A Buttermilk Brined Turkey

 Thanksgiving turkey always comes with a lot of questions. Should it be brined? Roasted? Deep fried?  Should you just serve the breasts or the whole bird? What's the tastiest way to cook it? There is now one definitive answer  -brined in buttermilk.

 Famed chef and cookbook writer Samin Nosrat wrote about two different kinds of turkey cooking methods in Wednesday's New York Times Food section. She is known for her buttermilk brined chicken and has gotten many requests for a turkey version.it This three ingredient wonder is the star of her cookbook, Salt.Fat.Acid, Heat. She finally gave in and experimented with it to produce a tender , tasty bird with darkened skin. She also gives recipes for chicken and turkey breast also brined in the famed buttermilk and sea salt mix. The chicken is a perfect sub in for those celebrating with two or three people this year. There's the delicious main course without the large amount of leftovers. This also applies to turkey breast, another good ideas for those celebrating small this year. The key for all to be successful is the amount of sea salt used. You should use about seven tablespoons which is about 128 grams.  The turkey breast and chicken  only needs about two tablespoons of salt. What you use is up to you, Sea salts vary. You can experiment with different kinds to get the right flavor or a flavor that your family likes.

The star of the recipe however is the buttermilk. Ms. Nosrat uses three quarts of it for the turkey, two cups for the chicken and turkey. Again what brand you use is up to you. marinating times vary. The turkey will take two days while the breast takes twenty-four to thirty-six hours. The chicken takes the least amount of time - twelve to twenty-four hours. The last is perfect if you want to free up the refrigerator for sides or dessert. The turkey is spatchcocked or butterflied. This is simply removing the backbone and flattening it out.Why do this? it reduces the cooking time in half along with ensure a bird with a lovely, golden skin instead of a blackened one. There's a greater surface area for browning then. Spatchcocking also streamlines the entire brining process too. without its' spine a turkey can be easily folded in half and slipped into a two gallon zipper top. bag. It also makes for easier roasting in the oven too. The turkey is cooked for about an hour and forty minutes  If you're using a ten to fourteen pound bird. A three to four pound chicken takes about an hour while two and a half pound breast takes about forty minutes for a boneless one and fifty minutes for a bone in breast.

What is the best method for the tastiest turkey? Brined in buttermilk and sea salt. It'll give you the perfect flavor that delicious and memorable.

Country Style Ribs For The Urbane Cook

One of the best cuts of pork to cook and eat is the country style rib. These can be made in  variety of ways. They're  a great meal on these frigid night, hearty and rib sticking. It's a nice change up from the usual winter fare.


John Willoughby, a regular contributor to the New York Times Food section and cookbook author, wrote about these beauties for today's cooking section. Country style ribs weren't so desirable years ago.It's actually not a rib for starters, more a blend of both white and dark meat..Butchers had truble selling this cut.It didn't look as lean or smooth as other pork cuts. It usually wound up in sausages or secreted in the bottom of a package labeled loin chops.Sometime in the late Sixties or early Seventies a clever Chicago butcher, Cliff Bowes, came up with the idea of fashioning these chops into s strip of ribs. To achieve this he butterflied them and cut through the ribs. Home chefs can identify them by their shape. They  are a slender section of rib that curves nicely at the bottom.Some of them have a flat ,  little two or three inch section of bone along one edge. Not to worry.It just means that the chop was cut from the section of shoulder that was adjacent to the rib. Just remember that this cut does have , more fat, more connective tissue and more dark meat.

The recipes Mr. Willoughby gives are perfect for this time of year.The first one has the braised with chipotle.. They're first rubbed with a spicy mix of cumin, coriander, ground chipotle peppers and cayenne. Cinnamon gives it it an earthy sweetness. The rubbed ribs are then braised in a Dutch oven Onions are garlic are added. To counterbalance this is orange and lime juices. The ribs are then simmered for an hour and fifteen minutes. The sauce is the ladled onto the cooked ribs along with pomegranate seeds. The other recipe has pears and sweet potatoes. This is a stew that also has fennel and onions  The spice is caraway seeds and allspice for a distinctly Slavic European vibe. The pork is cut into one inch cubes  and sprinkled with kosher salt. These ar e left to stand for one hour before. They're then dried and sprinkled generously with pepper.Again the cubes and the bones (please save them) are browned in a dutch oven. After al the cubes and bones have been browned add the fennel and onion to the pot. All the other ingredients , including the meat and bones, are then added, along with chicken stock and simmered for an hour. Guests can put a dollop of mustard on their portions of stew if they want.I'd just serve this with wamed rye bread and butter.

Country ribs are a great dish.for these cold winters night. Serve them with a spicy chipotle sauce or a mellowed stew, sweet with pears , squash and fennel. either way, they are filling and satisfying.