If not Turkey...what's your preference?

[Evans, Marv]

I love turkey, so turkey it is - along with prime rib just for a little variation. Duck or maybe goose would be oK too. I really like left over turkey.

[stevej37]

Lotsa meat...almost all dry. The dark meat is ok.

[stevej37]

Prime Rib....

[unclebilly]

I do turkey and ham usually.

If your turkey is too dry, you cooked it too long, like my mother in law does… and it’s terrible.

Turkey should be moist and flavourful. I stuff mine with home made stuffing with celery, onions, shredded carrots, sometimes red pepper, and garlic.

One great option with turkey leftovers is to make butter chicken except use turkey meat instead of chicken breast. It is delicious and a nice change up with turkey leftovers. You can make the butter chicken sauce from scratch or just use the sauce from Costco, either way works well.

[Pazuzu]

Braised short ribs.

This year I'm grilling a 1.5 pound NY strip instead.

One year we did Southwest style, a turkey breast, stuffed herbs and spices under the skin, jalapano stuffing, and mashed potato flautas (make the mash, roll it and spices, peppers, salsa and queso in a tortilla and bake).

[craigster59]

Originally Posted by herr_oberst

You got a recipe for them waffles, or is it just chicken and waffles with turkey instead of chicken?

Scoop leftover mashed potatoes and stuffing together and put in a waffle maker. Throw waffle on a plate and top with leftover turkey and gravy, cranberry sauce on top or the side if you're so inclined.

[jcommin]

No turkey fan either, but I prefer the dark meat over the breast. I'm not crazy about turkey leftovers. The key is brining and seasoning. My preference is prime rib.

[GH85Carrera]

[1990C4S]

Beef Wellington, or ham.

We don't do a full turkey anymore, we buy turkey breasts and thighs. Just as good, cooks quickly, and it's way easier to carve.

[gacook]

Originally Posted by Pazuzu

Braised short ribs.

This year I'm grilling a 1.5 pound NY strip instead.

One year we did Southwest style, a turkey breast, stuffed herbs and spices under the skin, jalapano stuffing, and mashed potato flautas (make the mash, roll it and spices, peppers, salsa and queso in a tortilla and bake).

That sounds really interesting! Gonna have to give it a try (but not on Thanksgiving...).

I do my mashed potatoes with a little milk, jalapeno cream cheese, butter, and scallions. They're pretty darn good. Told my son about a recipe my wife found that I want to try for a different variety of mashed potatoes and he gave me the stink eye. I told him it would be for another night, not Thanksgiving, and his hackles went down.

[stevej37]

Speaking of the sides....is there anyone here that can tolerate cranberries? I can't eat them.
I know the Pilgrims ate them, but there wasn't much else at that time.

(not too keen on pumpkin pie either)

[Bill Douglas]

Funnily enough the best turkey I've ever had was at Christmas party at our pistol club. It was pre-sliced, put in a big oven tray with stuffing herbs spices and a sort of gravy. Then I think it was cooked covered then the cover taken off to brown it. Not at all dry or tough.

[fanaudical]

I do a small turkey in a big Dutch oven - Stuff with a chopped sweet onion, rub with spices, brown it all over in butter and olive oil, and then bake it without removing the lid. Super moist when done and just about falls off the skeleton when you start slicing.

[gacook]

Originally Posted by stevej37

Speaking of the sides....is there anyone here that can tolerate cranberries? I can't eat them.
I know the Pilgrims ate them, but there wasn't much else at that time.

(not too keen on pumpkin pie either)

I think you and I would enjoy a meal together...Can't stand cranberries (wife loves them, though) and not a fan of pumpkin pie, either.

[stevej37]

^^^ yeah...why eat pumpkin pie when an apple or cherry pie is just as easy to make.

[craigster59]

I'm thinking of changing up my game and spatchcocking the turkey so it cooks faster. I don't stuff it anyways and it's just me and the Wife. Gives me time to clean the rain gutters and hang the Christmas lights.

[stevej37]

If anyone was watching NBC morning show today...there was a known lady cook who was showing how to cook a tender, moist turkey. (I don't remember her name.)

She stressed to not slow cook...do it at 325 until the inner part is close to 145?. Take it out, cut it into sections and lay it in a small puddle of gravy. Finish the last few degrees and remove.

[cstreit]

Ham - but only because the steak I like is too much for 10 people.

I could do turkey but my family hates it, and honestly for me it was just a protein packed carrier for stuffing, gravy, and cranberry jelly.

[Pazuzu]

Originally Posted by gacook

That sounds really interesting! Gonna have to give it a try (but not on Thanksgiving...).

I do my mashed potatoes with a little milk, jalapeno cream cheese, butter, and scallions. They're pretty darn good. Told my son about a recipe my wife found that I want to try for a different variety of mashed potatoes and he gave me the stink eye. I told him it would be for another night, not Thanksgiving, and his hackles went down.

Yer gonna hate me, but I remembered that it was a Guy Fieri recipe...
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/guy-fieri/confetti-mash-potato-flautas-with-hot-tomatillo-sauce-recipe-2014534

We baked them instead of frying them, I think that frying them would ruin the flavor, make it taste like fry oil. Baking gave them a nice browning to the tortillas and dried them out so the whole thing was still stiff like a fried flauta.

And the Southwest style turkey:
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/guy-fieri/mean-green-turkey-machine-recipe-1920774

[WPOZZZ]

Turkey at my doc's house for lunch. Back in the day, he'd do a turkey and all the fixins for my family's Thanksgiving dinner. We'd go to my aunt's and everyone would come over. My aunt and uncle passed in 2021, and my sister passed a couple days after Xmas. Then mom passed in Feb 2022. So, no real family anymore, except my doc's family as his daughters are like sisters to me.

For dinner, I think I might cook some garlic shrimp for myself.