I (Steven) will be away from the family this Thanksgiving. I am in Boston, Kenji in Montreal (or maybe he will go to Ottawa to be with Adelle, Pamela, Nana and Jiji). Yoshie, Kaito and Kasumi will be together in Vancouver. Normally I cook the turkey so I have been asked for a simple recipe.
We have been having turkey at Thanksgiving and Christmas since we have been married. When we lived in Tokyo getting a turkey was a big deal. Each October and December we would make a special trip to Aoyama to but a turkey and all the fixings. And then we would cook a feast for our extended family and friends in Japan. In Vancouver, we often alternate between having Thanksgiving at Carla and Warren's home and Christmas at our own home in Kitsilano, or vice versa.
So here is a set of basic turkey and stuffing recipes to improvise on. There are five parts to this:
- Brining
- Stuffing
- Preparation and Roasting
- Pan Gravy
- Cranberry Sauce
Brining
Brining a bird (and ham or pork for that matter) greatly improves the taste and moisture so you should do it whenever you can. The brine should taste like very, very salty seawater. If you can't get a bite from the salt you are soaking the bird and not brining it. Our standard brine has salt, pepper corns, bay leaf, lemon peel and other herbs depending on the stuffing and other dishes we will serve. Brining for about three days is ideal, we usually change the water each day.
Stuffing
You have to stuff a bird (or anything with an empty body cavity) so that the heat will transfer and it will roast properly. Stuffing also absorbs all of the flavour released in roasting so that you do not lose them!
We usually use a basic stale bread stuffing (you can use rice, bulgur, any absorbent grain instead) and mix in nuts (be careful if Courtney is coming), wild rice, fruits and various mushrooms, onions, garlic, herbs. You can also try some corn, or squash or even potatoes - anything with bulk that will absorb flavours.
The evening before, tear up the bread into bite size pieces and leave out to let it dry and get a bit stale. If you are going to use rice or wild rice in the stuffing cook it the night before as well.
Slice up onions and shallots (nice to use a variety but yellow onions work well), some garlic and sauté until transparent in a neutral oil and butter with some salt.
Toss onion mixture with bread. Add rice or wild rice (or other grains), cubed mushrooms, cubed apples, nuts if you are using them (chestnuts are especially nice), herbs (what you use depends on the general taste themes, but sage is a good standby), season with salt and pepper and add a splash of Cognac. The stuffing should be moist but not soggy when you put it in the bird.
Season the inside of the bird with a bit of salt and pepper.
Stuff both ends of the bird, put half a peeled apple at the top, and sew the flaps closed.
Preparation and Roasting
Rub the outside of the bird with a mixture of oil and butter. Sprinkle on a bit of salt, drizzle on some orange or lemon. Cover with tin foil and roast at 280 degrees until the thigh joint begins to loosen. After two to four hours, about an hour before it the bird is done (depends on the size of the bird), add peeled and quartered potatoes around the bird. Remove the foil for the last half hour and increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees.
The bird is done when the thigh wiggles easily and the juices run clear. The skin should be a nice gold brown.
Move the bird to a serving platter (always a good trick, we have dropped at least one bird) and let it rest for at least fifteen minutes before removing the stuffing or trying to carve the bird.
Pan Gravy
Drain off most of the clear yellow fat (you can put some of it on the potatoes if you like) leaving about half pan drippings and half or a bit less fat. Scrape the pan drippings and fat into a saucepan with a tab of butter and put over gentle heat. Whisk, add about a cup of milk, whisk, sprinkle white flour very slow whisking very vigorously (be careful not to get clumps of flour, almost impossible to break them up once they form). Add a splash of cognac, check the seasoning and add salt and pepper as necessary. You can add a squeeze of citrus as well. Try to make a lot of gravy as you can use it over the next few days to fry left over turkey in.
Cranberry Sauce
There is no reason to buy cranberry sauce if you can find fresh or even frozen cranberries. It is about the simplest thing in the world to make. Take two cups cranberries, but over low heat, stir and let them simmer down to a soft mush, add some sugar, some lemon juice, a very small bit of salt. That's it.
I wish we all could be together for Thanksgiving. Open a good pinot noir, maybe a Cedar Creek. I will save the BC wines we have in Boston for when people are here and will see what I can find from Oregon as I eat alone (but I will get in a good cycle).
