Posted on 11/23/2022 9:27:21 AM PST by PJ-Comix
Thanksgiving is tomorrow and I have already started cooking my first turkey yesterday via sous vide. Tomorrow I smoke my second turkey on the Weber grill. Therefore I am cooking TWO turkeys in tandem for Thanksgiving and will continue doing so in the future whether it be for Thanksgiving or otherwise.
Why? Well I first cooked tandem turkeys earlier this year. In addition to providing extra turkey for the guests, I was able to serve up INCREDIBLE homemade gravy which was made possible by using the wings that weren't used in the sous vide turkey as well as the rest of the carcass after cutting off the legs, thighs, and breasts. In addition, the juices from the sous vide were used in making my turkey stock. After simmering down all that meat and bones provided by the unused portions (wings and carcass) of the sous vide turkey along with the trimmings from the turkey designated for smoking, the resulting stock with veggies, garlic, and herbs added made for a SUPER POWERFUL turkey stock which was used as my base for making the turkey.
Also since one should not use too large of a bird for smoking (both of my turkeys are in the 13 pound range) you are sure to have more than enough turkey for your guests (about 10 in my case). So a total of FOUR legs, FOUR thighs, and FOUR breasts. And since gravy is KEY for making successful turkey, the boiled/simmered down ultra high flavor turkey stock has served its purpose.
So after my tandem turkey experience earlier this year which is being repeated now, I highly recommend folks try cooking tandem turkeys.
It’s very quick and effective. Since it’s many, many times hotter than coals or a frying pan, it only takes a minute or two, so you can get a great sear on steaks without over-cooking them. The temp (doneness) you dial in on the circulator is what you end up with.
The niece left for dinner & when she came back, there were 10! Big litter for a first timer.
Congrats on all the little ones!
We had an early Thanksgiving dinner today due to some folks having to work later, so the bird has been roasted and eaten. I took the bird out of the frig at 5 am to warm up a bit. The skin was very dry. I was a little concerned. The pan under the turkey had just under a 1/2 inch of liquid. I rubbed the outside of the bird with olive oil, then tented with foil. The tent remained on for an hour and 45 minutes at 400 degrees. Then removed the tent and basted every 20 minutes with butter and maple syrup with the oven at 325. The bird took longer than expected, but we did get dinner in before people had to go. The skin was nice and evenly browned and crispy. The entire bird was juicy. I had the bird rest for about 40 minutes while everything else was being warmed. I had to dump the juices on the cutting board twice before carving. The cutting board has a gutter around the edge. I’m thinking about routing a spill way so it drain in the sink. The sauce and stuffing turned out great. Plenty to be thankful for this year other than good too. Happy Thanksgiving to you!
OK Post-Thanksgiving report
There were ham steaks - I only had a small amount BUT cut a piece up to go into the stuffing I made - a bit of extra seasoning - bit of sage, onion powder, garlic salt, table salt, pepper, diced ham
I made 6 cans of green beans with cheese and mushroom soup and onion straws - oh butter and soy sauce from the $1 store
white rice in the rice cooker
Extra green beans / mushroom sauce used as a gravy
Potato rolls (I prefer the others but that’s all there were at Aldi’s)
And a can of that standard cranberry jell you dig out and it has the can marks
Had some leftover black beans / navy beans which I ate today in ... leftovers
More white rice and stuffing on deck
It was good enough for me!
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