Ken Warren Photography wrote:
I've never understood why people stopped brining whole birds before roasting them; if you want flavorful, tender meat that's not dry, you brine the bird.

Well, the turkey comes pre-brined usually now. I am still going to brine it anyway. You actually don't need to brine it but I want to anyway because I've never done it before. I'm also going to stuff the cavity with aromatics like an apple, onion, whole rosemary, sage etc.

Schlake wrote:
I have no idea how anyone can even make a bird come out dry.  I have to cut my bird in half just so the body cavity doesn't fill up with a swamp of juices.

I know why, because people over cook it. They do the same fucking thing with chicken. First of all, they believe that stupid red "thermometer" that comes with it and the cook times as well. You do not need 4 hours to cook a 10-12 pound turkey. That thing needs 2 1/2 at the most. I used to have eye roll sessions with my sister about this very thing. Also you have to let it rest for at least 20 minutes. That's the key with cooking meat in general. Let it rest so the juices redistribute and voila!

Frozen Moments Photo wrote:
A traditional turkey dinner was always a favorite of my wife and mine. Since I have been on my own the last 6 yrs I was having a turkey TV dinner. I no longer eat TV dinners, so I do not know what I will do this year.

I have been thinking about having a Cracker Barrel turkey dinner, and get it to go, but not sure I want to bother.

Why don't you do a small turkey or hen? They're easy to roast and stuffing is stupid simple to make. It could be a lot of fun.

BlueMoonPics wrote:
I'm not a a fan of turkey so a couple of years ago I made a lasagna.
I think last year I made some empanadas.
I don't know what I'll make this year.
That apple pie sure sounds like a good idea to try out making.
Oh, and I live alone and cook for myself.
It's all mine, mine, mine!

I can give you the recipe if you want. I have this cookbook I refer to as the Bible, as I mention in my op, I faithfully follow it because all of the recipes have been tested and they show you why it works. They've found the key to making a flaky pie crust scientifically! And guess what it is? Vodka!

No, really I can send the recipe if you want.

Model Sarah wrote:
I can give you the recipe if you want. I have this cookbook I refer to as the Bible, as I mention in my op, I faithfully follow it because all of the recipes have been tested and they show you why it works. They've found the key to making a flaky pie crust scientifically! And guess what it is? Vodka!

No, really I can send the recipe if you want.

Pie crust is the only thing I use vodka for. (I prefer rum or whiskey for drinks.)

But the vodka doesn't make the the pie crust flaky; it makes it tender & easier to handle. Which are good things, but to get the "flaky" that's good in a piecrust but bad in a model you need to avoid blending the butter too fine.

Frozen Moments Photo wrote:
I no longer eat TV dinners, so I do not know what I will do this year.

Roast a Cornish game hen. Quick, simple, and perfectly sized.

Model Sarah wrote:
I know why, because people over cook it. They do the same fucking thing with chicken. First of all, they believe that stupid red "thermometer" that comes with it and the cook times as well. You do not need 4 hours to cook a 10-12 pound turkey. That thing needs 2 1/2 at the most. I used to have eye roll sessions with my sister about this very thing. Also you have to let it rest for at least 20 minutes. That's the key with cooking meat in general. Let it rest so the juices redistribute and voila!

I usually need 4 to 6 hours to cook a turkey, sometimes as many as 12 or 24 hours.  But I cook mine differently than most people.

Sablesword wrote:

Pie crust is the only thing I use vodka for. (I prefer rum or whiskey for drinks.)

But the vodka doesn't make the the pie crust flaky; it makes it tender & easier to handle. Which are good things, but to get the "flaky" that's good in a piecrust but bad in a model you need to avoid blending the butter too fine.

They say it makes it tender and easy to handle. They also mention using part shortening and part water and pulsing them to same size pieces in the food processor.

Schlake wrote:

I usually need 4 to 6 hours to cook a turkey, sometimes as many as 12 or 24 hours.  But I cook mine differently than most people.

You seem to do a lot of things differently than most people

Model Sarah wrote:

Well, the turkey comes pre-brined usually now. I am still going to brine it anyway. You actually don't need to brine it but I want to anyway because I've never done it before. I'm also going to stuff the cavity with aromatics like an apple, onion, whole rosemary, sage etc.

Kinda almost like the beer can chicken idea..I do this as well(onion,and whatever I happen to be feeling at the time as well)


And the bacon slices over the breast is a great idea as well,I have done this to get a more smoked taste..(of course the bacon ends up consumed instead of in the stuffing like some say its supposed to)

Chris Rifkin wrote:

Kinda almost like the beer can chicken idea..I do this as well(onion,and whatever I happen to be feeling at the time as well)


And the bacon slices over the breast is a great idea as well,I have done this to get a more smoked taste..(of course the bacon ends up consumed instead of in the stuffing like some say its supposed to)

I don't want a smoked flavor to the turkey this year because my boyfriend smoked ours on his smoker last year. It was easily the juiciest turkey I've ever had. I'm not a big fan of smoke flavor unless it is on pork. I grew up in the south, so that only makes sense to me.

Model Sarah wrote:

I don't want a smoked flavor to the turkey this year because my boyfriend smoked ours on his smoker last year. It was easily the juiciest turkey I've ever had. I'm not a big fan of smoke flavor unless it is on pork. I grew up in the south, so that only makes sense to me.

That and the deep fried way were good change of paces one year when I visited my sister(and unfortunately the experience was ruined by being ganged up by family members as stated above and a typicla obnoxious cowboy fan making football viewing during the 2nd game the most umpleasnt experience(I actually left,took some pastries and leftovers and found a hotel room that year)

Now im hungry for turkey

Stephen Fletcher wrote:
Spiral sliced glazed ham.  Screw the bird.

We do that for Christmas.

Model Sarah wrote:

We do that for Christmas.

Save some to go with Black Eyed Peas on New Years day.  Good luck all year long if you do.

Stephen Fletcher wrote:

Save some to go with Black Eyed Peas on New Years day.  Good luck all year long if you do.

I grew up in the south around black eyed peas but I never ever liked them. I don't like the band either, so there's that.

Stephen Fletcher wrote:
Spiral sliced glazed ham.  Screw the bird.

EDIT: According to the pork people, they can spiral slice an actual ham.  I'd just never seen one, and they apparently allow hams without bones to be called ham. 

I have a ham in my house.  Dried cured wild boar.  It's covered in mold, as any good ham should be.  I need to eat this winter.

Schlake wrote:

DISREGARD: You can't spiral slice a ham, there's a giant bone in it that prevents it from being spiral sliced.  And if your "ham" doesn't have a bone, then it isn't a ham.


EDIT: According to the pork people, they can spiral slice an actual ham.  I'd just never seen one.

I have a ham in my house.  Dried cured wild boar.  It's covered in mold, as any good ham should be.  I need to eat this winter.

The Pork people are right.  They hang the ham up, bone and all and the ham rotates around the cutter and is sliced in a spiral fashion very thinly right down to the bone.  This allows them to get all the glazing and flavors permeated all through the ham.

My dogs get what ever is left plus the bone.

Model Sarah wrote:
Well, the turkey comes pre-brined usually now. I am still going to brine it anyway. You actually don't need to brine it but I want to anyway because I've never done it before. I'm also going to stuff the cavity with aromatics like an apple, onion, whole rosemary, sage etc.

We call this marinading.
It seems that both words are used.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/juicy-two- … -marinade/

Schlake wrote:

Have you tried to buy a bird that isn't already factory brined?

I have no idea how anyone can even make a bird come out dry.  I have to cut my bird in half just so the body cavity doesn't fill up with a swamp of juices.

I buy from a local butcher. He will brine a bird if I ask, for an extra fee, but I prefer to do it myself.

As for supermarket turkeys, if they're described as packed in salt water, brined, or kosher, yes I agree that there's no need to do anything more. Otherwise, brining it will still help it stay moist.

Schlake wrote:

Have you tried to buy a bird that isn't already factory brined?

I have no idea how anyone can even make a bird come out dry.  I have to cut my bird in half just so the body cavity doesn't fill up with a swamp of juices.

It's really easy to make a turkey come out dry.  You just overcook it.  You've never had been to a dinner where the bird came out like this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTwXudZTWQA#t=82

Brian Diaz wrote:

It's really easy to make a turkey come out dry.  You just overcook it.  You've never had been to a dinner where the bird came out like this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTwXudZTWQA#t=82

Nope.  The few times in my life I've been out on Thanksgiving were to potlucks, and the turkeys were almost universally undercooked except when I cooked them for the potluck.

Schlake wrote:

Nope.  The few times in my life I've been out on Thanksgiving were to potlucks, and the turkeys were almost universally undercooked except when I cooked them for the potluck.

I've never in my life seen an undercooked turkey. They are always overcooked. Always. Luckily I'm really good with cooking meat properly so I don't foresee any issues this year. Just never cooked a huge bird like that.

Model Sarah wrote:

I've never in my life seen an undercooked turkey. They are always overcooked. Always. Luckily I'm really good with cooking meat properly so I don't foresee any issues this year. Just never cooked a huge bird like that.

Yeah, people are petrified of undercooking a turkey and getting people sick.

Of course there is the possibility that some people like overcooked turkey and consider one that is well cooked to be undercooked.

Brian Diaz wrote:

Yeah, people are petrified of undercooking a turkey and getting people sick.

Of course there is the possibility that some people like overcooked turkey and consider one that is well cooked to be undercooked.

I don't think cold uncooked meat oozing pink juices is properly cooked.

Brian Diaz wrote:

Yeah, people are petrified of undercooking a turkey and getting people sick.

Of course there is the possibility that some people like overcooked turkey and consider one that is well cooked to be undercooked.

That's my sister, right there. She doesn't know what a well cooked poultry looks/tastes like. She's constantly frying chicken and it is easy to overcook it with that method so she thinks overcooked chicken/turkey is the way it should be. It drives me insane.

I mean, she looks at me in disgust when I eat a medium rare steak.

Brian Diaz wrote:

Yeah, people are petrified of undercooking a turkey and getting people sick.

Of course there is the possibility that some people like overcooked turkey and consider one that is well cooked to be undercooked.

I have an aunt that hates cooking anything, she gets bored and if its not done in the time it takes her to get bored…too bad. Amazing that her kids aren't dead yet.

We usually do turkey pot pie for christmas with (cooked) leftovers from thanksgiving, and she decided to do it one year. She cut up raw turkey, put it in the stew, put the stew into the crust, and baked it only as long as the crust took. And served. That seemed reasonable to her. And this wasnt the first time she'd done something like that, she'd made things like chicken and dumplings…raw chicken into a stew and baked only 20 minutes. Unfortunately not everybody overcooks poultry.

Laura UnBound wrote:
I have an aunt that hates cooking anything, she gets bored and if its not done in the time it takes her to get bored…too bad. Amazing that her kids aren't dead yet.

We usually do turkey pot pie for christmas with (cooked) leftovers from thanksgiving, and she decided to do it one year. She cut up raw turkey, put it in the stew, put the stew into the crust, and baked it only as long as the crust took. And served. That seemed reasonable to her. And this wasnt the first time she'd done something like that, she'd made things like chicken and dumplings…raw chicken into a stew and baked only 20 minutes. Unfortunately not everybody overcooks poultry.

That's uh shocking. I don't think I've ever heard of someone so lazy in my entire life.

"I'm too lazy/bored to learn how to cook so BAM salmonella! Suck it fuckers!"

Laura UnBound wrote:

I have an aunt that hates cooking anything, she gets bored and if its not done in the time it takes her to get bored…too bad. Amazing that her kids aren't dead yet.

We usually do turkey pot pie for christmas with (cooked) leftovers from thanksgiving, and she decided to do it one year. She cut up raw turkey, put it in the stew, put the stew into the crust, and baked it only as long as the crust took. And served. That seemed reasonable to her. And this wasnt the first time she'd done something like that, she'd made things like chicken and dumplings…raw chicken into a stew and baked only 20 minutes. Unfortunately not everybody overcooks poultry.

It takes me two months to make corned beef.  She'd hate me.

Lohkee wrote:
Pho as the main course served with papaya salad.

When I make chicken and dumplings, I season it like I was making pho.

Lohkee wrote:
I have read this thread very carefully and considered all comments equally. Seems like a tough nut to crack.

...

It's not.

There are many different ways to cook a delicious turkey (in spite of some here who insist there is only one correct way).   

Jay  Edwards wrote:

It's not.

There are many different ways to cook a delicious turkey (in spite of some here who insist there is only one correct way).   

And I just discovered a way to horribly overcook raw turkey breast
buy turkey cutlets and pan sear then in a plug in skillet(layover day so I brought the skillet in the hotel because I was too lasy to put the cutlets in the slow cooker and make a stew),even after adding water to keep juices and liquid around (so I can make a quickie microwave gravy of the drippings/stock and corn starch,which actually came out devent,mind you I'm not home so I cand brown flower and do what I usually do)...rubber breasts,dry..ehh..not the worst,as I have some relatively healthy meals for the rest of the week

the pan seared potatoes(in which I used chicken stock,onions and a dash of garlic)came out epic though

ahh..thus is life as an experimental chef/trucker..sometimes experiments work,sometimes experments get fed to the local cats/animals...sometimes I have just decent meals

Jay  Edwards wrote:

It's not.

There are many different ways to cook a delicious turkey (in spite of some here who insist there is only one correct way).   

No one is doing anything of the sort. I mentioned a way that I am doing but there are a million ways to roast a turkey including putting it in a bag. I think someone mentioned that, and that is a fantastic way to keep it moist.

Chris Rifkin wrote:

And I just discovered a way to horribly overcook raw turkey breast
buy turkey cutlets and pan sear then in a plug in skillet(layover day so I brought the skillet in the hotel because I was too lasy to put the cutlets in the slow cooker and make a stew),even after adding water to keep juices and liquid around (so I can make a quickie microwave gravy of the drippings/stock and corn starch,which actually came out devent,mind you I'm not home so I cand brown flower and do what I usually do)...rubber breasts,dry..ehh..not the worst,as I have some relatively healthy meals for the rest of the week

the pan seared potatoes(in which I used chicken stock,onions and a dash of garlic)came out epic though

ahh..thus is life as an experimental chef/trucker..sometimes experiments work,sometimes experments get fed to the local cats/animals...sometimes I have just decent meals

heehee

Jay  Edwards wrote:

It's not.

There are many different ways to cook a delicious turkey (in spite of some here who insist there is only one correct way).   

Chuckles. In the 40 years I've been in America I can't recall ever having ever had a bad traditional TG dinner. Different people do different things to the bird and serve different sides. It's all been really good (thus far anyway).

I was trying to be funny (guess I failed - color me shocked). Hue and I are, well, just Hue and I. Makes no sense for us to go "all out" as the amount of food would go bad before we could ever hope to eat it. So, for us, some Nem Chua, papaya salad, and a bowl of Pho works just fine.

Since Hue never reads MM, and her food rocks aces, so I will confess to missing a real American TG dinner. I dunno, maybe it takes me back to my childhood or whatever, but there is something really magical about an American TG dinner and family around the table  IMHO.

As great as Hue's pho is, I'd probably order a huge American TG meal if I was on death row. There's just something about it that calls to the soul.

Lohkee wrote:

Chuckles. In the 40 years I've been in America I can't recall ever having ever had a bad traditional TG dinner. Different people do different things to the bird and serve different sides. It's all been really good (thus far anyway).

I was trying to be funny (guess I failed - color me shocked). Hue and I are, well, just Hue and I. Makes no sense for us to go "all out" as the amount of food would go bad before we could ever hope to eat it. So, for us, some Nem Chua, papaya salad, and a bowl of Pho works just fine.

Since Hue never reads MM, and her food rocks aces, so I will confess to missing a real American TG dinner. I dunno, maybe it takes me back to my childhood or whatever, but there is something really magical about an American TG dinner and family around the table  IMHO.

As great as Hue's pho is, I'd probably order a huge American TG meal if I was on death row. There's just something about it that calls to the soul.

Righty-O.

Lohkee wrote:

Chuckles. In the 40 years I've been in America I can't recall ever having ever had a bad traditional TG dinner. Different people do different things to the bird and serve different sides. It's all been really good (thus far anyway).

I was trying to be funny (guess I failed - color me shocked). Hue and I are, well, just Hue and I. Makes no sense for us to go "all out" as the amount of food would go bad before we could ever hope to eat it. So, for us, some Nem Chua, papaya salad, and a bowl of Pho works just fine.

Since Hue never reads MM, and her food rocks aces, so I will confess to missing a real American TG dinner. I dunno, maybe it takes me back to my childhood or whatever, but there is something really magical about an American TG dinner and family around the table  IMHO.

As great as Hue's pho is, I'd probably order a huge American TG meal if I was on death row. There's just something about it that calls to the soul.

There's something to be said for traditional food. They are there for a reason; it's comfort and it's damn good.

Zach and I are only two people but I'm making smaller portions of my menu and utilizing it for creative leftovers. It challenges me as a cook.