Hey Chef mama followers, thank you for giving me some time off and allowing me to welcome my new little one and get things settled a little at the home front. I am back with you and just in time for the biggest food holiday of the year!!! YAYAYAYAY, that’s right, it’s Thanksgiving.
Now, yes, all holidays have foods that we use as a part of the traditions to help us celebrate. Yet, Thanksgiving is a holiday all about coming to the table, gathering around and sharing a meal together. So, that means it is truly all about the food.
Also, it is one of the few holidays that people of all races, religions and backgrounds would agree on the menu. I have been getting flooded with your email questions about how to cook the perfect turkey, what size turkey to buy, and the many, many question about sides. I am happy to dedicate this first post back to answering all of your turkey questions. I will give you all my tips and pros and cons for each method.
So, let’s talk turkey, since you cannot have Thanksgiving without a turkey. Over the years turkeys have gotten larger and larger due to hormones used to help pump up the breasts of the birds. You can buy larger turkeys than ever before, yet, is that was you want? I say if it seems unnaturally large, it probably is and I would rather buy two smaller ones than that unnaturally large one. I am not a fan of hormones and antibiotics in my food, so I am always going to opt for a more natural product. However, at the end of the day, it is your call. The rule of thumb with how much turkey you will need is 1.5lbs per person of raw product. So, for example, if you are serving 8 people, you will need a 12lb turkey. There are also more nontraditional routes you can go with say a tur-duck-en. This is a turkey that is stuffed with a duck that is stuffed with a chicken and each layer has stuffing in between. This will give you a larger amount of meat in a natural way and the fat from the duck helps you get a very tender and flavorful turkey. I would recommend if you do go this route, unless you know how to break down whole birds and you have a source for whole duck, I would suggest you find a butcher near you that will prep this for you. Then you can just pick it up and cook it.
Now, how to cook it… this is definitely one of the most asked questions. What I can say for this is everyone has different tastes, so everyone is not going to agree on this. I will tell you the pros and cons to the most common ways and the way I like the most. Other than that, you need to decide what is the best way for you and your family. Here are the top three methods of cooking your turkey perfectly.
Roasting-This is probably the oldest, most traditional way to cook your turkey. With this you can go super simple and just rub it with olive oil, season it really well with salt and pepper and stuff some aromatics into the cavity of the bird. I prefer to use herbs and lemons in the cavity. I use the simple rule of cooking it 20 min per lb and baste it every 30 min. If you want to jazz up the flavor a bit, I suggest making a compound butter of fresh herb and finely chopped garlic and minced shallots and rubbing that between the skin and the flesh of the bird. Then add white wine to the bottom of your roasting pan and baste with the juices from the bird.
Tip-Â Baste with fat, not just stock. Your going to want to add butter either under the skin or in the bottom of the pan so you can baste with fat and not just stock or wine. This will help give you a juicer bird.
Pro-Simple, easy way to get a beautiful bird of any size. It will be consistently good year after year.
Con-If you over cook, it will be dry. It will take up your oven space, so plan ahead.
Deep Fried- This method has really taken off in the past 10-15 years or so and it makes a wonderfully crispy, tender and delicious turkey. However, it can be very dangerous and I recommend you do this only outside. You will need to buy a specific turkey fryer for the best results.
Tip-Brine your turkey before you fry it. This will give you a very tender, juicy final product. Fry the turkey 3 min per lb. So, a 10lb turkey will fry for about 30 min
Pro-Crispy skin, juicy turkey, quick preparation time and does not take up oven space
Con-Be careful, this can be dangerous and you have to make it outside in the cold weather.
Grilling Turkey-This is a great way to free up your kitchen and oven space and also impart some delicious smokey flavor into your turkey. This is a similar method to roasting your turkey, but you have to remember that you will need to keep the grill hot. So, if you’re using a charcoal grill, I recommend adding charcoal to each side every 45-60min to keep things hot and rolling. Otherwise, you will want to make sure your gas grill is set to 450 degrees. You will want to grill your turkey breast side down, in an aluminum roasting pan. A 10-15lb turkey will grill for about 2-3 hours, check a thermometer for doneness, you are looking for 165 degrees.
Tip-Â Season the whole bird, inside and out with salt and pepper and liberally with olive oil. You want a good amount of fat on the bird so that it will not dry out. You will also want to add liquid to the roasting pan such as stock and white wine. Don’t forget to baste
Pro-Free up oven space and add nice smokey flavor to your bird.
Con- Cooking outside may be difficult in bad weather and going in and out to baste every 30 min.
Now the age old questions, to brine or not to brine and to stuff or not to stuff!?!
Here is my two cents… do what you prefer, but here is what I recommend. I recommend brining a turkey that you are going to fry or grill. If you are oven roasting your bird I feel it is not as important.
Tip-If you are going to brine your turkey, make sure you add aromatics to your brine, not only salt and water. This will help impart wonderful flavors as well as moisture.
Pro- Helps add moisture and flavor into your final product
Con-Can be difficult if you do not have a large enough vessel, it takes time and you have to watch that the salt doesn’t over power.
As for stuffing, I think it is definitely a great, much needed side dish, however I do not believe in stuffing the bird. There are so many reasons why this is not a good idea, but mostly because the chef in me cannot get over the fact that it cannot cook enough to cook away the turkey bacteria. You would need to cook it to 165 degrees to get the turkey juices around it cooked enough and if you can get the stuffing inside cooked to that temp, the turkey on the outside is overcooked. So, I recommend that you make the stuffing as a side dish and stuff the cavity of the turkey with aromatics such as citrus and herbs.
Please let me know what other turkey questions I can answer for you. Also, stay tuned as I will be putting up some amazing Thanksgiving side recipes as well as some yummy dessert recipes.
