Thanksgiving, who's cooking what and how

Well today is simple just one 20# turkey slathered in butter. Nothing spectacular other than just a completely moist bird. Now for the weekend I have 4 Boston butts to smoke, 80# of chicken, 8 heads of cabbage and 5 big cans of beans. So let's get it on.
 
And dessert time .
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Strudel is in the oven.

Bird was good. 30 mins at 500F, then about two hours at 350F for a 16lb turkey. Turned out perfect.
 
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Mine turned out amazing!! Me and my dad were blown away. I'm still feeling pretty good about myself. I did have a near disaster and nearly gave @shawn a laugh but all was good. Had a bit too much oil in the pot. I pre measured but somehow wound up with too much oil. Got the bird up to temp, let it sit, then devoured it!

As for the brine, I will repeat this process again next time since it was so good.

2.5 gallons hot water
1.5lbs brown sugar
1 cup sea salt
Mix until dissolved
1 TB spoon course black pepper
Cayenne
Paprika
3 minced Garlic cloves
Half cup apple juice

Add ice and let brine cool. Let bird sit 6hrs to overnight.
I really did not measure any of those ingredients
This also seasons the oil as mentioned and was just plain delicious.



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I made a plan almost two weeks ago to get the cleaning and the cook-ahead stuff done so today would be as stress-free as possible because, as anyone with small kids knows, it was going to be unpossible.

A lot was accomplished over the weekend and earlier this week but there was still a lot to do today, starting at about 7:30 this morning. My brother came over at 10 to help with the apple strudel and, being a former chef, he ended up helping me get the gravy and other fresh stuff cooked so we were ready to eat at 12:30 (noon-ish was the goal).

My mom washed dishes as we dirtied them, which also helped a ton!

Other than that, it was Alton Brown, the Pioneer Woman, butter, and alcohol!
 
Standard turkey in the oven, stuffing, cheddar make ahead mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, cranberry Waldorf. Pumpkin pie for dessert. All cleaned up, now the bird cacrass is already an hr into becoming turkey stock.
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Here was the bird. 16 lbs soaked for 24 hrs in brine. It was delicious.
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Here was the full spread:
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Other than brine, how else is everyone roasting their birds? We looked at a couple of very different methods but fell back to what AB suggests in the link I posted above... high heat for the first 30 minutes, which sealed in the juices (amplified by the brine) so there was no basting required!
 
trailhugger said:
Other than brine, how else is everyone roasting their birds? We looked at a couple of very different methods but fell back to what AB suggests in the link I posted above... high heat for the first 30 minutes, which sealed in the juices (amplified by the brine) so there was no basting required!
Click to expand...


We never baste our birds. Roast in the oven at like 350 for a reasonable amount of time. That's about it. No brine either.

And, it comes out moist and flavorful. Can cut the meat with a fork. It's very tender.
 
trailhugger said:
Other than brine, how else is everyone roasting their birds? We looked at a couple of very different methods but fell back to what AB suggests in the link I posted above... high heat for the first 30 minutes, which sealed in the juices (amplified by the brine) so there was no basting required!
Click to expand...
Ree Drummond kinda does it like that. 500 degrees for one hour, turn oven off and wait til it cools down completly Like 8 hours or so.
Yeah, i'm a fanboy of the Pioneer Woman. That gal can cook!
 
Either thats a huge grill, or those are some REALLY TINY chickens :eek:
 
Cornish?
 
No they were a full half chicken it was a 275 gallon homemade cooker
 
First time trying to smoke a turkey by myself. Borrowed my buddy's electric smoker.

Wife brined the turkey breast just like she always does overnight. I cut the breast in half and put both halves in the smoker. 225 for about 3 hours and turned out perfect.

I will never bake a turkey again. I like deep fried turkey but way dangerous for me.
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