The Swamp

I am thinking of making a different turkey this year. The last couple of years, I used Tom Colicchio's herb-butter recipe. It is really good, though I use a more of the herbs then the recipe calls for. I've always made a bird about double the size of the recipe, but found more than double the herbs were warranted.

Anywho, I'm looking to make something new. Since we have half the crowd this year, I can probably fit the turkey in the fridge, so I am thinking of brining. Anyone have a recommendation? Accepting ideas for brine or otherwise. Feel free to share any other side dish recipes.

I frequently make an Asian broccoli dish that is always a hit. I am thinking about adapting the sauce for a turkey, using garlic and ginger under the skin and injecting the sauce into the meat. I make it different all the time, but the gist is detailed below.

Typical ingredients:

Sesame oil
chopped Ginger
chopped garlic
Soy sauce
Hoisin sauce
Scotch (yes, scotch)
sometimes fish sauce
corn starch

Mix sesame oil, liquids and corn starch until starch is dissolved

Boil water in large pot. Boil broccoli for 3 minutes. Heat sesame oil on high heat in a wok. Throw in the garlic and ginger until fragrant (20 seconds or so). Pour in sauce mixture, continually stirring until it begins to thicken. Drain broccoli and add to sauce, stirring to coat broccoli. Place in serving dish, drop mic, walk off [optional].

This dish is actually even better as leftovers when refrigerated and reheated. The extra time allows the flavors to mix and build.

After years of wet brining, I now dry brine (like this) and pretty much follow along with Alton Brown's roasting method. Turns out great!

1. Drive 160 miles South
2. Say "Thanks Mom!"

testy boxcar wrote:After years of wet brining, I now dry brine (like this) and pretty much follow along with Alton Brown's roasting method. Turns out great!

I've done the Good Eats turkey for at least 6-7 years. It turns out great every time.

rass wrote:1. Drive 160 miles South
2. Say "Thanks Mom!"

Do you want to PM me the directions or should I just follow you?

We don't do stuffing. Filling only in Pennsylvania dutch land.

10 lb Bag of potatoes
4 onions
1 bunch of celery
2 1/2 sticks of butter

Mash potatoes. Chop onions and celery. Saute onions and celery in butter until soft. Mix potatoes with onions/celery and spread in 9x13 pan. Place pats of a half stick of butter on top and cover with foil. Bake @ 350 for 30-40 min. Remove foil during last 10 min to brown the top.

Deep fry it, motherfuckers. Just do it.

Johnnie wrote:Deep fry it, motherfuckers. Just do it.

The turkey or the mashed potato casserole? Hell, why not both? I've had a deep fried turkey before. I was skeptical, but it was the juiciest bird I've ever eaten.

I have wet brined and once I tried orange jalapeno glaze it's all I do (plus it makes the turkey soup leftovers Thai soup like.)

1 can orange juice concentrate
4-5 jalapenos
4 garlic cloves
3 t grated orange rind
1 t olive oil
1 t salt
1/2 t ground ginger
1/2 t pepper
3 T maple syrup

Combine all ingredients except syrup and juice in processor and pulse till finely chopped. Combine in bowl with syrup and concentrate. Brush on bird starting about 1-1.5 hours before done. Once first coating is baked on add another coat and continue each 15 minutes until mixture is gone.

The Sybian wrote:

rass wrote:1. Drive 160 miles South
2. Say "Thanks Mom!"

Do you want to PM me the directions or should I just follow you?

I'll show you how to get there. I know the way.

bfj wrote:I know the way.

Like, who doesn't?

Stuffing joke?

howard wrote:

bfj wrote:I know the way.

Like, who doesn't?

Hell, the horse knows the way...

testuser2 wrote:We don't do stuffing. Filling only in Pennsylvania dutch land.

10 lb Bag of potatoes
4 onions
1 bunch of celery
2 1/2 sticks of butter

Mash potatoes. Chop onions and celery. Saute onions and celery in butter until soft. Mix potatoes with onions/celery and spread in 9x13 pan. Place pats of a half stick of butter on top and cover with foil. Bake @ 350 for 30-40 min. Remove foil during last 10 min to brown the top.

That looks great.

For a side dish, I always went with the bachelor friendly Thanksgiving Maize.

It's delicious and it kind of pleased people to see the single guy bring a dish that wasn't dinner rolls or sodas.

What I'm not a fan of: green bean casserole. Never knew it existed until we had a Thanksgiving potluck when I first enlisted over 12 years ago. Green beans & cream of mushroom soup topped with onion crisps and baked? Just didn't please.

Now unless there's a seriously awesome recipe for it, don't make that shit. Just make more of literally anything else and bring that.

testy boxcar wrote:After years of wet brining, I now dry brine (like this) and pretty much follow along with Alton Brown's roasting method. Turns out great!

So do you dry brine with just kosher salt, then roast with Alton's aromatics? That is probably what I'll end up doing, but I think the allspice and candied ginger from Alton's brine would be nice, but that wouldn't work dry.

Rush, the ornage jalapeno glaze sounds awesome, I just don't see it going over well with the kids.

The Sybian wrote:
Rush, the ornage jalapeno glaze sounds awesome, I just don't see it going over well with the kids.

That's why you get a second turkey.

First time I made the glaze I actually went out the next day to get another turkey to glaze...it's that good.

Rush, do you get the second turkey before or after you light your Cuban with a Benjamin?

The Sybian wrote:

testy boxcar wrote:After years of wet brining, I now dry brine (like this) and pretty much follow along with Alton Brown's roasting method. Turns out great!

So do you dry brine with just kosher salt, then roast with Alton's aromatics? That is probably what I'll end up doing, but I think the allspice and candied ginger from Alton's brine would be nice, but that wouldn't work dry.

Rush, the ornage jalapeno glaze sounds awesome, I just don't see it going over well with the kids.

I did salt, some orange zest, and rosemary over the weekend. I don't think the orange zest or rosemary actually made a difference.

Jerloma wrote:Rush, do you get the second turkey before or after you light your Cuban with a Benjamin?

Ya, 'cause turkeys are never on sale the day after Thanksgiving.

(and I may smoke a Cuban, but that was free & I just use a lighter.)