I prefer turkey!), instant mashed (mom insisted!), green bean casserole (husband's favorite), baked yellow squash, steamed carrots, dressing (with LOTS of mushrooms), cranberry sauce, and baked apples for dessert.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Well, we had a total attendance of 12, over the course of the day. The fried turkey went over like gangbusters. Very little is left. The steamed turkey has quite a bit left, but it was a 23lb bird, as compared to the 14lb fried one.

Unfortunately, the very scenario I'd hoped to avoid (because of today's trip to Austin) by doing a store-bought dinner still came true. My mom and aunt insisted on cooking sweet potatoes, a 16lb ham, oyster dressing, regular Stove Top dressing, corn with Ro-Tel...and buying a cake. That meant I had to cook. And clean.

And we have a ton of leftovers.

Fortunately, while we're gone my dad will be able to put some of it away with help from my aunt and my buddy (who attended)...aaaaaand freeze some as well.

The bad part is I'm tired and my back is killing me.

 

[Guest 85555]

Well, you're right about the boiling or poaching- I've had a couple dry chickens served to me after both processes. But I don't brine or baste, and my butter is no-salt (in fact, I use zero added salt of any kind when doing this). I also don't buy the same brand of turkey all the time, either. I aim for low sodium, but we buy based primarily on price- turkeys at 55-77¢/lb with a $20 purchase is hard to pass up... IOW, there's no consistency in the uncooked fattiness or saltiness of the birds I cook.Perhaps my birds' juiciness is all about the more efficient transfer of heat to the meat reducing overall cooking time, thereby allowing the meat to retain most of its moisture.The combination of the 30min of 425F heat at the beginning of the process helps with that- there will be more browning while the air is dry.Of course, the cayenne pepper and paprika in my seasoning mix add a bit to the nutty-brown color as well...

I must be the only person on earth who likes turkey a bit dry and overcooked. With poultry i prefer to err on the side of overdone these days. For me it is all about the crispiness of the skin. As long as i have gravy to rejuvinate the bird, i am fine with the meat being dry (nothing more delicious to me than a turkey leg that borders on jerkey).

 

[Herschel]

Whoah, someone who would actually like my aunt's turkey. Her turkey is the main reason I now host the holiday dinner.

We ended up with 11 total when two didn't make it from the other side of their family. :
21# bird,
sage & onion dressing,
what could likely still be considered mashed potatoes (aged Romano, sharp cheddar, sour cream, cream cheese, chives and about 12 cloves of garlic),
gravy,
Amaretto and Orange Cranberry Relish (seriously, why would anyone ever serve canned?)
Ratatoullie
Green Bean Casserole (required by law at all holiday meals in Minesota)
Dried Corn (roasted dry and then re-constituted with cream, an old family thing on my mom's side)
Pumpkin Custard (because none of us make a decent crust, at least without using lard)
Whipped Cream (the real stuff, again it's so easy and so much better.)