THANKSGIVING TURKEY: baked or fried??

[schro]

Why isn't smoked turkey an option? 

My brother in law usually does two turkeys (one smoked, the other baked) and both are awesome! I have a smoker, but have yet to try a turkey (I've done pork loin, chicken, salmon, ribs, even made jerky).

Although it's not tradition, smoked turkey is tasty! 
That being said, I'd love to try fried sometime. Guess I need to road trip to one of you guys homes for Thanksgiving.

[BaldMike]

Why isn't smoked turkey an option? 

My brother in law usually does two turkeys (one smoked, the other baked) and both are awesome! I have a smoker, but have yet to try a turkey (I've done pork loin, chicken, salmon, ribs, even made jerky).

Although it's not tradition, smoked turkey is tasty! 
That being said, I'd love to try fried sometime. Guess I need to road trip to one of you guys homes for Thanksgiving.

There you go, I was waiting for someone to come to their senses.  While I'm not cooking a turkey this year, this is my preferred method.  I use a Weber kettle to smoke/grill pretty much everything...turkey, pork, beef, chicken, neighbors cat if it gets too close.

[tomgallagher]

Interesting, I'll have to give that a try.

[D.A.L.U.I.]

I've seen smoked turkeys, but not so much at Thanksgiving, it's more of a Mardi Gras thing here.  Maybe because it's pretty good cold.  It's also, IMO, one guaranteed way to have less dryness in the meat.  I understand it isn't a quick process, more than 8 hours in the smoker to get the bird cooked.  

Another alternative is a turducken--consisting of a de-boned chicken stuffed into a de-boned duck, which is in turn stuffed into a de-boned turkey, each stuffed with a Cajun-style stuffing.  Locally, in South Louisiana, there are several places that will prepare this artery clogging creature, and you can either cook it yourself or buy it already cooked. 

Fried turkeys are fast, really fast.  Last night on the local news they had a feature on how to safely fry turkeys, not too much oil, the right equipment, the right kind of oil--they said peanut--, dry bird, and if there is a spill over of fat that ignites to definately not put the garden hose on the fire--that spreads an oil fire.  One example was a pretty awesome intentional burn of the fryer by the fire department, the tent covering the fryer--another no, no-- burned up, and they showed what hosing water on the fire would do.  It's definately something to be extremely cautious with and keep the kids far, far away.  

[schro]

I've had turducken. Honestly, I didn't think it was worth the additional expense.
Here's a video on turducken as prepared by an expert....BOOM.

[D.A.L.U.I.]

I've had turducken. Honestly, I didn't think it was worth the additional expense.

I'd have to agree, especially since I'm not a turkey fan.  In addition to ruining a perfectly good duck--which I really like--all the fat which drains off when you cook a duck alone makes the dish extremely greasy to my taste.  The cooking times for all of it cause the turkey on the outside to be even dryer than it would if just cooked on its own by any other method. 

[tomcj2]

Roasted is in my opinion the best way so we can have gravy and dressing.  ( for those who care, the proper English word for turkey dressing is farture )

[TheSlyBear]

Those that don't roast can have dressing and gravy as well. I never cook the stuffing in the bird, but always make dressing separately. There are too many issues with stuffing in the bird.

And I do a "make ahead" gravy that you can make up to two days before, that refrigerates wonderfully, and reheats in the microwave (see photo earlier in thread).

No fussing at the last minute with the gravy! That always drove me crazy!

(Recipe available upon request!)

[mahaw90]

Turkey is far too dry for me, even when stuffed with shed load of butter. Its all about GOOSE for me and then the spuds cooked in the goose fat.

Wow I'm hungry.

[Frontier Guy]

Those that don't roast can have dressing and gravy as well. I never cook the stuffing in the bird, but always make dressing separately. There are too many issues with stuffing in the bird.

And I do a "make ahead" gravy that you can make up to two days before, that refrigerates wonderfully, and reheats in the microwave (see photo earlier in thread).

No fussing at the last minute with the gravy! That always drove me crazy!

(Recipe available upon request!)

SlyBear, recipe would be appreciated. I also do "day ahead" gravy which is good, but there is room for improvement.

[Slynito]

All you fryers out there be safe...just saw a vid about some grease fires that consumed people and homes.

 

[D.A.L.U.I.]

Turkey is far too dry for me, even when stuffed with shed load of butter. Its all about GOOSE for me and then the spuds cooked in the goose fat.

Wow I'm hungry.

Goose--that's REAL food!  Now where and when did you say you're having dinner?

[TheSlyBear]

OK, here's the make-ahead gravy recipe. It really saves pulling out hair (figuratively for us guys, obviously) at the last minute when everything seems to converge at once and hungry diners are ready to get out the pitchforks and troches.

BEAR'S MAKE-AHEAD TURKEY GRAVY

Makes about 3 cups

3 turkey drumsticks
neck and gizzard from the bird, if you have them (but never the liver!)
vegetable oil
3 medium carrots, coarsely chopped
3 ribs celery, coarsely chopped
1 onion, coarsely chopped
5 c chicken or turkey stock (low sodium or home-made)
1 c dry white wine or dry vermouth
6 sprigs fresh thyme
1 stick butter
1/2 c all-purpose flour
salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat oven to 450ºF.

2. Place turkey parts, carrots, celery, and onion in a roasting pan; toss lightly with oil. (Line the pan with foil for easy cleanup.)

3. Roast for 1 hour, then transfer the vegetables to a Dutch oven or large pot. Roast the turkey parts an additional 30 minutes.

4. Transfer turkey parts and any juices to the Dutch oven. Add broth, wine and thyme. Bring to a boil.

5. Simmer until visibly reduced; about 25 minutes.

6. Strain out solids and refrigerate strained stock for 2 hours.

7. Skim off excess congealed fat.

8. Heat butter until bubbling in a saucier or medium saucepan. Whisk in flour and cook to a honey-colored roux.

9. Whisk in strained stock stirring briskly, and bring to a boil. Simmer 5 to 10 minutes until thickened.

10. Season with salt and pepper and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Reheat in microwave oven.

[Frontier Guy]

Thanks SlyBear ... very similar to mine (which is good). But yours has the wine and thyme which will make a significant improvement.

I agree, gravy is the one thing you don't want to be fussing with just before serving.

The other thing I like about "make ahead" is you can make a large quantity, which was my mom's practice.

Thanks again.

[TheSlyBear]

My pleasure, FG!

I do a lot of prep ahead of time for the dishes that don't need to be made on Thanksgiving Day. I start on Sunday (with pulling the turkey from the freezer) and do a little prep each day until the feast.

That makes Thanksgiving Day a lot more pleasurable and I can actually spend time with guests (only one this year) rather than being frantic in the kitchen.

Make-ahead dishes include: the gravy, cranberry conserve, sweet potato casserole (no marshmallows!), and corn bread pudding (last year's photos posted earlier in thread).

That just leaves the turkey and mashed potatoes for Thursday.

I haven't decided upon dessert(s) yet.