Monday, November 10, 2008

How to Cook a Turkey: Part 2 - All About the Gravy

Gravy is the lifeblood of any real thanksgiving feast. It will moisten the driest turkey, and saturate the most solid stuffing. Lumpy mashed potatoes are no match for its slow-moving seduction. I like gravy, I like it a lot.

This is Part 2 in the How to Cook a Turkey miniseries. We join the turkey in progress, with about an hour left to cook. As you'll see, the f
oil is removed, the turkey browns beautifully, and then it’s time to get our gravy on. I hope this video recipe leads you to a nice boat of gravy at your holiday table, and even though your turkey will be moist and tender, you'll have this liquid love on hand just in case.

A few words for you advanced turkey chefs. These video recipes are intended for the novice chefs among us, which is why I tried to use a minimum of steps. There was no brining, frying, injecting, smoking, bagging, or upside-downing. That's not to say I don't appreciate all those techniques, and the endless quest for turkey perfection. So, enjoy your turkey no matter what you did to it.



Gravy Ingredients:
3 cups cooking liquid from turkey pan (fat removed)
4 cups turkey stock from the neck
1/2 cup cooked onions from pan
*2-3 tbsp turkey fat
*1 tbsp butter
*1/4 cup flour
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp chopped sage
*double for thick gravy

Sunday, November 9, 2008

Will a Change in the White House Mean the Return of America's Garden?

This animated video is from the folks at "Eat the View," a campaign to return some of the White House's lawn back into a fruit and vegetable garden, like our early presidents maintained and enjoyed. As we all face the tough times ahead, let's hope that one silver lining is the rebirth of "victory gardens."

I realize the new Prez has lots on his plate, but one thing he can do to help everyone get more on theirs, is to bring back America's Garden, and promote the rebirth of the backyard garden. If you want more info, check out eattheview.org.

Friday, November 7, 2008

How to Cook a Turkey: Part 1 - A No-Fail Method for People that Would Rather Watch Football than Wash Dishes

The biggest myth in all of American cookery is the belief that a juicy, perfectly cooked turkey is difficult for the novice cook to achieve. This video recipe for how to cook a turkey will show a very easy method for producing a moist, delicious, and beautiful turkey every time.

One of the secrets is a flavored butter under the skin. You can see that recipe here. You can tweak this any way you want, as t
he possibilities are endless. This video recipe for prepping and roasting the turkey is just part 1, and will conclude with how to make the gravy in part 2.

Be sure you buy a meat thermometer before thanksgiving. It is the most important tool in the kitchen that day. Other than that, you probably have everything needed, and yes, this method will work with the ubiquitous foil roasting pans.

So, proceed with confidence, joy, and the knowledge that since you're the one cooking the turkey, you won't have to wash any dishes! Even if this is your first time, don't play scared, this will work. There is nothing to fear, but the fear of dry turkey itself. Enjoy!



Ingredients:
Turkey
1 tbsp black pepper
2 tbsp kosher salt
1 tbsp poultry seasoning (fresh, not from 1997)
2 onions
3 ribs celery
2 carrots
3 rosemary sprigs
1/2 bunch sage
1 bay leaf
1 stick butter, or a flavored butter recipe

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Jan Svankmajer's "Meat Love"

This is from his Wikipedia page: Jan Švankmajer (born 4 September 1934 in Prague) is a Czech surrealist artist. His work spans several media. He is known for his surreal animations and features, which have greatly influenced other artists such as Tim Burton, Terry Gilliam, The Brothers Quay and many others.

Švankmajer's trademarks include very exaggerated sounds, often creating a very strange effect in all eating scenes. He often uses very sped-up sequences when people walk and interact. His movies often involve inanimate objects coming alive and being brought to life through stop-motion. Food is a favourite subject and medium. Stop-motion features in most of his work, though his feature films also include live action to varying degrees.