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How You Gonna Cook That Bird?

Rosie

One Too Many
Messages
1,827
Location
Bed Stuy, Brooklyn, NY
No at-home turkey for me this year.

But, I've never cooked a turkey on my own.

Usually, my mom will do that, I'll make a chicken or two and lots of sides.

Cornbread, apple, pecan stuffing, garlic mashed potatoes, collards, and of course the baked goods.
 

dhermann1

I'll Lock Up
Messages
9,154
Location
Da Bronx, NY, USA
Speaking of which, it makes me slightly nuts each year to see billions of tons of EXTREMELY nutritous food being thrown away in the form of defunct jack o lanterns. I've made pies from real pumpkin and it's a chore, but well worth it.
 
Messages
11,579
Location
Covina, Califonia 91722
MAYO & TENTING

Just before putting the bird in we rub a thin coat of mayonaise on the bird. It ceates a moisture inpermiable skin from the egg white component and the oil helps keep it moist too. Tent with aluminum foil and remove tent to brown towards the end. Helps create a moist bird.

Cornbread stuffing this year. Mom's secret was some chopped spinach with the sauteed veggies in the stuffing.
 

$ally

One Too Many
Messages
1,276
Location
AZ, USA
Mmmmmmm, this is a mouth-watering thread.
We usually do the conventional oven method, but have experimented with a smoker, frying, and what not.
Luckily I'm not cooking the turkey this year. My lovely niece (my age) is hosting, so she has the burden. She'll probably make sage stuffing for in the bird, and some other kind dry. I get to bring all the home-baked-from-scratch goodies; wheat and white rolls, pumpkin pie (I'm doing the canned goop, Paisley, u rawk), apple spice muffins, etc. Everyone is bringing their own specialty dishes, the usual green bean casserole, sweet potatoes or yams, cranberries (not that gel in a jar), my scalloped corn, and all that rot.
 

Paisley

I'll Lock Up
Messages
5,439
Location
Indianapolis
$ally said:
....pumpkin pie (I'm doing the canned goop...)

Stop! Get a small pumpkin (if you can find one for sale), stab it in the top a few times, and bake it at 350 for about an hour until it's spongy. Cut it open and use the flesh in place of canned pumpkin. It's a whole different animal.
 

$ally

One Too Many
Messages
1,276
Location
AZ, USA
Paisley said:
Stop! Get a small pumpkin (if you can find one for sale), stab it in the top a few times, and bake it at 350 for about an hour until it's spongy. Cut it open and use the flesh in place of canned pumpkin. It's a whole different animal.
Oh you are my idol. I thank you and my big old family thanks you.
:eusa_clap
 

$ally

One Too Many
Messages
1,276
Location
AZ, USA
eightbore said:
Greek style stuffing containing rice, hamburger, pork sausage, pine nuts, white raisins, black raisins, chicken broth and chestnuts. Just the thing to annoy militant vegetarians like my sister in law....stuffing a bird with three other kinds of meat.
lol That'll teach her
 

GwenLake

One of the Regulars
Messages
250
Location
Józefów, Poland
dhermann1 said:
Speaking of which, it makes me slightly nuts each year to see billions of tons of EXTREMELY nutritous food being thrown away in the form of defunct jack o lanterns. I've made pies from real pumpkin and it's a chore, but well worth it.
My mom got a little carried away with growing pumpkins this year:

toomuchpumpkin.jpg


Anyone need any pumpkin? :D
 

Bill Taylor

One of the Regulars
A good many years ago we were fortunate to find a 1939 GE "Roaster" along with all of it's accessories, racks and the original manual and cookbook (Betty Crocker, I think). Included was the original metal porcelain and chrome cart, with no nicks. When we got it, it appeared they had never been used. Original cloth covered cord in perfect condition.

Whenever hosting Thanksgiving or holiday meals, we always use the roaster to bake the turkey. No oven can come close to baking a turkey better than this roaster. It is magical. Of course, the electric dial goes around about 90 miles an hour, it uses so much electricity.

Stuffing will be cornbread with all the usual ingredients along with oysters, sausage and pecans. Creamed potatoes (mashed with two small turnips for out of this world flavor), lots of vegetables, hot rolls, sweet potato pie, pecan pie and pumpkin pie. And cranberries, Lots of cranberries. I'll try not to eat them all.

This will be our first Thanksgiving since retiring and moving from the San Francisco Bay Area to our farm in Alabama. Our two sons and daughters-in-law, our four grandsons and their wives and our great grandson and two great grandaughters(FINALLY) are arriving from the SF bay area tomorrow. Most of the day will be spent going to and from the airport, I fear. Unfortunately, the closest airport is Huntsville, which is about 70 milles away. The Chevy Suburban is going to be full. We are lucky enough to have a guesthouse at our farm plus five bedrooms, so we have plenty of room for the gathering. I hope! Now if this were the 1930's, we would just put a bunch of pallets down on the floor and that would be it, but alas, it is not the 30's anymore and expectations are different now.

Bill
 

Murph351

One of the Regulars
Messages
168
Location
SoCal USA
Fry that sucker!
We've been frying ours since I can remember.
Inject a cajun marinade and give it a strong cajun rub and it's ready to go.
The left coast relatives were a little leery of my redneck roots in the beginning
but now they all have fryers and won't touch a turkey prepared any other way.
Been frying Heritage Turkeys the last few years.
http://www.heritagefoodsusa.com/
Love these fresh turkeys.
They always come with a few big feathers still on the bird which the nieces and nephews think are a hoot to pull off.
 

Mike in Seattle

My Mail is Forwarded Here
Messages
3,027
Location
Renton (Seattle), WA
panamag8or said:
A ham will join our turkey this year. I make a killer Coca-Cola basted ham.:essen:

Reminds me of reading Red Sky at Morning in high school about the time the movie came out...truly a great read if you haven't, and the movie's not bad either, and it is set during WWII. Alas, not many hats in the movie. But read the book - need I say the book's better than the movie? I have my well-read, beaten-to-heck paperback on the shelf in my room and it's one that I go back periodically and read again.
 

Mike in Seattle

My Mail is Forwarded Here
Messages
3,027
Location
Renton (Seattle), WA
Paisley said:
Stop! Get a small pumpkin (if you can find one for sale), stab it in the top a few times, and bake it at 350 for about an hour until it's spongy. Cut it open and use the flesh in place of canned pumpkin. It's a whole different animal.

Look for a "sugar pumpkin" - those are the best for pies. Just a "small pumpkin" at times can be a little iffy...
 

Mike in Seattle

My Mail is Forwarded Here
Messages
3,027
Location
Renton (Seattle), WA
We have some friends coming, one set of which was talking all about what a wonderful brined turkey they make...and I gave up trying to nail them down as to whether they were actually going to do it. ("Are you going to do one, or are you just talking about it, or are you going to tell me how to do it?" "Uh, let me get back to you on that.") So I went out and got a bird and brining bags and brine mix yesterday. And today the email came from said group saying what they were bringing, and it didn't include turkey of course. Not a problem because I like to cook. I'm thinking I'll dig out Mom's electric roaster and cook it in the garage. That somewhat disarms guests arriving. There's nothing in the oven, no smell of anything cooking... <grin> And we've got a Honeybaked ham - that's a requirement around here since I'm the only one who likes turkey. But I'm giving brining a try for the first time. I've heard too many talk about it for too long not to try it.

So, ham, turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, pumpkin pie, cranberry-apple pie, green beans with a little onion & bacon, debating some Brussels sprouts, salad (mixed greens with some pear chunks, pomegranite seeds, blue cheese crumbs & honey-roast cashews), cranberry-orange relish, canned cranberry sauce (another must-have for the other half), and may do a baked brie/cranberry in puff pastry thing for pre-feast munching along with what the others bring.
 

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