Enough candy business, it’s time to plan for Thanksgiving. What is everyone’s spread going to be?
The past few years I’ve spatchcocked a turkey. The meat has always come out great, but my problem is that by the time it’s rested and carved, the skin soaks up a lot of moisture and gets soft. This year, since it’s just the wife and I, I’m thinking of doing a turkey porchetta. Anyone ever tried this before? I’m planing on prepping it all on Tuesday or Wednesday so I can mostly just relax on Thanksgiving day.
Looks like a lot of work, but hey, it’s a festive meal. For a small number of guests, that looks like a great idea.
My husband and I are hosting Thanksgiving for the first time ever this year. I am very very nervous. We will have 6 adults and 1 child in total, pretty small, but with both sets of parents coming, I feel like the pressure is one. We also live in a kind of small house. It will be interesting, to say the least.
I am planning on roasting the turkey in a bag. I’ll make the stuffing cooked separately. We will also have mashed potatoes and turkey gravy, canned cranberry sauce (my husband and daughter really like it for some reason), green beans and bacon, some other vegetable not yet determined, and a salad. I’ll also be making an apple, a pumpkin and a cherry pie.
My mom is bringing up some rolls. My mother in law isn’t bringing anything up but says she’ll help day of.
This year, I’m going to be less concerned with tradition and more about making food that people will really like. I’m talking about sous vide carrots with thyme, butter basted potatoes, and “just barely on this side of legal” creamed spinach rather than cranberries and green beans. Mix that with a brined, duck fat roasted turkey and some good Sauvignon Blanc and we’re good to go.
If I’m lucky, my kids might eat a bite of chicken dinosaurs or something.
I will prepare–as I always do–mesquite smoked turkey. I don’t brine turkey. I remove the skin, put it on the smoker, and keep it basted with my special blend of olive oil and seasonings. The result is juicy and flavorful with a richly seasoned smoky bark. I prepared two turkey breasts this way for a recent potluck (breaking in a new smoker). Only one made it to the table, as the people setting out the meal kept sneaking bites of the other one until it was gone. Two people threatened to kidnap me for Thanksgiving. If it works that well, why change it? 
As to the rest of the spread, all I can say for certain is that there will be pumpkin pie, pecan pie, and loaves of fresh bread crusted with rosemary butter and sea salt. Most of my family cooks, so we’ll decide the rest of the menu when they get here, based on what they want to make.
I just have to show up at either my aunt’s or cousin’s. Easy peasy.
This year I’ll soak it in diesel and hit it with a flame-thrower.
You get better diesel flavour if you skip the flame-thrower. After your diesel soak, use a pressure cooker. 