Happy Thanksgiving to all! I will be doing the cooking again this year at my house to take over to Mom's tomorrow. Turkey, gravy, dressing, mashed potatoes, green beans, mac & cheese, biscuits, and cranberry sauce. I bought a small pecan pie for desert for Mom. I will abstain. This one's for you, Bill......
I really enjoyed your comment about your son and girlfriend heading over to her folks house for the evening meal. After Alan was of age a ritual got started at our house called “Christmas Turkey at the Horne’s”….A couple of years in Jan and I ran into some of the parents of Alan’s friends that were regulars attending this event. They looked at Jan and I square in the face and asked “How do y’all get them to eat again after they’ve already eaten big?”…… I said “Well, it’s 101* Wild Turkey and their car keys go in the basket when they get here because they’re here for the night”…
It was a 14 pounder. Guess my fridge temp is a little on the high side. I put it in my sink with cold water for a couple hours and it did the trick. Mostly just happy to get that neck and innards pack out....lol... The turkey came out perfect - very succulent!
Had the same issue Baz. We have a 20 pounder and moved it from freezer to fridge Saturday morning. Noticed it was still running behind yesterday… and had to use the sink defrost method for 2 hrs last night. That did the trick. Popped in the oven at 6 this morning, pulled it around 11. We were all at the table by 12:15. Came out great. Wonderful meal.
I bought a fresh turkey so I didn't have any defrosting issues but I did have one surprise. I was smoking a 19 pounder and the rule of thumb is 30 to 40 minutes per pound when smoking at a low temperature. So the soonest if should have been done would be after about 9.5 hours. I checked the bird after 7 hours and it was slightly over done. Good thing I checked. And there was over half a gallon of liquid in the drip tray. That makes be think this bird was injected with several pounds of water. That would explain the overly fast cooking time and the huge amount of liquid that came out. The dark meat was wonderful and the white meat was slightly dry.
After yesterday we are going with simple and good for rivalry football Friday. Tonight we’re going to be grilling cheeseburgers and hotdogs with an assortment of chips on the side. The back porch Yeti is restocked with ice cold longnecks and Ms. Jan’s wine is chilled along with all of the ingredients for Kentucky and Moscow Mules. Life is good in Gator Nation!
Leftovers. Thanksgiving meal part 2, tonight. Though a much smaller plate than yesterday. There were 7 of us yesterday …and I was pretty pleased with the amount of leftovers left (at least for the sides, anyway). Today’s meal wiped out just about everything that was left. So thought we nailed that… EXCEPT for the turkey. Turns out 20 lbs is a lot of meat. The Mrs. has decided to makes soup tomorrow with what is left. I guess I have the next night or 2 off
Last night was leftovers (duh) with mole sauce for those that wanted it on their turkey. My wife bought a commercial version as making your own is a day long labor of love. It was surprisingly decent. Making your own requires getting the right chocolate and that might be an issue if you don't have a good Mexican market. Even though we still have leftover turkey tonight will be carnitas. I made fresh pico de gallo and the Californian tomatillo and avocado taco "guac". I usually make the latter with serrano peppers that are normally a little hotter than the average jalapenos. The heat from serranos is more consistent than the heat from jalapeno so I know what I am getting. Jalapenoes can be mild to very hot. But my Publix was out of serranos and so I bought jalapenos and they were much hotter than usual, but that happens with them. I hope nobody complains.
I got to thinking about cuts of meat that were dirt cheap when I was a kid and are now expensive. Number one on my list is "ox tail". It is not really ox tail but the tail from a steer. It is the sweetest meat from the whole animal and makes an awesome ragu to serve over toothy pastas like riggotini or bucatini that can hold the sauce. An "oxtail" ragu is what I normally make for my birthday but it is too rich to eat very often. It also makes great stews and soups. Lots of "soul food" recipes out there with oxtail but poor folk can't afford it anymore. Now it is a special event dish. Second on my list is flank steak. When I was a kid it was almost given away. Now it it like the gold standard of lean beef that isn't filet mignon.
The soup was pretty good but I’ve had enough of TG food. Thankfully my son, who was over to watch the game last night, took the rest of it home with him. Tonight, I’m defrosting some leftover Sunday Sauce and meatballs to serve over thin spaghetti, along with a small salad & garlic bread. The Mrs. is having a big salad with cubed chicken breast fried up in lemon garlic butter.
Tonight we’re going with a big pot of taco bean soup. An assortment of different garnishes are on the side. Ice cold longnecks and chilled wine are ready for the afternoon/evening. Life is good in Gator Nation!
Made a new batch of chili for tonight. The traditional kind. 2 to 1 ground chuck vs pork… Pinto & red beans, roasted poblano & jalapeños peppers, fire roasted tomatoes, beer, with 3 different chili powders. Tasted amazing. Ready for round 2 tomorrow.
