Okay, so it HAS to be turkey...recipes for a turkey hater?

Question

We are hosting T-day this year and will have some visitors who expect a traditional meal (I don't usually do these when it's just family.) I'm fine with the side dishes and the veggie main dish once I come up with them, that is, but does anyone have a great turkey recipe--interesting marinade, sauce or rub that will make the turkey more fun to prepare and perhaps taste good? I'd thought of deep frying (because you could fry a sneaker and make it taste good), but am not comfortable with a vat of boiling oil in the driveway next to my 300 year old wood frame house and only a volunteer fire department serving my town.

Answer

Why not consider cornish game hens or squabs instead of turkey? These are delicious roasted & basted with a orange five spice glaze. Serve on a large platter with a bed of wild rice & everyone should love it

Answer

One year my sister boned a turkey breast and slit & pounded the meat to an even thickness, stuffed it with a Greek-flavored stuffing (spinach, feta, basil, oregano, lemon juice, bread crumbs, eggs, etc.), rolled it, tied it, and cooked it on a bed of carrots & celery with broth in a covered pan in the oven. 

it wasn't at all traditional, but it was very tasty. Plus, the turkey breast and stuffing can be prepped and stored separately the day before and just assembled before cooking.

Answer

Last year we hosted Thanksgiving and I don't care for turkey and neither did some other guests so I made another main and turned the turkey into pulled "pork". Cooked the bird till falling off the bone in the crock pot (took 2 crocks to stuff all the parts into) and then shredded and seasoned with the broth and liquid smoke. Made good leftovers.

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Fry the turkey....Two of them.....12-14 pounds each.....No larger

Enjoy!

Answer

Cornish game hens will not pass as a turkey substitute at Thanksgiving if they are expecting traditional dinner. An aunt did this years ago and we still give her grief about it. I'm not a huge fan of turkey, but deep fried they are delicious. I just make the stuffing in a crockpot to go along with it. And they don't take long to cook either!!

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Maybe just do a turkey breast for those who really want turkey and then maybe the ham, brisket or lamb or even prime rib roast. I wouldn't think you would have to do a whole turkey.

Answer

Sadly, I have lost my original marinade recipe, but essentially you cook shallots till they are translucent, add a bottle of white wine, salt, pepper, dried herbs of your choice, maybe some garlic, probably a couple of bay leaves, and put your turkey into 2 of those reynolds oven bags. Cool the boiled marinade & put it into the oven bag with the turkey, and set the double-bagged turkey into a dish in the fridge. Turn it several times over about 24 hours. It's probably delicious if you just roast it right in all that marinade inside the first oven bag following package directions, making it like a braised turkey and sacrificing the crispy skin thing. But otherwise you take it out of the marinade, pat dry, and roast like you'd normally roast a turkey. You boil the heck out of the marinade it sat in, to reduce it AND get rid of any turkeygerms - and use that with the drippings for the gravy.

I think the original recipe had juniper berries, and I suspect it was from a Food & Wine mag from the 1990s or even the late '80s - but my husband is a thrower-awayer, and the original is lost lost lost....

I use variations of this every couple of years as the second, non-traditional turkey, and it's always garnered huge rave reviews. I'm sorry I don't have exact proportions or anything though. I'd recommend pre-testing with poultry you do like.... just be sure to boil the heck out of the marinade & don't use too much salt.

Answer

make a turkey on the weber grill with mesquite-looks as traditional as a Rockwell painting but taste smokey and yunmy-a different bird, for sure.

Answer

Be forewarned that it is with a light heart that I must admit that I cannot fathom how anyone could not like turkey. I realize that it is frequently ill-prepared due to the fact that it is not the most forgiving meat to cook, but isn’t that akin to saying you don’t like sushi because you’ve only tried the stuff from the A&P? Is it possible that maybe your perception of what turkey “tastes” like was skewed by eating those “frozen since time began” mega-birds?

Turkey can be a wonderful treat. It loves the subtle addition of complimentary flavors through brining or a well-applied rub. Like others, I suggest trying smaller birds – 12 to 15 pounds perhaps. I also insist that you find a fresh one – I think freezing affects the breast meat of a turkey more than it does most other animal flesh. 

Frying a turkey is a undoubtedly a tasty way to change your mind about the “runner-up” for America’s national bird. Nevertheless, I understand your trepidations concerning doing so the first time. Like much outdoor cooking, frying a turkey is a step outside of most home cooks comfort zones.

Barbecuing a turkey is also an out of the box approach capable of changing the mind of an ardent turkey-hater. My preferred technique employs a slightly higher grill temperature than that used for big cuts of pork and beef. I also use more charcoal than wood in my fuel ratio. Both of these barbecue modifications are designed to reduce the cooking time and introduce less smoke flavor to the bird. As with frying, however, this is a more difficult turkey preparation probably ill-advised to try the first time on the big day.

As noted, another “main” dish is often welcome at the Thanksgiving table. It provides a safety valve should poor execution foul the fowl. Nevertheless, a simple brine, herbs rubbed on the skin, and a good roasting pan/rack combination are the keys to a properly roasted turkey. I like a 325 oven and a little water in the bottom of the pan. I like putting some onion and garlic in the cavity while roasting. I like to pull it out of the oven when the breast is still a bit south of 160 degrees. . . . 

Hell, truth is I like turkey. I cook 8 to 10 a year, not counting the occasional birds I guest fry for others. I like the way it makes my house smell on a fall afternoon. I like the 4 stages of eating it. Man, how could anybody not like turkey? It’s like not liking baseball, or sunny days. . . .

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absolutely amazing- wasn't a turkey lover til this recipe
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Tom-Colicchios-Herb-Butter-Turkey-233118

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We've never had a bad turkey by following these general tips:
- Reserve a non-frozen, natural / organic bird. Avoid large toms which are more likely to cook unevenly.
- Brine the night before (search sfgate.com for specifics). Contain turkey+brine in doubled trash bags. Store in an insulated cooler outside with two inches ice+water in bottom to keep contents between 34 and 40 degrees.
- Roast in 350 degree oven using a remote read thermometer until leg internal temp reaches 160 degrees. Remove from oven, cover with foil, let temp 'coast' to at least 165 degrees.

As far as a rub, a mixture of butter and smoked paprika worked over and under the skin enhances the flavor and appearance.

Answer

Have you tried the new infrared turkey fryer? Does NOT use oil and the taste is marvelous!
You can buy them at Lowe's, the Sports Authority.

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Okay, so it HAS to be turkey...recipes for a turkey hater?

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