Yes, I did say 19 pound turkey. That's what I roasted yesterday. 19 pounds for two people.
Every year I try and talk SM out of buying the biggest beast in the bin. But every year I'm shot down. I can tempt him all I want with the idea of Cornish Game hens but SM will have none of it.
Last week while I shopped for sides and fixings, zooming up and down the aisles of the market, SM was circling the frozen turkey bins. They had the usual Butterballs, Honeysuckles, and off brand turkeys. SM must have spent 10 minutes poking, circling and considering. Finally he placed a frozen bird in the cart.
"How come this one?" I asked. "Did it speak to you?" I teased him.
SM just shot me a dirty look. You do not mess with SM and his turkey.
So after 5 days in the fridge to thaw, the bird was put in the oven yesterday at 7 am. SM went so far as to give me directions. You see, he'd been watching Good Eats with Alton Brown on the food channel a few days before Thanksgiving. (He knows that I consider Alton Brown a GOD in the world of good food. IMHO, Alton can do no wrong.)
So I followed SM's / Altons lead and cranked my oven as high as it would go and stuffed the bird in for 30 minutes on high. Then turned it down to 350 with the breast covered with foil and a meat thermometer stuck in the breast. Yes this bird was greased and salt and peppered. I even shoved a stick of butter under the skin before roasting.
Three hours later I pulled it out and eyeballed it. Quite frankly I thought I had the Griswald bird on my hands. Dry and crispy.
But after I let it sit for 30 minutes and cut into it, I found this bird to be one of my best ever. The high heat sealed all the juice inside it. It was wonderful! Half the breast went into the freezer and I broke down the carcass and legs and wings and shoved them into the stock pot. It's simmering on the stove top as we speak.
Good Grief...Look at that broth already! This soup just might be the best part of Thanksgiving Dinner!
So what are you doing with your leftovers? I'm sure we could all use some inspiration!
Hubby and I both LOVE turkey so never have any trouble getting rid of the leftovers. Personally, I could eat a turkey sandwich for lunch every day for a month. I freeze most of the leftover meat in smallish packages and pull them out for soup, creamed turkey, turkey salad, turkey and gravy over warmed up stuffing, etc. Nuthin' very imaginative or gourmet-ish but none shall go to waste.
ReplyDeleteI'm brewing a big pot of broth with the neck, wings, etc. today, too.
We use ours just for sandwiches since hubstead smokes his on the smoker.Your hubby sounds like mine when it comes to the picking out of a bird.Ours was 20 pounds this year.See blog its on the smoker and Orion eyeballing it lol.The only way I can do anything with a turkey is if I get my hands on it I cook it in the oven.This year hubstead has 4 days off so I figured I'd let him have his way with the bird this year.
ReplyDeleteOurs was only 14# and there have been lots of leftover slices for The Shepherd to take for his lunches. I fall to sleep in the afternoons if I eat too much turkey, so he gets it all. I did, however break down the carcass and stuff it in a humongous zip-lock bag and into the freezer - in a couple of weeks, I'll cook it up for soup - The Shepherd's favorite with lots of noodles -He'll even take it cold for lunch - ick...
ReplyDeleteNow there is Christmas to get ready for!!! T.