My sister Stacey makes the best turkey for Thanksgiving. She has brined her turkeys for years, and has changed the original recipe she followed over the years to make it her own.
If you can get your hands on a local free-range turkey it will be even better. Remember that good all natural turkeys do not have over-inflated balloon breasts, they way commercial turkeys do. If you've never had a free-range turkey, you may be a bit shocked at how different he looks, but remember--this is the way he was meant to be. A well cared-for animal produces a higher quality of meat.
This recipe is great because it is very simple (although it does require some pre-planning). It is easy to make while you are running around (like a chicken with it's head cut off, har-har) doing all the other 5 million things you need to do when preparing a holiday meal. We buy our turkeys the day after Thanksgiving when they go on sale and throw them in the deep freezer. You may be sick of turkey right now, but come Feb. or March, that turkey in the freezer is going to look pretty darn good.
I'll shut up already and just give you the recipe.
4 cups (just under 1 box of Morton's) Kosher salt
2-4 gallons cold water
A big tub, plastic pail, or cooler that will hold your turkey
Ice (if you live somewhere that is not cold)
Carrots, celery, and onion
1 bunch fresh thyme (or 1 T. dried)
Butter
salt & pepper.
You've got to brine your bird the day before you cook it, so plan ahead. Take your 4 cups kosher salt and pour it into your bucket/pail/cooler. Add 2-4 gallons water, and stir till salt is dissolved. Now, before you add your turkey, make sure you've removed the neck and giblets, and all the other stuff that might be stuffed into him. Throw him in the brine, making sure the cavity fills up with water. He will float, so you might want to throw a plate on top of him to keep him submerged a bit.
Now, I just cover it and throw the bucket-o-turkey outside on my porch and let him brine for 6-8 hours. Where I live it is about 33 degress, so it's no problem. If you are somewhere that is above 41 degrees, you are going to want to throw a bag of ice on top of your bird. Keep the ice in the bag, just throw it on the bird to keep him and the brine cold. After he's had a good 6-8 hour soak, take him out and pat him dry. Put him in the fridge, uncovered, overnight. (I just cut open a paper grocery bag, line it w/ paper towels, and put him on that)
Cooking Day:
Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees. Throw a bunch of carrots, celery, and onion all around the bottom of a roasting pan, covering the bottom of the pan entirely so that your bird will sit on top of the veggies. Add the thyme. Melt about 3-5 Tablespoons butter, and brush it all over your turkey, top and bottom. Then go back and sprinkle him with salt and pepper. You can tie up his legs or whatever here. Add 2 cups of water to the veggies in the pan. Put your bird on the veggies BREAST SIDE DOWN. That's right, BREAST SIDE DOWN. Fear not.
You're going to cook him at 425 degrees for one hour. Take him out, flip him right side up, and reduce the heat to 325. Put him back in and cook till a meat thermometer reads 175 degrees in the thickest part of the bird. This can take anywhere from 1 hour (a 10 lb bird) to 3-4 more hours (giant bird). It is very hard to overcook this bird because the brining process locks in the moisture.
Use the pan juices and fat to make your gravy after removing the veggies.
YUM!!!!
Showing posts with label meat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label meat. Show all posts
Monday, December 14, 2009
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
The Whole Hog.
We bought a whole butchered hog. Yep. He's in the freezer. But don't worry, he's not stuffed in there like a dead body or anything. I highly recommend this to anyone who is a meat eater and is trying to save some money. It's enough meat to last the entire year.
First, go to http://www.eatwild.com/ to locate a farm near you. They've got an awesome clickable map (I love clickable maps!) that's easy to use. The great thing about EatWild is that it is a directory of farms that sell grass-fed/pastured meat, dairy, and eggs.
Why grass-fed? Well, just go to their website and read why. I learned alot about this when I read Michael Pollan's In Defense of Food. That book totally changed the way I look at food. I know that grass-fed stuff is expensive, but if you buy directly from the farms it is not at all. And its worth it to drive out to a farm every other week to get milk, eggs, cheese, etc. Noah totally looks forward to it now as a treat.
Next, get yourself a chest freezer. You can easily find one on Craig's List. Make sure you get a chest-style one, not an upright (they use alot more energy). I just slapped a post up on Craig's List that said, "Looking for a chest freezer. Will pay $50 and come get it." I got alot of responses, and there were many sizes to choose from. Go to Sears ahead of time and check out the different sized freezers to eye-ball the one you want. They are measured in cubic feet.
I chose Meadow Run Farm in PA because I know we do business with them at WFM. Don't hesitate to ask to visit the farm before you commit to purchasing anything. A clean, well-run farm will let you come out anytime and let you wander around as you will. This is important because you want to buy from a place that is totally transparent in it's business practices. A place that has nothing to hide has no prob with you looking around. Believe me, I've taught enough food safety classes to know that this is essential. Meadow Run let me walk all over the place and invited me to bring my kids back whenever I wanted.
They offered 3 cutting options for the hog, and it arrives frozen and vacuum packed in small portions. Some farms might let you choose the cutting options, and some will let you purchase a 1/2 or 1/4 of the animal (known as a "share"). The cost came to $3/lb hanging weight. That is a great price, especially for pastured, all natural, no hormone, no antibiotic, vegetarian fed meat. And it is an unbelieveable amount of meat! There's about 30 lbs ground, 25 lbs bacon, 15 lbs pork chops, 2 hams, 2 tenderloins, 2 full racks of ribs, all the bones (for soup stock), and some other stuff that I'm forgetting now. We chose pork because we eat it alot more than beef or chicken, and it's cheaper than beef too. We used some of our tax-return money to buy it, and probably will again next year.
This is one of the smartest things my family has done to date, and I definately recommend it to everyone.
First, go to http://www.eatwild.com/ to locate a farm near you. They've got an awesome clickable map (I love clickable maps!) that's easy to use. The great thing about EatWild is that it is a directory of farms that sell grass-fed/pastured meat, dairy, and eggs.
Why grass-fed? Well, just go to their website and read why. I learned alot about this when I read Michael Pollan's In Defense of Food. That book totally changed the way I look at food. I know that grass-fed stuff is expensive, but if you buy directly from the farms it is not at all. And its worth it to drive out to a farm every other week to get milk, eggs, cheese, etc. Noah totally looks forward to it now as a treat.
Next, get yourself a chest freezer. You can easily find one on Craig's List. Make sure you get a chest-style one, not an upright (they use alot more energy). I just slapped a post up on Craig's List that said, "Looking for a chest freezer. Will pay $50 and come get it." I got alot of responses, and there were many sizes to choose from. Go to Sears ahead of time and check out the different sized freezers to eye-ball the one you want. They are measured in cubic feet.
I chose Meadow Run Farm in PA because I know we do business with them at WFM. Don't hesitate to ask to visit the farm before you commit to purchasing anything. A clean, well-run farm will let you come out anytime and let you wander around as you will. This is important because you want to buy from a place that is totally transparent in it's business practices. A place that has nothing to hide has no prob with you looking around. Believe me, I've taught enough food safety classes to know that this is essential. Meadow Run let me walk all over the place and invited me to bring my kids back whenever I wanted.
They offered 3 cutting options for the hog, and it arrives frozen and vacuum packed in small portions. Some farms might let you choose the cutting options, and some will let you purchase a 1/2 or 1/4 of the animal (known as a "share"). The cost came to $3/lb hanging weight. That is a great price, especially for pastured, all natural, no hormone, no antibiotic, vegetarian fed meat. And it is an unbelieveable amount of meat! There's about 30 lbs ground, 25 lbs bacon, 15 lbs pork chops, 2 hams, 2 tenderloins, 2 full racks of ribs, all the bones (for soup stock), and some other stuff that I'm forgetting now. We chose pork because we eat it alot more than beef or chicken, and it's cheaper than beef too. We used some of our tax-return money to buy it, and probably will again next year.
This is one of the smartest things my family has done to date, and I definately recommend it to everyone.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Quick Winter Notes
Not much time, so here are some notes for winter that I can expand on later:
* Pizzas continue to be the #1 food at our house. Now I am making the crust w/ part whole wheat flour. Breakfast pizzas are my favorite: sauce, light on cheese, 1 strip of cut up bacon, and crack some raw eggs on top before baking.
* Overnight oatmeal. Just throw some rolled oats and water (ratio is 1 part oats to 4 parts water) into the crockpot before you go to bed at night. Add some dried fruit: apricots, cherries, dates, cranberries, rasins, etc. and some flax meal, then put the crock pot on "low." In the morning you have this super-chewy yummy hot breakfast. I am going to experiment w/ corn grits this week.
* Mac & cheese with add-ins. Sorry, but its a childhood favorite. I tried making my own, but frankly I like the boxed kind better. I use Annie's Whole Wheat Shells & Cheese. Add-in's include: sliced tomatoes & green peas (throw frozen green peas in with the cooking pasta 3 minutes before its done); pureed butternut squash (the kids will never know!); turkey bacon & mushrooms (sauteed together first); and of course, plain w/ a side of fish sticks & ketchup.
* Ham & Swiss on a baguette. Or if you are feeling fancy--hot ham & cheese on a potato roll.
* Saurcraut & weiners cooked all day together in the crock pot. Use a can of beer for your cooking liquid.
* Sides: sweet potato fries, baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, romaine & avacado salad, raw baby carrots, spinach & hard boiled egg salad, deviled eggs, sliced apples & pears, baby arugula w/ lemon juice and olive oil.
* Smoothie: pineapple/coconut juice w/ 1 banana, protein powder, & 2 leaves of raw kale. Just whizz it up and ignore the texture of the kale :)
Aaron's picks:
Aaron has continued roasting various meats, of course. Favorites this winter include: boston butt (pork shoulder--one of the cheapest meats per pound sold out of the case), whole chicken or turkey, pork loin roast, brisket, and chicken drumsticks. He roasts them slowly usually after marinating for 12-24 hours or applying a dry rub. The meat keeps great in the fridge for up to a week and makes an excellent cold lunch served with cheese, bread, broth, and fruit.
* Pizzas continue to be the #1 food at our house. Now I am making the crust w/ part whole wheat flour. Breakfast pizzas are my favorite: sauce, light on cheese, 1 strip of cut up bacon, and crack some raw eggs on top before baking.
* Overnight oatmeal. Just throw some rolled oats and water (ratio is 1 part oats to 4 parts water) into the crockpot before you go to bed at night. Add some dried fruit: apricots, cherries, dates, cranberries, rasins, etc. and some flax meal, then put the crock pot on "low." In the morning you have this super-chewy yummy hot breakfast. I am going to experiment w/ corn grits this week.
* Mac & cheese with add-ins. Sorry, but its a childhood favorite. I tried making my own, but frankly I like the boxed kind better. I use Annie's Whole Wheat Shells & Cheese. Add-in's include: sliced tomatoes & green peas (throw frozen green peas in with the cooking pasta 3 minutes before its done); pureed butternut squash (the kids will never know!); turkey bacon & mushrooms (sauteed together first); and of course, plain w/ a side of fish sticks & ketchup.
* Ham & Swiss on a baguette. Or if you are feeling fancy--hot ham & cheese on a potato roll.
* Saurcraut & weiners cooked all day together in the crock pot. Use a can of beer for your cooking liquid.
* Sides: sweet potato fries, baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, romaine & avacado salad, raw baby carrots, spinach & hard boiled egg salad, deviled eggs, sliced apples & pears, baby arugula w/ lemon juice and olive oil.
* Smoothie: pineapple/coconut juice w/ 1 banana, protein powder, & 2 leaves of raw kale. Just whizz it up and ignore the texture of the kale :)
Aaron's picks:
Aaron has continued roasting various meats, of course. Favorites this winter include: boston butt (pork shoulder--one of the cheapest meats per pound sold out of the case), whole chicken or turkey, pork loin roast, brisket, and chicken drumsticks. He roasts them slowly usually after marinating for 12-24 hours or applying a dry rub. The meat keeps great in the fridge for up to a week and makes an excellent cold lunch served with cheese, bread, broth, and fruit.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
More Fall Favorites
Ok, just some notes to make on fall dinners to archive.
Homemade Pizzas
We are having them 2-3 times a week now! Aaron makes a big batch of dough that keeps in the fridge for 3-4 days with no problem. He makes the crust in one of 2 ways:
* Very very thin, pressed into an 8 or 9" cake pan (sprinkle bottom w/ cornmeal so it won't stick).
* Fried first. This method can be found in Jamie Oliver's latest cookbook Jamie at Home. You basically take the dough, press it round, then throw it into a frying pan with heated olive oil till the dough puffs up. Then you add your toppings and place it under the broiler for just a few minutes. Keep the toppings very light and vegetable-y because the fried dough makes the pizza a bit heavier than you might be use to.
Toppings have included the following: cut up, canned artichoke hearts that I have marinated in olive oil and red wine vinegar. Just cut them up and put them in a tupperware in the fridge w/ oil & vinegar. They'll keep for at least 2 weeks that way. Olives, sausage, and roasted red pepper/eggplant spread.
I've also changed pasta sauces for the pizza. This one is more of a light marinara and is more suitable for pizza rather than pasta. Here are the easy instructions:
Throw some olive oil in a pan, and add 1 chopped garlic clove, dried red pepper flakes, & dried oregano. Slowly fry till the garlic starts to turn golden. Add one 24 oz. can of either diced or whole peeled tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then turn all the way down to a tiny tiny simmer for about 45 min-1 hour, stirring occasionally. If you are using whole peeled tomatoes, don't break them up till the very end. After 1 hour, add 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar, salt, and pepper. Get out that immersion blender and whizz it all smooth. Check your seasonings and that's it. Freezes beautifully.
Chicken/Goose/Turkey Broth
Aaron likes to roast whatever kind of bird is on sale at the store about once a week. It's a very economical & convenient thing to do, because he can just eat the meat all week during lunch (for those of you who are stay at home parents, you know how hard it is to remember to feed yourself sometimes when you are focusing on the kid) with a small salad, slice of bread, and some cheese or fruit. Anyway, we are now taking the carcus at the end of the week and making a nice broth to freeze. It's a sure-fire way to get rid of an oncoming cold.
Take your carcus and throw in into a pot full of water. Add a couple of carrots, celery, an onion, and a few cloves of garlic. Bring to a boil, then turn down and simmer for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Cool, then strain the broth completely--you don't want any chunks of anything in there. Season with salt and pepper and freeze.
To Serve: This comes from an irish recipe called Michaelmas Broth that I found on the internet. Just take your broth, add 2 tablespoons long grain rice, and simmer for about 20 minutes. The rice will kinda thicken the broth a bit. Serve in bowls with some finely cut up pieces of meat and slivers of green onion. I suppose you could throw some other veggies in there as well--baby spinach would be great, and probably mushrooms too.
Extras:
I've also been making quick breads: pumpkin, banana, and applesauce. And breakfast has been either oatmeal, or swiss style museli with heated soymilk and honey. Yum.
Homemade Pizzas
We are having them 2-3 times a week now! Aaron makes a big batch of dough that keeps in the fridge for 3-4 days with no problem. He makes the crust in one of 2 ways:
* Very very thin, pressed into an 8 or 9" cake pan (sprinkle bottom w/ cornmeal so it won't stick).
* Fried first. This method can be found in Jamie Oliver's latest cookbook Jamie at Home. You basically take the dough, press it round, then throw it into a frying pan with heated olive oil till the dough puffs up. Then you add your toppings and place it under the broiler for just a few minutes. Keep the toppings very light and vegetable-y because the fried dough makes the pizza a bit heavier than you might be use to.
Toppings have included the following: cut up, canned artichoke hearts that I have marinated in olive oil and red wine vinegar. Just cut them up and put them in a tupperware in the fridge w/ oil & vinegar. They'll keep for at least 2 weeks that way. Olives, sausage, and roasted red pepper/eggplant spread.
I've also changed pasta sauces for the pizza. This one is more of a light marinara and is more suitable for pizza rather than pasta. Here are the easy instructions:
Throw some olive oil in a pan, and add 1 chopped garlic clove, dried red pepper flakes, & dried oregano. Slowly fry till the garlic starts to turn golden. Add one 24 oz. can of either diced or whole peeled tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then turn all the way down to a tiny tiny simmer for about 45 min-1 hour, stirring occasionally. If you are using whole peeled tomatoes, don't break them up till the very end. After 1 hour, add 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar, salt, and pepper. Get out that immersion blender and whizz it all smooth. Check your seasonings and that's it. Freezes beautifully.
Chicken/Goose/Turkey Broth
Aaron likes to roast whatever kind of bird is on sale at the store about once a week. It's a very economical & convenient thing to do, because he can just eat the meat all week during lunch (for those of you who are stay at home parents, you know how hard it is to remember to feed yourself sometimes when you are focusing on the kid) with a small salad, slice of bread, and some cheese or fruit. Anyway, we are now taking the carcus at the end of the week and making a nice broth to freeze. It's a sure-fire way to get rid of an oncoming cold.
Take your carcus and throw in into a pot full of water. Add a couple of carrots, celery, an onion, and a few cloves of garlic. Bring to a boil, then turn down and simmer for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Cool, then strain the broth completely--you don't want any chunks of anything in there. Season with salt and pepper and freeze.
To Serve: This comes from an irish recipe called Michaelmas Broth that I found on the internet. Just take your broth, add 2 tablespoons long grain rice, and simmer for about 20 minutes. The rice will kinda thicken the broth a bit. Serve in bowls with some finely cut up pieces of meat and slivers of green onion. I suppose you could throw some other veggies in there as well--baby spinach would be great, and probably mushrooms too.
Extras:
I've also been making quick breads: pumpkin, banana, and applesauce. And breakfast has been either oatmeal, or swiss style museli with heated soymilk and honey. Yum.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Notes from tonight's dinner--early fall
We had a great dinner tonight! I figured I better jot down some notes about it so that I remember it for later. The whether has started to get chilly outside, so its time to make some changes to our usual dinner staples (bye bye cucumbers).
I think its good to make some notes, especially during the season changes, so I can look back and see what was working and what wasn't. Aaron has been trying to remember all day today what sandwiches he made last year during the cold whether.
Lunch first: I had maple ham and swiss cheese sandwiches using the sandwich press. I don't like one of those fancy "panini" presses. I prefer the old style one that is sandwich-bread shaped. Aaron had his first ruben sandwich of the fall. He makes it with corned beef and saurkraut, russian dressing, swiss cheese, and rye bread. He heats up the kraut and corned beef in a pan together. (Noah had a PBJ, which he has about 2-3 times a day now...)
And here's dinner:
Aarron had some chicken quarters that he slow-roasted all day after brining for about 36 hours. The brine contained salt, vinegar, 3 T ketchup, 3 T dijon mustard, 1/3 c. lemon juice. I think he basted it all day as well with butter, wisticher sauce, sugar, dijon, and salt.
I made a few odds and ends. We had some sweet corn and eggs from a farm we visited yesterday outside of Harleysville. I turned the eggs into deviled eggs (yolks, mustard, mayo, pickles, salt, pepper, and paprika) and just steamed the corn. I had some local red bell peppers in the fridge that needed to be used asap, so I roasted them. They were amazing! I threw them in the toaster oven on "grill" for about 15 minutes, then put them in a paper lunch bag and closed it for another 15 minutes while cooling. I skinned the peppers (its really annoying) then sliced them thin. I put them in a tupperware with 2 parts olive oil, 1 part red wine vinegar, and salt. They will stay good in the fridge for about a week. I have a recipe for canning them somewhere, but I haven't done that yet this season. I'll be sure to report back when I do.
There was also some feta cheese hanging out in the fridge that I needed to use or loose, so I marinated it in olive oil, vinegar, oregano, basil, dill, salt, and pepper (all dried herbs). This should also stay good in the fridge for about 10 days.
We also had a baguette available for soping up all the yummy juices from everything.
Anyway, its worth noting to hang on to the pepper recipe. They were the best batch I have ever made!
I think its good to make some notes, especially during the season changes, so I can look back and see what was working and what wasn't. Aaron has been trying to remember all day today what sandwiches he made last year during the cold whether.
Lunch first: I had maple ham and swiss cheese sandwiches using the sandwich press. I don't like one of those fancy "panini" presses. I prefer the old style one that is sandwich-bread shaped. Aaron had his first ruben sandwich of the fall. He makes it with corned beef and saurkraut, russian dressing, swiss cheese, and rye bread. He heats up the kraut and corned beef in a pan together. (Noah had a PBJ, which he has about 2-3 times a day now...)
And here's dinner:
Aarron had some chicken quarters that he slow-roasted all day after brining for about 36 hours. The brine contained salt, vinegar, 3 T ketchup, 3 T dijon mustard, 1/3 c. lemon juice. I think he basted it all day as well with butter, wisticher sauce, sugar, dijon, and salt.
I made a few odds and ends. We had some sweet corn and eggs from a farm we visited yesterday outside of Harleysville. I turned the eggs into deviled eggs (yolks, mustard, mayo, pickles, salt, pepper, and paprika) and just steamed the corn. I had some local red bell peppers in the fridge that needed to be used asap, so I roasted them. They were amazing! I threw them in the toaster oven on "grill" for about 15 minutes, then put them in a paper lunch bag and closed it for another 15 minutes while cooling. I skinned the peppers (its really annoying) then sliced them thin. I put them in a tupperware with 2 parts olive oil, 1 part red wine vinegar, and salt. They will stay good in the fridge for about a week. I have a recipe for canning them somewhere, but I haven't done that yet this season. I'll be sure to report back when I do.
There was also some feta cheese hanging out in the fridge that I needed to use or loose, so I marinated it in olive oil, vinegar, oregano, basil, dill, salt, and pepper (all dried herbs). This should also stay good in the fridge for about 10 days.
We also had a baguette available for soping up all the yummy juices from everything.
Anyway, its worth noting to hang on to the pepper recipe. They were the best batch I have ever made!
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