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We're a month out, so it's time to start planning again. With one pandemic-tainted holiday season out of the way, what's new for this year? I'm already anticipating family celebrations being straight up canceled, so have started to put together the gift baskets I'm going to drop for my parents and siblings since I don't get to do the big holiday dinner this year. Laid down a batch of eggnog two weeks ago to start aging...
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Sep 30, 2021 05:15
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| # ? May 6, 2024 00:03 |
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What's everyone gifting this year? Extra points for socially and environmentally conscious small businesses, preferably that sell direct online. I'm trying to avoid Amazon and Etsy this year. Foodplans include goose if I can find it, prime rib if I can't, and a vegan feast.
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Nov 9, 2021 00:54
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We're inviting a couple of friends over (actual family-family are at the other end of the country in my case, across the Atlantic in my wife's) - everyone fully vax'd of course. Mostly my wife is doing the planning since she's the American one but we're thinking something like a chicken and a ham, her dressing, pigs in blankets (UK definition - sausages wrapped in bacon), roasties, that sort of thing. Also, booze.
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Nov 9, 2021 13:56
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O hey, it's the one thread that makes me come back to GWS every year. Our situation is pretty complicated (there were drafts where I tried to summarize but it was long and boring), so we're doing a fractional thing where me and the other cook in the family are doing an abridged but full-bore meal with as much preprep as we can manage. I'm recovering from pretty nasty surgery and my mom's arthritis is really keeping her down, so we just don't have our usual 2-day cooking session in us. We've got bullshit crudite and cheese/charcuterie stuff for the day so people don't hate us, then it's all stuff that are family favorites we can do easily : Pear and walnut salad Blackened brussel sprouts in a balsamic vinegar glaze Dry-fried green beans 2~ unspecified veggies depending on what looks good when we go shopping Mashed potatoes with crunchy onions Knoedel (German bread and onion dumplings) Grunkohl fritters Rinderrouladen with gravy Mushroom "meat"balls Then two of this pie for dessert. I just did a test of that today and it came out really good. Or well, it tasted good at least. Since it was just a test I decided to take extra pie crust dough and blind baked it into little shapes to see how strong I could make it as a prototype for making a little decorative cage/lattice thing. Which was a great success, but it meant that the pie looked like it had a golden, flaky erector set covered in caramel on top. That's still probably waaaaaaaaaay too much and we'll be dead at the end, but that's kind of the point of holidays, geh?
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Nov 15, 2021 03:57
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Is there a goon approved way to handle a turkey? I'm going to be the main cook this year for the first time and I've only roasted a chicken before. We're getting a 10-12 lbs bird and other than spatchcocking it, I don't really know what to do. Should I brine it? Should I put herb butter under the skin? Help me goons
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Nov 15, 2021 17:58
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The Glumslinger posted:Is there a goon approved way to handle a turkey? I'm going to be the main cook this year for the first time and I've only roasted a chicken before. We're getting a 10-12 lbs bird and other than spatchcocking it, I don't really know what to do. I mean my go-to is a mix of some kind of fat (olive oil/lard/butter) plus garlic plus herbs under the skin, and a halved lemon and maybe some more fresh herbs shoved up its bum. Maybe some bacon on top to provide extra fat. It'll be fine. You don't necessarily need to brine it, especially spatchcocking. Personally I only go for turkey crowns (i.e. just the breast).
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Nov 15, 2021 18:13
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I'm miles from a turkey expert (cause I think it's a pain in the rear end for pretty mediocre results), but I'll give my advice. Not because I think it's great advice, but because if nothing else someone smarter will correct me and it keeps the conversation rolling : You already mentioned spatchcocking which is A+ gently caress yes you should do that. You get better, more tender results and it takes less time to cook than it does to start a family of 5. If you don't care about the presentation and you're cool with some knife work you can also just break the whole bird down as much as you want. The important thing is to make sure everything's cooked through so you won't kill anyone, you can do it in the time you have and that hopefully your bird isn't bone dry and it actually tastes like something. Make sure you have a good meat thermometer. When I've done it, my biggest struggle was always to try to keep it moist and hopefully get it tasting like something, anything, besides just a giant hunk of turkey. To that end, brining is basically required even if it can be pretty annoying to find a container the right size. A giant vat of salty water with like a bag of peppercorns and most of a bush of rosemary will help a lot (beer instead of water is more expensive but also good ; bonus you can drink beer while you do it). I also had good success by making a spiced mayonnaise and gooping that on thickly under the skin : the fat from the mayo wicks the flavoring pretty deep into the meat and disappears while keeping it moist, and it also gives a really nice crisp to the skin. It's probably not the flavor profile most people are into, but I had good success with curry powder and garlic : however, you can obviously sub in whatever strong flavors you prefer, you're just using the mayo as a vector for suspending a bunch of flavors in and spreading them out.
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Nov 15, 2021 18:19
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You can also dry brine the turkey which is a hell of a lot easier. Get a large bag (a new kitchen garbage bag is fine, just make sure it's not scented  ), salt the skin, then put some herbs/garlic cloves/lemon zest in with it and tie it up so it doesn't leak. You can thaw the turkey at the same time, so it's fine to stick it in there frozen a few days before cooking. Then just flip the bird over. Frequency depends on how long you plan to have it in the fridge, for more than a couple days flip it over every 24 hours. Two days or less flip it over every 12 hours. It'll have a lovely flavor, more so if you give it more time. The salt flavors and draws excess moisture out of the skin so it'll be crispy when you cook it.
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Nov 15, 2021 19:07
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I can't really travel since I have fifteen brand new pets to take care of. But I don't want to do anything for the holidays anyway. There's every indication this winter will be worse than the last. Call me a doomer, I don't care. I wouldn't be so worried if I wasn't always right. And I'm asking my family not to buy me anything, I have plenty of things. To the extent that I can, I will be a hermit for now.
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Nov 19, 2021 00:37
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Animal-Mother posted:I can't really travel since I have fifteen brand new pets to take care of. But I don't want to do anything for the holidays anyway. There's every indication this winter will be worse than the last. Call me a doomer, I don't care. I wouldn't be so worried if I wasn't always right. And I'm asking my family not to buy me anything, I have plenty of things. To the extent that I can, I will be a hermit for now. Jesus Christ, keep it to yourself next time, Sunshine. Why even bother chiming in on this thread? This is the first Thanksgiving I’m spending with my family since I left their town a few years ago, and I’m pretty sure it’s my mom’s first year not doing a turkey. We’re doing duck and ham instead! I’m gonna part out the duck and marinate it in shio koji, which is a new technique to me. Then I’ll sear the breasts and confit the legs in the fat rendered from the breasts and carcass. Gonna be fun! Sounds like mom’s handling the ham and making creamed spinach and a roasted broccoli salad too. I’m honestly relieved to not be doing any of the traditional Thanksgiving dishes, I’m so sick of them. Speaking of which, we’re doing Christmas with my wife’s family for the first time since we’ve been together, and I’ve volunteered to do a big ol’ lasagna. That’ll be fun.
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Nov 19, 2021 22:51
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prayer group posted:Why even bother chiming in on this thread? Optimism isn't mandatory, nor is it necessarily wise. All that food you're talking about sounds excellent, though. Turkey is extremely overrated, we should be eating way more duck. Ducks are everywhere and they're delicious. They don't know how good they have it. Once the general public realizes how tasty ducks are, they're in for a big surprise. Let us know how the shio koji works out, that sounds fantastic.
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Nov 20, 2021 04:15
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Animal-Mother posted:Optimism isn't mandatory, nor is it necessarily wise. I mean, yes, but this is the 'how are you celebrating Thanksgiving with food' thread not the 'I'm not celebrating at all because we're all dooooomed' thread, we have plenty of other places for that.
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Nov 22, 2021 16:37
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I'm basically only cooking for myself and my roommate this year so my plan is: Standing rib roast: These were on sale and I felt like doing this instead of just getting a turkey breast. Green bean casserole: Doing this the lazy way this year since while from scratch is good, sometimes I just feel like getting the trashy canned version. Fried onion delivery mechanism. Kenji's slow cooker stuffing: I don't feel like buying more bakeware to do it in the oven. Also simplifies prep since that's one less dish that needs the oven.
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Nov 23, 2021 02:35
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So I have this 18lbs turkey. The tag says "use/freeze by 11/27/21." I'm planning on cooking the turkey in the oven on 11/28. What should I do? I'm planning on using this brine starting on the 27th. I think I'm going to adjust the salt.
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Nov 24, 2021 09:19
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 Thanksgiving To Go 2021 18 people are going to pick up meals from my porch today and heat them up tomorrow for thanksgiving I broke a finger a few days ago, so I bought 3 pre-cooked turkey breasts to avoid dealing with deboning. Man they’re pricey compared to whole! And they might be overcooked! I am brining them in Keller’s Ad Hoc chicken brine, except without salt because they came salted. I also meatglued duck skins to the outside and will deep fry them, just to crisp the skin 22 vegan stuffing waffles (Morningstar sausage, Bobs Red Mill Egg Replacer, Earth Ballance for vegan butter, Artesano bread) 1 pint vegan gravy (porcini mushrooms, water, salt, xanthan gum as a thickener) 2 quarts turkey gravy (extra concentrated stock from roasted bones, salt, zanthan gum) 2.5 gallons vegan mash potatoes (vegan cheddar, vegan cream cheese, vegan Parmesan, vegan bacon) 1.25 gallons Modernist Macaroni, choice of smoked Gouda or lactose free Jarlsberg Sautéed carrots in vegan butter Kings Hawaiian rolls Costco pumpkin pie A couple friends helped making half the stuff since my finger was broken https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3j2P2PSS3I Steve Yun fucked around with this message at 12:35 on Nov 24, 2021 |
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Nov 24, 2021 12:28
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I'm going to dry brine and then wet brine double the brine double the fun
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Nov 24, 2021 14:43
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Steve Yun posted:
Maybe brine post cook like this guy too, triple brine
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Nov 24, 2021 14:58
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What's good?! Parent In Laws are coming in today while I'm doing Wednesday prep. Brother-in-law and his wife come in tomorrow for a total of 6. I have 1 turkey, 6 sides Bog standard frozen butterball, 23lbs, currently in packaging in a bucket in the tub, cracking it open at 3 to do dry rub then doing "old family recipe" of cooking the bird low overnight at 250f. I did not test this method durring practice Thanksgiving. I am telling this thread I have doubts. Sides are Green Bean Casserole, Gravey, Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes, Creamed Corn, and Mac n Cheese. Green Bean Casserole and mashed potatoes are using the Chef John foodwishes recipe. Just caramelized the onions and waiting for it to cool for assembly. There's so much loving butter in my fridge. Gravey is gonna be made today too. I simmered a stock from the carcass of practice Thanksgiving. Just scraped the pan so I can make reux number two. Tomorrow morning get to do potato peeling, and root vegi cutting. I haven't settled on final stuffing recipe yet, which is a bad sign. I do know I'm not making the stuffing in the bird, just gonna do lasagna pan. Creamed corn and Macncheese are being driven by wife. We've cut the corn for prep, I still gotta shred that block of cheddar. Local deli cranberry sauce and Hawaiian rolls round us out. Probably gonna bake some Red Lobstertm Cheddar Biscuit mix to go with some gravy if in laws don't take us out to dinner tonight.
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Nov 24, 2021 18:06
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Gonna be 5 people at my MIL's house, eating outside on her back patio. She's local, we're all vaxxed, 3 of us are boosted. Food will be: 8 lb turkey (gravy from trimmings) Stuffing Cranberry sauce 1 pan of biscuit-like thing my husband makes every year 8 lb six-hour sweet potatoes (just whole sweet potatoes, roasted at 250 for 6 hours till they're custardy inside) Simple green salad w/ blue cheese, candied walnuts, vinaigrette 1 pumpkin pie 1 lemon chess pie 1 cranberry cake When you roast your own pumpkin for pie, how do you know it's done? I pulled mine out when it started to separate from the skin, scooped it away, and pureed it, but then a ton of liquid started to separate. I put it back in the oven for another 20ish minutes after that and it reduced a bit. e: hell yeah, also got King's hawaiian rolls
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Nov 25, 2021 01:57
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Roast 'em until they're fork tender, same as any other squash. ~45m at 350. Peel should slide off easily. Pulse in the food processor or blender until smooth. If it's too dry, add a couple tbsp of water. If it's too wet, strain through a strainer or cheesecloth to get some water out. I cut mine into chunks that'll fit down the food processor chute before roasting. Liquid Communism fucked around with this message at 11:04 on Nov 25, 2021 |
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Nov 25, 2021 11:01
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Turkey has been roasting at 350f for like 3.5hrs and I just took off the foil tent and cranked up to 450 for browning while I make this post. Stuffing vegis are cut, potatoes are peeled and chilling in a water bucket, had to pull out an extra mason jar of turkey stock from the freezer, I miss judged how many carrots I needed to use so there's only one sad lil carrot in the root vegi pile. Should have sides done and ready to plate in like maybe two hours.
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Nov 25, 2021 17:56
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Making caramel is a terrifying process and I hate it.
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Nov 25, 2021 19:16
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I am very glad that I read the comments on the stuffing recipe that I used since I made a half batch and it still completely fills my 8 quart instant pot. Turns out I could have actually done this in the oven since a classmate put together something at the last minute so I'm making my roast tomorrow instead.
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Nov 25, 2021 21:03
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Guys I made cassoulet and I'm so tired and full. So many leftovers.
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Nov 26, 2021 01:53
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I extracted the last of the turkey and packaged up everything. At the end I was just tearing dark meat off the bones and stuffing into a zip lock bag, stowed it in the freezer with no date for Future Kirbykhan to deal with. I put the turkey carcass in a bag and hucked it in the dumpster nobody can make me make a stock from that no more I don't wanna look at that fuckin bird anymore Happy Thanksgiving great success
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Nov 26, 2021 02:28
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My koji duck was very successful! My mom only managed to find breasts so I kojified and seared them. They browned super fast and were crazy rich, like duck hearts. Rendered out like 12oz of duck fat for my mom to use later on, too.
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Nov 26, 2021 03:07
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiVx7IWbKlA Only a dozen people signed up this time, when I was cooking for 24 Christmas 2020 and 32 people on Thanksgiving 2020. Steve Yun fucked around with this message at 06:44 on Dec 23, 2021 |
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Dec 23, 2021 06:41
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Planning to make lobster ravioli for dinner tomorrow. I have a bunch of lobster tails that I'm going to steam (or bake?) and pull the meat from and combine with ricotta to make the filling. Could I make this filling today and have it in the fridge overnight to use tomorrow? We'll make the pasta dough this evening and I'm wondering if I could get away with doing the filling early as well.
VERTiG0 fucked around with this message at 15:49 on Dec 24, 2021 |
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Dec 24, 2021 15:39
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Oh yeah, that can sit in the fridge no problem. I'd steam the tails.
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Dec 24, 2021 18:47
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A dozen Christmas to go dinners for people who didn’t feel safe traveling to see family  Sous vide leg of lamb with fried mustard/parsley/rosemary/mint relish and balsamic glaze (chefsteps), modernist macaroni, vegan stuffing waffles, vegan mashed potato, sweet potato, carrots, Hawaii rolls, pumpkin pie
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Dec 25, 2021 03:01
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Steve Yun posted:A dozen Christmas to go dinners for people who didn’t feel safe traveling to see family You're an awesome person. Happy Holidays!
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Dec 25, 2021 04:37
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| # ? May 6, 2024 00:03 |
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My extended family is mostly local and vaccinated and all the really vulnerable people in the family died in 2020 so we had a pretty normal xmas potluck. I roasted some veggies in herb and garlic infused bacon fat
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Dec 26, 2021 19:12
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