Roasted Manatee - the “other turkey” - yum!
Mark
Posted on 11/18/2007 5:38:00 AM PST by PJ-Comix
Okay, we are just a few days away from Thanksgiving so let this thread be the Official Thanksgiving Turkey Guide. Tips on preparing turkeys and the trimmings. I am really posting this thread out of ulterior motives. I just bought two Thanksgiving turkeys and assured my wife I know everything about how to cook them. She doesn't since she is from Venezuela. Problem is that I fibbed a bit. My main experience in cooking Thanksgiving turkeys before was merely heating up pre-cooked turkeys. This time I will be doing it almost from scratch.
Okay, I do have one small tip. I was originally intending to buy the turkey either today or tomorrow. However, while I was looking at the Butterball turkeys in Winn Dixie, one of the guys from the meat department called me over and informed me he was about to bring out a bunch of Honeysuckle White all natural you turkeys and that the cost would only be 69 cents per pound!!! I decided right then and there to buy the Thanksgiving IMMEDIATELY since that turkey supply at that price might not last. The only problem is that I wanted at least a 20 pound turkey and the Honeysuckle White young turkeys came in smaller sizes so I bought TWO turkeys. One about 13 pounds and the other 12 pounds. Total cost under 18 bucks. Then when I bought them, the Winn Dixie self serve machine popped out a $10 off coupon towards an purchase of $50 or more which I will use on Wednesday to buy LOTS of trimmings, wine, etc.. I don't know if there are Winn Dixie stores in your area but you might want to check this out. (Note: I am not associated in any way with Winn Dixie).
Okay, I could use a few tips myself. Should I cook the two turkeys together estimating the total time based on 25 pounds? Also I would like info on preparing the trimmings, especially the stuffing, etc.. My idea is to take the meat tidbits that come with the turkey and chop them up and then fry them to mix with the stuffing. What else can I mix with the stuffing? Also we have a big supply of olive oil here so I would like to use that to baste the turkey. How often do I need to baste? Since I am a garlic person, what is the best way to incorporate garlic with the turkey?
On the side there will be white wine, pumpkin pie, and cranberry sauce. What else would be good side dishes?
All info about turkey and trimmings preparation from you Freeper chefs would be appreciated by myself and others.
I have a turkey fryer and have to say it works very well. The bird comes out very juicy and tender, and it cooks quicker than the oven.
Another tip: don’t overheat your oil (I suspect a lot of overflows/fires are started because of that).
Also, a light dusting of flour over the whole turkey (shake it off) will keep the oil from bubbling up over the top and spattering everywhere, just in case there’s some water on it that you didn’t know about. VOE
” ... Only if you’re going to put one turkey inside the other one, ...”
Would that be a tur-turkey?
It would be a benburchey.
What you're asking is: if the cooking time of an X-pound turkey is Y hours, does this cooking time change if there is another X-pound turkey sitting next to it? As long as your oven can maintain the oven temperature you set, then my answer is "No". Just look at each turkey and calculate its cooking time as though it was alone in the oven
Hey, go easy on the olive oil. Give it a good massage over and under the skin with whatever fat you choose, but do not squirt oil on it through the cooking. If your roasting it in a traditional roasting pan, baste it with the pan drippings every half hour to 45 minutes. That way you’ll get a good combination of fat and broth into the meat. You want it moist, not greasy.
OK, I *give* - what’s what? I mean, why would a turkey-inside-a-turkey be called that, if I might ask?
Here’s some good tips...DRENCH the outside of the turkey in olive oil and baste with additional olive oil during the cooking. Use CHICKEN or TURKEY broth in the stuffing - not water. Also, use olive oil instead of butter in the stuffing mix. You should also add an egg to the stuffing mix per every five pounds of turkey. SO for a 25-pound turkey, put five eggs in the stuffing mix. This will hold the stuffing together for you.
Cross linking related thread:
Green Bean Casserole, Curse or Treat?
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1545328/posts
Benburch is a tombstoned DUmmie, a self-proclaimed “sex workers advocate” and fat flamer. In the DUmmie FUnnies, whenever we find a potentially perverse double-entendre, you can bet your bottom dollar that one of us will reply “Is that you, benburch?” PJ will be happy to put you on the DUmmie FUnnies ping list if you want to be part of our twisted fun. All you gotta do is ask.
Only six adults will be here so a change in plan. Only will cook the 13 pound turkey and will do the other one a few days later.
Stuffing... I always saute chopped onion, celery and mushrooms, usually a day or so ahead. On Thursday morning I will assemble my dressing with prepackaged stuff (pun intended) cornbread, and the veggies. I moisten with chicken broth and butter, or I use the giblets to make a stock and use that. I also add some herbs, like poultry seasoning, sage, rosemary and whatever smells good at the moment.
Since moistening with warm broth makes the dressing warm I never stuff the bird until I am ready to cook. You absolutely can cook the stuffing in the bird without fear. I do it both ways depending on what I want to accomplish with the turkey drippings. They flavor the dressing beautifully (make sure your dressing is a little dry to start with, otherwise it gets soggy) or you can let them accumulate on the bottom of the pan and brown for gravy.
When you stuff the bird, don’t pack the dressing. It will expand. I also use the heel of a loaf of bread to keep it from spilling out. If you stuff the bird make sure you check the temperature of the stuffing, not the bird. It should register 165 way deep inside. If you don’t want the hassle of removing the stuffing try using one of those cheesecloth bags to hold it in the bird. Easy to remove then.
To cook the bird I will brine it first. You have seen those instructions elsewhere on the thread. Kosher birds are brined first so you won’t have to, but I don’t think that is what you got. After brining, rinse the bird and pat dry. Salt the inside and out. I slip my hand under the skin, without breaking it, and slip in rosemary sprigs and some butter on top of the breast and legs. The rosemary flavors it wonderfully and looks great through the browned skin. Rub a little butter on it and slap that baby in the oven. Baste with drippings randomly. If it starts to get too browned, loosely tent some foil over the top.
Bake it until your instant read thermometer reads 165 in both the thickest part of the thigh (avoid the bone) and/or the breast. The breast usually will be done before the legs are, so be sure to leave it in long enough. If it is stuffed, bake until the stuffing is 165... the bird will be more. You should have a guideline on the wrapper that tells you about how long to cook it, stuffed and unstuffed.
Let the bird sit at least half an hour while you make gravy. I put the Rosina pan on a burner, sprinkle in some flour to make a roux with the drippings and cook a minute, then add the broth from the giblets, or chicken stock, and some milk. The best trick is to add a splash of cold coffee left over from breakfast. It really deepens the flavor of the gravy.
Don’t let the stuffing sit in the bird for long. Many times that is what makes people sick, not salmonella. Also, cut up the bird before you store it. Large slabs of meat take much more time to cool than people think.
My usual plan is to put my large stock pot on the table as I cut up the bird after dinner. All bones, skin and dibs and dabs of leftovers (mashed potatoes, yams, celery and carrot sticks, etc) go in the pot and I start cooking broth. Simmer for several hours, strain out the solids and save for soup tomorrow or freeze for later. It makes the best soup in the world! Yum.
Hope you have fun. It really is a blast to play in the kitchen for a feast. Let us know how it turns out.
Oh. Naw, can’t - I’m on dialup and can’t do graphics very well; get impatient and lose interest.
Thx, anyway - just wanted to make sure I hadn’t missed a new brand of turducken!
Some people here said not to brine the turkey. What’s the advantage of brining?
Brining draws water into the meat which makes for much moister meat, whether it is turkey or chicken or pork roast (I have never brined a pork roast by the way... just read about it recently). Since turkey tends to be dry, brining is a good idea, but certainly not essential. Nowadays with the injected turkeys by butterball et al you can get away with ignoring that step without too big a consequence. The best turkey I ever had was a kosher one. I didn’t realize at the time (30+ years ago) that it was because kosher birds are brined. Now I do it myself.
Let me add that trying to brine a turkey in a small fridge packed with other goodies for the feast can be a challenge. You can use a turkey cooking bag and fill it with the bird, then the brine and tie it up top, and set it in your roaster, or you can use an ice chest, fill with bird and brine and some ice and set outside overnight. Others may have more elegant solutions.
Roasted Manatee - the “other turkey” - yum!
Mark
What is Stoplight Pie?
We found one at a local restaurant that’s a mixed berry pie. It’s about half blueberries, a quarter raspberries, and a quarter blackberries. Make it like a blueberry pie and add just a little cinnamon. Cinnamon works wonders for berry pies, and for peach, a touch of nutmeg is fantastic.
The best turkey I’ve ever had for moistness and tenderness is Plainville Turkey from NY. I don’t believe they’re brined or injected either. They are, however, not cheap, but we always splurge for one for Thanksgiving because the quality is there.
The next best one I’ve found is Shady Brook. It’s a very close second.
I’ve never had trouble with either of those turkeys being dry.
Turkey Tips. Ok ladies, this is for you.
6 months from now, do the following. In an anonomous fashion, ask your family to fill out a rating card on your cooking. Chances are, almost everything you make is awesome, but something tastes awful, or makes people sick.
So, do this, and find out if anything you make is universally terrrible, like my wife’s stuffing. Good grief, just don’t have the guts to tell her!
And I say 6 months, so your ego can ... recover in time for Thanksgiving.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.