<p>So, I was thinking yesterday after dinner, that turkey is a little too much trouble for the end result. Don’t get me wrong, it was a great turkey. We dry brined it with a kosher salt and herb rub for 24 hours, and then roasted it on the gas grill. It wasn’t dry, and it was flavorful, but objectively I just don’t think even the best turkey I’ve ever had is as good as the average roast chicken. I realized that I never make turkey any other time of year, because I just don’t love it. </p>
<p>I’m considering doing something else next year. I know it’s tradition, and it is what the pilgrims ate, but let’s face it, they ate it because they didn’t have any other option. I’m sure they would’ve been thrilled with a nice beef tenderloin.</p>
<p>If you don’t do turkey at Thanksgiving, I’d like to hear what you do serve.</p>
<p>I’m thinking of doing something different for Christmas. It is the 1st year I have done the Thanksgiving meal and I really don’t want to do the same thing again for Christmas even though that is what my traditional Christmas dinner has been for over half a century. </p>
<p>I am thinking of doing a standing Rib roast.</p>
<p>Actually I have taught this as a history lesson: the only surviving eye-witness account of that first “Thanksgiving” mentions venison, fish and “wilde fowle” - which might have been turkey, or it might have been duck, swan, goose or even passenger pigeon. Which of these sounds best?</p>
<p>I don’t dare not cook turkey, as it’s DH’s absolute favorite.</p>
<p>Last year my mother served a ham for Thanksgiving. There was almost a riot in the family. Before accepting her invite for this year, the cousins all asked if there would be turkey. I think we are sticking to turkey. Oh, and the turkeys yesterday were delicious.</p>
<p>I rather like the over-the-top quality of it all. I did not brine my turkey and it took 2.5 hours to cook. It was delicious.
But once a year is fine by me. It’s the signal of a string of receptions and dinners that last until New Year.</p>
<p>We did the flip it over thing too, and it was cooked beautifully, but the chicken I cooked last week left a more lasting memory. We don’t have a big crowd to answer to so their won’t be a riot. My youngest ds said yesterday when eating, “Oh, I just remembered…I don’t really like turkey.” </p>
<p>Maybe I’m just tired because I cooked for three straight days, but the simplicity of say, jumbo crab legs steamed and served with butter and lemon, or a medium rare tenderloin that you throw in the oven for 45 minutes…</p>
<p>Also, my turkey cost more than either of those options, because I wanted a fresh, local turkey and apparently our local turkeys are being raised in luxury hotel suites or something. </p>
<p>I suppose it would be different if my three sons were thrilled with the meal, but they’re all really only waiting for that chocolate chip pecan pie. I think if I served only that pie, they’d be perfectly happy.</p>
<p>I love Peking duck!! There was one restaurant in the nearest big city (100 miles from me) that offered it but they don’t do it any more :(. When I go to visit my Mum in England I can get it it preprepared in the cold foods section at the supermarket (pancakes, sauce, spring onions, and cucumber included) so we usually have it at least twice while I am there. Yum.</p>
<p>I actually saw frozen duck in one of our smaller grocery stores the other day. I am not sure how hard it is to do Peking duck. May try it one day. Probably not Christmas though.</p>
<p>What’s wrong with goose? That’s what Laura Ingalls Wilder ate, and if I remember correctly from the Little House series, she was quite content with it. (Except for the few times she stopped Pa’s hunting hands. But I think that was to save the jackrabbits.) </p>
<p>My friend does duck for some holidays, and she bastes them in a mixture of bbq sauce, honey, and orange juice. I’ve never had it, but how could it be anything but great?</p>
<p>It is quite the delicacy … ! Actually I’m not sure if the cost is due to the duck or the preparation. I know that a local Chinese restaurant on Grounds was willing to pay excellent wages for a person who had experience making Peking duck …</p>
<p>My dad cooked goose one year, and I know I was a kid when I ate it, but I remember really hating the way it made the house smell as it cooked, and the texture of the meat. Then again, my dad has a habit of taking an afternoon nap when cooking so he may have just cooked the hell out of it.</p>
<p>I will say that I do love the tradition of all the cooking and prepping. I remember my dad cooking the night before Thanksgiving and I loved smelling everything(except that goose) and watching him work. That’s why I’ve been doing it all these years, but now I think I’d rather play Beatle’s Rock Band with my kids and make something easier.</p>
<p>I love duck, but I’ve never cooked it as well as a restaurant can, while I can make a very good turkey. (I’m in the brine and flip over camp.) I also love turkey. I don’t usually do it for Christmas - then I make S2’s favorite meal which crown roast of lamb.</p>
If we are talking about eating them, nothing, but it seems like more trouble than turkey… If you want to talk about the pests they have become in too many locations, I have a lot that’s wrong with them - starting with the fact that they seem to prefer to leave their large and numerous goose droppings on paved paths instead of the grass surrounding said paths.
Years ago we lived in Denver and one winter day there were two headlines on the front page: “Canada Geese Taking Over Local Parks”, and “Homeless Shelters Report Need for Holiday Food Donations”
Hmmmm, talk about killing two birds with one stone…</p>
<p>The best gift I ever bought DH was a rotisserie for the grill. It makes a great (but not huge) turkey. I do beef tenderloin for Christmas because it is a lot easier and it is something we rarely have throughout the year. We also only have a few people for Christmas dinner.</p>
<p>And while I have cooked duck, a true Peking Duck is a long process - something about fans and drying the skin to get it right. That’s why you often have to order it a day ahead.</p>
<p>I saw the Iron Chefs show recently and they featured venison, goose, and duck for Thanksgiving dinner. I’m going to try those recipes for Christmas, instead of our usual lobster meat.</p>
<p>My son doesn’t eat meat and was at his Dad’s family for Tday dinner, so I had what I usually have for holiday meals: tenderloin with mushrooms, asparagus with Bearnaise sauce, baked potato, salad (yesterday’s was greens, pear chunks, walnuts, and gorgonzola cheese with champagne pear vinaigrette dressing), with a nice red wine. </p>
<p>S and I will have our Tday meal tomorrow: cauliflower-potato cheese pie, chestnut stuffing, broccoli casserole, corn pudding, asparagus with Bearnaise sauce (leftovers!), and salad (greens, apple chunks, almonds, dried cranberries, and gorgonzola with a raspberry vinaigrette dressing). Of the two meals, tomorrow’s is more work.</p>
<p>I just made my first beef tenderloin. I cannot believe how easy and delicious it was. I was very confused about the cooking directions so the day before T-day, I called 7 different butchers and got their opinions. The only thing common in their directions were to tie the tenderloin and after patting it dry, then using my hands to rub olive oil on it before adding the spices. I ended up doing 450 degrees for 20 minutes and then let it sit for 15. We ended up with a perfect medium rare.</p>