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[AbortedWalrusFetus]

I don't know how many members of GAF cook for Thanksgiving, but I figured it might be a good idea for us to share our cooking knowledge and help people out.

This year I am throwing a party for my friends this coming weekend, the weekend before Thanksgiving, and then going to celebrate with family on Thanksgiving day/weekend. Here's the catch: I have never cooked a turkey before.

In some ways I have no clue what I am doing, so maybe cooking GAF can give me some tips. I got an 18lb Butterball Turkey, and I am planning on brining it for ~12 hours before I cook it. I've never brined a Turkey before so I don't really have any guidelines to follow. I have a big 5 gallon stainless steel stock pot that I use for homebrewing and was going to use to brine it in, but I am afraid it may take upwards of two-three gallons of water to make sure it's fully covered. Most recipes I see say 1/2 to 1 cup of salt/sugar/etc per gallon of water. I guess I can just multiply, but for some of the recipes that could get expensive. Especially since I was considering something like this bourbon brine:

14 Ounces salt
2 Pounds brown sugar
1-1/2 Cups bourbon
1 Gallon ice water
1/4 Cup cloves
1/4 Cup black peppercorns

Then the other part is how long I cook it. I have a thermometer, and I have read that you should cook it until the thickest part of the thigh is 170 degrees F. That's not a problem, I just wonder if that's the right place to measure the temperature and if there's a way to make sure it cooks evenly. Or even a ballpark for how long an 18lb Turkey takes to cook.

Anyway, I would appreciate tips, and I would enjoy if people would share some Thanksgiving recipes and food prep advice. I'm going to share a recipe I recently read to close out the post.

Sweet Potatoes With Honey and Lime
Makes 6 servings
5 pounds sweet potatoes, unpeeled
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Bake the potatoes until soft, about 45 minutes. Set aside to cool.
3. Peel, roughly chop, and puree the potatoes in a food processor, being careful not to overprocess.
4. Place the butter and sour cream in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat.
5. Stir in the pureed potatoes and remaining ingredients, adjust seasonings, and serve immediately.
— From City Cuisine (William Morrow & Co., 1989)
Per serving: 163 calories, 1 gram protein, 8 grams carbohydrates, 6 grams sugar, 15 grams fat, 36 milligrams cholesterol, 212 milligrams sodium, no dietary fiber.

Recipe Link

I am hoping to make this as well. It sounds delicious.

 

[Like the hat?]

My brine is just vegetable broth, salt, brown sugar, cinnamon, sage, thyme, bay leaf, and black peppercorns

Thanksgiving is honestly my favorite holiday. I looooove cooking thanksgiving dinner.

Turkey
Homemade cranberry sauce
Oyster stuffing
Cornbread dressing
Green bean casserole
Home made Parker house rolls
Mushroom soufflé
Garlic and chive mashed potatoes
Chipotle mashed sweet potatoes
Gravy
Pecan pie
Pumpkin pie

And then I eat myself into a coma

Can provide recipes for anything if anyone is interested.

 

[Ponn]

I'm thinking of skipping turkey and making hot wings this year. Will still make a couple pies though.

 

[Collete]

Thanksgiving isn't at my house this year, but I'm thinking of making a pie and taking it over to my cousin's house.
Not sure which pie to make, however I wish you luck on the turkey, OP, never cooked one before.
Sounds somewhat daunting.

 

[AbortedWalrusFetus]

Thanksgiving isn't at my house this year, but I'm thinking of making a pie and taking it over to my cousin's house.
Not sure which pie to make, however I wish you luck on the turkey, OP, never cooked one before.
Sounds somewhat daunting.

My biggest worry is that I will overcook it and it will be dry. I have a tendency to overcook my roasts because I am worried about them being undercooked.

 

[Ferrio]

My contribution to my friends' thanksgiving get together will be Bacon wrapped blue cheese stuffed dates.

 

[Bread]

ahhhhhh i cant fucking wait for thanksgiving, what an amazing day.

ive been eating thanksgiving subs all year in preparation

 

[Himynameischris]

I try to keep it simple since it's just my dad, sister and I. I'll make a small pre cooked ham with some easy sides like Mac and cheese or mashed potatoes (All from scratch none of that box crap)

 

[EightBitNate]

Desperately wanna try fried turkey

 

[Tex117]

I do the cooking!

Turkey, Dressing (using a special pepper that I hand pick from South Texas)...hotter than fire.

 

[Dishwalla]

Gonna get a bunch of Bojangles chicken, biscuits, mashed potatoes, pies, etc. It's what me and my room mate did last year, and it was a great fucking meal.

 

[AbortedWalrusFetus]

Gonna get a bunch of Bojangles chicken, biscuits, mashed potatoes, pies, etc. It's what me and my room mate did last year, and it was a great fucking meal.

This is my back up plan if I somehow explode my oven.

 

[H.Protagonist]

That bird recipe sounds amazing, but after three years of turkey failure, I'll leave that bit to the experts and present the portion I do best: the beer course (<--- I highly recommend you incorporate this course into your own Thanksgiving. It's fun and foolproof!).

I'm totally passing it on to whoever I can wrangle to tackle the bird, though. Thanks, AWF!

 

[AbortedWalrusFetus]

That bird recipe sounds amazing, but after three years of turkey failure, I'll leave that bit to the experts and present the portion I do best: the beer course (<--- I highly recommend you incorporate this course into your own Thanksgiving. It's fun and foolproof!).

I'm totally passing it on to whoever I can wrangle to tackle the bird, though. Thanks, AWF!

I had contemplated doing a fancy variety of beer, but as I am paying for all of the alcohol myself I decided it would be too expensive. I'm just getting a keg of Yeungling Lager, and maybe an extra bottle of gin. Yeungling is only $100 for a half keg, and it should last the night.

Oh, and I'll need some whiskey and egg nog. We're also probably doing Pumpkin Pie Martinis. I forget the exact recipe and I have to check, but it's 2oz vanilla vodka, 2oz cream, 1oz creme de cacao, and a few dashes of pumpkin spice and cinnamon.

 

[Count Dookkake]

I have a great recipe for Smallpox Blankets.

 

[User 100115]

I tried brining a turkey once. It didn't turn out well, so I haven't tried it again. So I just do the basic roast with some butter slipped under the skin, a bit of garlic and pepper, and crimping the skin a bit.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

I wanted to cook a super awesome Thanksgiving this year, but my parents want something untraditional. Like, meat and cheese tray untraditional. fml.

 

[Like the hat?]

The negative I've always had with brining is trying to get the skin crisp. Any one have any tips?

 

[Auron_Kale]

Not tackling the bird itself, but will be attempting some desserts. Making gingerbread cookies for the first time.

 

[Wuthering_Heights]

Nothing better than a fat, juicy steak on Thanksgiving.

Mm.

 

[AbortedWalrusFetus]

The negative I've always had with brining is trying to get the skin crisp. Any one have any tips?

Cook it in a brown paper bag at 375F. No lie. Last year my mother-in-law cooked a brined turkey in a paper bag and it was the best turkey I ever ate. It came out golden brown and crispy.

 

[Jackben]

That sweet potato recipe sounds delicious, OP! I love sweet potatoes.

 

[ConfusingJazz]

Making biscuits from scratch and 4 cheese macaroni.

We are also frying the turkey this year. Should be fun.

 

[Kitsunebaby]

The brine I use has parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, juniper berries, and star anise. I've heard of people making the brine in apple cider and I'm kind of interested, but it sounds rather expensive.

Also, rather than putting sausage stuffing inside the bird, I cook that separately and just stuff the bird with raw onions, celery, carrots, and herbs that flavor and moisten the bird from the inside while it roasts. I've never had a dry turkey.

I'm trying to decide if I want to try making pumpkin cheesecake as well as my usual pies this year. I might have to make it a day ahead if I do.

We are also frying the turkey this year. Should be fun.

My family is always tempted to fry it, but then you can't get the nice turkey drippings to make the gravy with. Still, sounds delicious.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

Cook it in a brown paper bag at 375F. No lie. Last year my mother-in-law cooked a brined turkey in a paper bag and it was the best turkey I ever ate. It came out golden brown and crispy.

How did the bag not catch on fire?

 

[ConfusingJazz]

The last three years, we have injected the turkey with so much butter, it caught fire when we put it on the barbecue.

The fire means it will delicious.

How did the bag not catch on fire?

My knowledge of sci fi titles says it's because it wasn't 451 degrees.

 

[AbortedWalrusFetus]

How did the bag not catch on fire?

Paper burns at 451F. As long as it doesn't touch the heating elements and the temperature is below that it won't burn.

You can use food grade baking parchment for this. I think I am going to try to do that with mine. I'm going to staple it or tie the ends or something. Maybe if I am lucky I will try to find a food grade paper bag.

 

[ReBurn]

Bought the turkey and the peanut oil yesterday. Got the new turkey fryer out in the garage. 20 lbs of fried Butterball deliciousness on the patio this year.

 

[Ponn]

The baking in brown bag sounds interesting and always wanted to fry my own turkey but I need my turkey drippings for good old turkey gravy. Leftovers would not be the same without a big bowl of turkey gravy in the fridge.

 

[DietRob]

My brine is just vegetable broth, salt, brown sugar, cinnamon, sage, thyme, bay leaf, and black peppercorns

Thanksgiving is honestly my favorite holiday. I looooove cooking thanksgiving dinner.

Turkey
Homemade cranberry sauce
Oyster stuffing
Cornbread dressing
Green bean casserole
Home made Parker house rolls
Mushroom soufflé
Garlic and chive mashed potatoes
Chipotle mashed sweet potatoes
Gravy
Pecan pie
Pumpkin pie

And then I eat myself into a coma

Can provide recipes for anything if anyone is interested.

That all sounds delicious. I'm most interested in Chipotle mashed sweet potatoes though.

Go on.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

My knowledge of sci fi titles says it's because it wasn't 451 degrees.

Paper burns at 451F. As long as it doesn't touch the heating elements and the temperature is below that it won't burn.

Oh yeah! >__<

 

[Risible]

My biggest worry is that I will overcook it and it will be dry. I have a tendency to overcook my roasts because I am worried about them being undercooked.

I've cooked Thanksgiving for the last ten years or so for about 15-20 people. I've never brined a turkey yet, but would love to try at some point.

My turkeys are usually 20+ pounds. I cover it with cheesecloth and marinate it once or twice (butter and wine) through the cooking time. You can't open the oven that often or it takes forrreevvverrr to cook. I've found that if you cook it until the thigh reads 170 degrees you've overdone it. Expect at least a 15-20 degree rise after you take the bird out and let it rest for at least 45 minutes covered with a dishtowel - makes a huge difference.

Learn to make your own gravy - even if the turkey is over-done, people tend to slather gravy on it and if your gravy is good no one notices the turkey is a bit dry .

 

[MuggerMD]

I'll be brining a turkey this year, any tips??

 

[RoninChaos]

This is gonna be the first year i cook too. Hopefully I don't poison my family.

 

[Like the hat?]

That all sounds delicious. I'm most interested in Chipotle mashed sweet potatoes though.

Go on.

start with about 4 or 5 good sized sweet potatoes. wash them off, pierce them all over with a fork (make sure to get them well, so the spice rub can be soaked in as moisture starts cooking out of the sweet potatoes), and then rub with a bit of vegetable oil. Rub them with a mixture of kosher salt, smoked paprika, cumin, garlic powder, and (if you have it) chipotle powder. wrap them in foil and bake at 350F for about 45 minutes, until they are nice and soft.

Take 'em out, let 'em rest for about 5 minutes unwrapped (so they can cool down a bit, and can draw in a little of the liquid that they lost..the spice rub should be like a paste now)

Then just peel them, and mash them with a bit more kosher salt, a couple tablespoons each of butter and brown sugar, and a tablespoon or so (more or less to your taste) of adobo sauce from a can of chipotle chiles.

smoky, spicy, sweet, all at the same time.

for the amounts of the rub, I just use an equal amount of each ingredient. I usually end up with a little extra rub that I just end up mixing in with the potatoes at the end.

Oh, and if any liquid is left over on the foil after the potatoes have rested, make sure to pour that in with everything when you mash. Don't want it to go to waste. And you can adjust the amount of chile depending on how spicy you like things.

 

[DietRob]

start with about 4 or 5 good sized sweet potatoes. wash them off, pierce them all over with a fork (make sure to get them well, so the spice rub can be soaked in as moisture starts cooking out of the sweet potatoes), and then rub with a bit of vegetable oil. Rub them with a mixture of kosher salt, smoked paprika, cumin, garlic powder, and (if you have it) chipotle powder. wrap them in foil and bake at 350F for about 45 minutes, until they are nice and soft.

Take 'em out, let 'em rest for about 5 minutes unwrapped (so they can cool down a bit, and can draw in a little of the liquid that they lost..the spice rub should be like a paste now)

Then just peel them, and mash them with a bit more kosher salt, a couple tablespoons each of butter and brown sugar, and a tablespoon or so (more or less to your taste) of adobo sauce from a can of chipotle chiles.

smoky, spicy, sweet, all at the same time.

for the amounts of the rub, I just use an equal amount of each ingredient. I usually end up with a little extra rub that I just end up mixing in with the potatoes at the end.

Oh, and if any liquid is left over on the foil after the potatoes have rested, make sure to pour that in with everything when you mash. Don't want it to go to waste. And you can adjust the amount of chile depending on how spicy you like things.

Perfect, thank you very much. I'll admit I was a bit skeptical and still am, however, I'm going to give this a shot. I'll still do my candied yams as a back-up but I really want to give your Chipotle Sweet Potatoes a shot.

 

[Natetan]

im jumping in the deepend this year making my first turkey this year. I'm brining it with a jerk spice combo.

I may just follow advice about putting the onions only to stuff the bird while its cooking. My family usually put apples, celery, etc in the stuffing. I love my family's stuffing.

 

[Like the hat?]

Perfect, thank you very much. I'll admit I was a bit skeptical and still am, however, I'm going to give this a shot. I'll still do my candied yams as a back-up but I really want to give your Chipotle Sweet Potatoes a shot.

I just hope they can be WhatRobEats

 

[LProtag]

I'm spending Thanksgiving with my family, but I think my roommates and I are going to do a second Thanksgiving on the Saturday after. We'll probably have a roast rather than a turkey though.

 

[shira]

turkey

Used a hair dryer for that magazine golden brown look.

 

[Egnirys]

This is a friend's recipe on how he does his turkey. Someday when I host people for Thanksgiving, I'd like to try this.

• Use 12 pound organic hen (Diestel, Heidi's Hens), fully thawed, washed and dry-brined for 3 days before cooking. (1 cup salt w/ chopped rosemary, sage and lemon thyme.)&#8232;&#8232;

• Stuff bird (cornbread stuffing with red peppers, celery, chives, 1/2 onion)&#8232;&#8232;

• Place on rack of roasting pan and under rack place neck, 1/2 chopped onion, 1/2 bottle of white wine, and 2 cups of water.&#8232;&#8232;

• Cook @ 400º F for one hour to let skin brown.

&#8232;&#8232;• Reduce heat to 325º, cook for 2.5 more hours, basting every 40 minutes. Tent with foil for last 30 mins.&#8232;&#8232;Remove from oven. Breast or thigh should register at least 165º on meat thermometer. Let rest for 30 mins. Carve and serve!

 

[Klaymator14]

don't brine your turkeys (or more specifically, wet-brining)

http://www.seriouseats.com/2012/11/the-food-lab-the-truth-about-brining-turkey-thanksgiving.html

 

[Xeke]

My families stuffing recipe is highly sausage based.

 

[Zyzyxxz]

Two words, residual heat.

If you are aiming for the thighs to get to 170F, take it out of oven at 160 and let the residual heat finish cooking it the rest of the way (tent it loosely with foil but not so much that it steams and sogs the crispy skin).

 

[AbortedWalrusFetus]

Two words, residual heat.

If you are aiming for the thighs to get to 170F, take it out of oven at 160 and let the residual heat finish cooking it the rest of the way (tent it loosely with foil but not so much that it steams and sogs the crispy skin).

Yeah, I think this is my problem, I don't do this. I also don't have an instant read thermometer, and it takes like 30 seconds for it to stop increasing in temperature, so I sometimes think it's less hot than it is. I'm going to be more careful this time around with it, and take it out earlier.

 

[Ourobolus]

Making a Turkey and a Pecan Pie for my work's potluck we're having this week...eventually I'll have to do the full Thanksgiving next week for me and my wife's family. Should be interesting - I've made all the food before, but never for Thanksgiving, and never all at the same time.

 

[DJ_Lae]

I've stopped doing anything fancy with my turkey - salt, pepper, butter, and into the oven it goes at a relatively low temperature. The breasts come out a tiny bit dry with your average previously frozen utility turkey, but whip up some gravy and it ultimately doesn't matter. I do make sure I don't overcook it at all, though, even the best quality turkey is not forgiving of that.

I am curious about roasting it flat, as I've read with smaller turkeys you can essentially clip the spine out and butterfly the bird in a large roasting pan and it takes a fraction of the time as a result and cooks more evenly.