Most Americans have about half an eaten turkey along with a ton of sides and gravy left in their fridges. Leftovers are tasty. After all it's the reheating that gives most foods that extra oomph. However for people who find those extra morsels boring there is a solution.They can be creative with them.
There are million recipes for leftover turkey. A turkey tetrazzini is classic as is just a turkey sandwich. These are yummy but predictable. A newer spin would be creating a turkey salad incorporating yesterday's leftover salad (or new greens for a fresher bite). You can turn your rolls into croutons and add them for crunch. Also melt down the cranberry sauce and create a vinaigrette with it. Another turn on the classic is creating a sandwich with turkey sandwiched in between two stuffing squares and doused with leftover gravy.
What about those sides? Mashed potatoes are the easiest because you can do a lot with them. One of the tastiest is potato croquettes. Mix the leftover mash with breadcrumbs, eggs and parsley, roll into balls and fry. For added crunch coat them in breadcrumbs before frying. If you cooked just plain green beans and caulilfower then combine what's left into a salad. You canalso use the stuffing to create mini pot pies. Put turkey, gravy and veggies in little ramekins or crocks. Cover with the leftover stuffing and bake for a few minutes in a toaster oven. It's a great meal after a day of touch football or early X-Mas shopping.
Leftovers don't have to boring. Turn yesterday's dinner into interesting gourmet treats that are flavorful and unique. You won't have anything left by Sunday!
Showing posts with label drippings turkey roast beef. Show all posts
Showing posts with label drippings turkey roast beef. Show all posts
Friday, November 25, 2011
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
A Juicy Bit Of Bird
What makes a turkey dinner memorable?. Not the gravy or the crispy skin(although that does help). It's not the bird's weight or how many it could feed. It's the meat. A good juicy slice of turkey is crucial to a perfect Thanksgiving dinner.The whole meal will be ruined if the meat has the texture of parchment. There are ways to combat this and have the best bird ever.
Turkey dries out because of overcooking. Mostly it's the white meat that loses moisture, namely the breasts.This part cooks almost too quickly while it takes the darker meat much longer. According to some cynics , this always happens and there's no way to have a perfectly cooked, juicy turkey. That's where they 're wrong. One of the best hints is to smear butter under the breast skin before cooking. It'll not only impart a yummy, buttery flavor but keep the meat moist for hours. Another way is brining it , or soaking it into a salt water bath overnight.A third method is tenting with aluminum foil for most of the roasting process. Take the foil off about three quarters of an hour before serving.
Suppose the worst happens? You can salvage the dried out meat. First slice it off the bones and then place the slices in a casserole dish. Add the drippings along with a can of chicken broth. Now cover the dish with tin foil and cook for five minutes at the same temp you used for cooking the entire bird. You'll have moist , juicy slices ready for your company.Another quick fix is a good dousing of gravy to combat the chewiness and toughness.
You can serve a juicy bird that's tasty and moist. It's in the manner of prepping that ensures a delicious turkey with tender meat. Choose what works for you and then go with it. You're bound to have a turkey that's juicy through and through.
Turkey dries out because of overcooking. Mostly it's the white meat that loses moisture, namely the breasts.This part cooks almost too quickly while it takes the darker meat much longer. According to some cynics , this always happens and there's no way to have a perfectly cooked, juicy turkey. That's where they 're wrong. One of the best hints is to smear butter under the breast skin before cooking. It'll not only impart a yummy, buttery flavor but keep the meat moist for hours. Another way is brining it , or soaking it into a salt water bath overnight.A third method is tenting with aluminum foil for most of the roasting process. Take the foil off about three quarters of an hour before serving.
Suppose the worst happens? You can salvage the dried out meat. First slice it off the bones and then place the slices in a casserole dish. Add the drippings along with a can of chicken broth. Now cover the dish with tin foil and cook for five minutes at the same temp you used for cooking the entire bird. You'll have moist , juicy slices ready for your company.Another quick fix is a good dousing of gravy to combat the chewiness and toughness.
You can serve a juicy bird that's tasty and moist. It's in the manner of prepping that ensures a delicious turkey with tender meat. Choose what works for you and then go with it. You're bound to have a turkey that's juicy through and through.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Turkey Day Check List
These next few days are going to be crucial shopping days for any home chef. You have to be prepared for not only Thursday's Thanksgiving feast but also for whatever disaster (and there will be some) that coes your way. How to handle all of this? Organize! It helps to have plans along with fall back solutions that will see you through the day.
The first step is to write an extensive list of what you'll need. Always include the basics such as turkey , potatoes, both Idaho and sweet, , bread for stuffing, vegetables and the makings of dessert. From there add the secondary foodstuffs, such as frozen rolls, seasonings , non alcoholic drinks and after dinner mints or nuts. Make sure your list also has foil roasting pans and disposable containers for leftovers and extras on it . Keep in mind your guests 'dietary restrictions and also what kids may like as well (such as chicken nuggets for fussy eaters and chocolate turkeys and cookies for dessert).
Once you have everything home, it's time to get out the recipes. Hopefully you've tried out the new ones at least once. If you haven't you have three days to do so. Also make sure you have all the necessary spices and other ingredients like flour and nuts for baking. Doing a trial run on your electric carving knife and meat slicer won't go amiss either. Check coffee urns too,not that they go on the fritz in the middle of dessert . Now is also a good time to air table linens or buy new ones if the old ones are ratty or torn.
Make sure your Thanksgiving runs smoothly without any glitches or mistakes. Be prepared when you shop and when you cook. It makes for a calm, stress free and enjoyable holiday cooking and dining experience.
The first step is to write an extensive list of what you'll need. Always include the basics such as turkey , potatoes, both Idaho and sweet, , bread for stuffing, vegetables and the makings of dessert. From there add the secondary foodstuffs, such as frozen rolls, seasonings , non alcoholic drinks and after dinner mints or nuts. Make sure your list also has foil roasting pans and disposable containers for leftovers and extras on it . Keep in mind your guests 'dietary restrictions and also what kids may like as well (such as chicken nuggets for fussy eaters and chocolate turkeys and cookies for dessert).
Once you have everything home, it's time to get out the recipes. Hopefully you've tried out the new ones at least once. If you haven't you have three days to do so. Also make sure you have all the necessary spices and other ingredients like flour and nuts for baking. Doing a trial run on your electric carving knife and meat slicer won't go amiss either. Check coffee urns too,not that they go on the fritz in the middle of dessert . Now is also a good time to air table linens or buy new ones if the old ones are ratty or torn.
Make sure your Thanksgiving runs smoothly without any glitches or mistakes. Be prepared when you shop and when you cook. It makes for a calm, stress free and enjoyable holiday cooking and dining experience.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Dinner Sandwiches
Sandwiches for dinner are usually met with scorn. They're just meat and bread thrown together. Not much going on there. Not much love put into them either. However a hot sandwich is an entirely different matter. It can be just as filling and nutritious as any regular hot meal - and made with the same amount of thought and consideration.
Hot roast beef and turkey sandwiches are even better than just roasts. They can be tailored to everyone's tastes. Meat can be amply piled on or just have a few slices. Gravy can be thick or the thin au jus kind. Even the bread can vary from hearty kaiser rolls to thin slices of toasted wheat bread. With these you can still make sides. There's even nothing wrong with serving the sandwiches diner style with some stuffing on the side. You can also also have healthier pickings of green beans or succotash to round out the plate.
Another way is going French bistro. Here you can have fun creating that classic Gallic - fave the croque monsieur. This is a grilled cheese fried in butter but it's oh so good, especially after a hard day. It's usually made with Swiss cheese and thinly sliced ham. You can add Dijon mustard to it for added bite. Finish with a simple green salad tossed in a vinaigrette dressing. Another fun and quick hit sandwich is the American grilled cheese. Again you can have fun varying the types of cheeses and breads you want to use. You can also make that other diner classic The Happy Waitress which is a stuffed grilled cheese sandwich , filled with bacon and sliced tomatoes. Serve with fries for a truly fun dinner.
A sandwich for dinner can be hot and delicious. It can even come with sides to make it more rounded. Best of all it's an easy way to cook, yet still provide a warm meal for the family!
Hot roast beef and turkey sandwiches are even better than just roasts. They can be tailored to everyone's tastes. Meat can be amply piled on or just have a few slices. Gravy can be thick or the thin au jus kind. Even the bread can vary from hearty kaiser rolls to thin slices of toasted wheat bread. With these you can still make sides. There's even nothing wrong with serving the sandwiches diner style with some stuffing on the side. You can also also have healthier pickings of green beans or succotash to round out the plate.
Another way is going French bistro. Here you can have fun creating that classic Gallic - fave the croque monsieur. This is a grilled cheese fried in butter but it's oh so good, especially after a hard day. It's usually made with Swiss cheese and thinly sliced ham. You can add Dijon mustard to it for added bite. Finish with a simple green salad tossed in a vinaigrette dressing. Another fun and quick hit sandwich is the American grilled cheese. Again you can have fun varying the types of cheeses and breads you want to use. You can also make that other diner classic The Happy Waitress which is a stuffed grilled cheese sandwich , filled with bacon and sliced tomatoes. Serve with fries for a truly fun dinner.
A sandwich for dinner can be hot and delicious. It can even come with sides to make it more rounded. Best of all it's an easy way to cook, yet still provide a warm meal for the family!
Friday, August 12, 2011
Hot Browns Easy And Classic
A hot and tasty sandwich is good even during these hot days. Even better is when it's easy to prepare such as the Hot Brown. This American , Midwestern classic is more or less simple to whip up and even better to eat. A take on the British Welsh rarebit, it's perfect for that Saturday night dinner when everyone is at home or Sunday brunch with friends.
Hot Browns orginated in Louisville, Kentucky .back in the 1920's at the Brown Hotel where it was served as an early morning breakfast to all night party goers. Chef Fred Schmidt, its' inventor had to come up with something that would appeal to the jaded hotel guests who were quickly tiring of th eusual bacon and eggs. He put sliced turkey , tomato and bacon on toast , covered it with a rich Mornay sauce and baked in in the oven. it soon became an instant hit. Now, not only does Brown's still creates it but other fine Louisville institutions do as well.
A Hot Brown is easy to make. You can use leftover turkey or slices from your local deli along with bacon on toast.(I'd recommend a good challah for this to absorb the sauce). Add thickly sliced beefsteak tomatoes and top with the Mornay., The Hot Brown gravy is a basic butter and flour roux along with heavy cream added for body. Some recipes call for a beaten egg to be added, but this is up to you. A sharp cheese is then mixed in . The original recipe called for a Pecorino Romano but you can also sub in Parmesan(this is from Food Channel's Alton Brown's recipe). Ladle on to the sandwich and then sprinkle with extra cheese. Place under a broiler until cheese starts to bubble.
The Hot Brown is a perfect lunch or dinner sandwich. Delicious filling ,yet easy to make, especially on these hot days. Best of all it serves as a meal without all the fuss.
Hot Browns orginated in Louisville, Kentucky .back in the 1920's at the Brown Hotel where it was served as an early morning breakfast to all night party goers. Chef Fred Schmidt, its' inventor had to come up with something that would appeal to the jaded hotel guests who were quickly tiring of th eusual bacon and eggs. He put sliced turkey , tomato and bacon on toast , covered it with a rich Mornay sauce and baked in in the oven. it soon became an instant hit. Now, not only does Brown's still creates it but other fine Louisville institutions do as well.
A Hot Brown is easy to make. You can use leftover turkey or slices from your local deli along with bacon on toast.(I'd recommend a good challah for this to absorb the sauce). Add thickly sliced beefsteak tomatoes and top with the Mornay., The Hot Brown gravy is a basic butter and flour roux along with heavy cream added for body. Some recipes call for a beaten egg to be added, but this is up to you. A sharp cheese is then mixed in . The original recipe called for a Pecorino Romano but you can also sub in Parmesan(this is from Food Channel's Alton Brown's recipe). Ladle on to the sandwich and then sprinkle with extra cheese. Place under a broiler until cheese starts to bubble.
The Hot Brown is a perfect lunch or dinner sandwich. Delicious filling ,yet easy to make, especially on these hot days. Best of all it serves as a meal without all the fuss.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Turkey Subs
There's nothing like bacon and burgers. Even put together they're pure heaven. yet they're also bad for us. What do we do ? Cut them out completely? GO overto soy - which is sort of tasty but still not the real thing. The best bet is to go turkey. There's nothing like turkey bacon and turkey burgers to fill our cravings fo r these foods,.
Turkey bacon is a relatively new creation. It's made from the thighs of the bird and has been smoked , chopped and reformed. The bacon can also come from the turkey's dark meat and has a surprisingly ham like flavor. Two strips of it contain only 2.5 grams of fat and only 70 calories as opposed to regular bacon's almost 80 calories and double the amount of fat. Turkey bacon can be served with eggs or in BLT's. It's not a good sub for recipes that call for pork bacon because it has no fat content , and can ruin the dish.
Turkey burgers are another good sub in for red meat. They, too , are a relatively new invention, and fill the need for a leaner, more healthier burger. They are only 130 calories with only 30 grams of fat while a hamburger is 160 with about the same amount of fat grams. Turkey burgers are not only eaten for healthy reasons but also for religion such as Hinduism where beef is forbidden. On the whole turkey can be just as tasty as the other. A good turkey burger is just as juicy and flavorful as a regular one with no greasy aftertaste.
It's hard to give up th efoods we love such as bacon and burgers. Yet we can switch to healthier alternatives like turkey to satisfy our cravings. These subs not only are good for us but good tasting too.
Turkey bacon is a relatively new creation. It's made from the thighs of the bird and has been smoked , chopped and reformed. The bacon can also come from the turkey's dark meat and has a surprisingly ham like flavor. Two strips of it contain only 2.5 grams of fat and only 70 calories as opposed to regular bacon's almost 80 calories and double the amount of fat. Turkey bacon can be served with eggs or in BLT's. It's not a good sub for recipes that call for pork bacon because it has no fat content , and can ruin the dish.
Turkey burgers are another good sub in for red meat. They, too , are a relatively new invention, and fill the need for a leaner, more healthier burger. They are only 130 calories with only 30 grams of fat while a hamburger is 160 with about the same amount of fat grams. Turkey burgers are not only eaten for healthy reasons but also for religion such as Hinduism where beef is forbidden. On the whole turkey can be just as tasty as the other. A good turkey burger is just as juicy and flavorful as a regular one with no greasy aftertaste.
It's hard to give up th efoods we love such as bacon and burgers. Yet we can switch to healthier alternatives like turkey to satisfy our cravings. These subs not only are good for us but good tasting too.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Holiday Roasts
With Christmas a week away and New Year's a mere two weeks its time to start thinking of what you;re going to be cooking. Moat of you have visited your butchers or your grocery;'s meat counter. Some of you are still in a quandary over what to serve. The best bet is the traditional roast. Here's the question. Roasted what?
Most people usually go for ham or turkey. If you're of German descent the first is always the preferred choice. Ham is relatively easy to bake or roast.It usually just takes an hour and can be glazed with a number of coverings. Pineapple juice and ginger ale are the most popular simply because they break down the pork enzymes, rendering the meat almost butter soft. Turkey again is a great choice because you can feed a large number of people with it it;s also more kid friendly too. Besides there's nothing like leftover turkey too the next day,.
For other ideas think about a whole roast pork or even London broil. Loin of pork can be intimidating to cook at first because of the size. However it;s really no different than any other roast. it takes about two hours to cook. and it's a dry roast. Unlike other roasts you can have fun flavoring it. Try a marinade in either lemon juice or vinegar to break down the enzyme s to make it tender. You can also use a flavorful rub for added taste. London broil is another good holiday choice. It does have to be marinaded for about four hours. You can use garlic, soy or even balsamic vinegar for flavor and then cook for half an hour. London broil is great for smaller dinner parties and just family gatherings.
A holiday roast is always special .You can have tradition with ham or turkey or something new with pork roast or London broil Whatever you choose will be perfect for your Christmas or New Year's table.
Most people usually go for ham or turkey. If you're of German descent the first is always the preferred choice. Ham is relatively easy to bake or roast.It usually just takes an hour and can be glazed with a number of coverings. Pineapple juice and ginger ale are the most popular simply because they break down the pork enzymes, rendering the meat almost butter soft. Turkey again is a great choice because you can feed a large number of people with it it;s also more kid friendly too. Besides there's nothing like leftover turkey too the next day,.
For other ideas think about a whole roast pork or even London broil. Loin of pork can be intimidating to cook at first because of the size. However it;s really no different than any other roast. it takes about two hours to cook. and it's a dry roast. Unlike other roasts you can have fun flavoring it. Try a marinade in either lemon juice or vinegar to break down the enzyme s to make it tender. You can also use a flavorful rub for added taste. London broil is another good holiday choice. It does have to be marinaded for about four hours. You can use garlic, soy or even balsamic vinegar for flavor and then cook for half an hour. London broil is great for smaller dinner parties and just family gatherings.
A holiday roast is always special .You can have tradition with ham or turkey or something new with pork roast or London broil Whatever you choose will be perfect for your Christmas or New Year's table.
Friday, November 12, 2010
Good Gravy
The holidays will soon be here and that means sumptuous meals , primarily roasts. What goes with a good roast turkey or roast beef? gravy. it literally can make or break a dinner. A badly made gravy will be remembered for decades. So will a good one. the trick is knowing how to make the last.
Most gravies are nothing more than a well made mix of roux, pan dripping and turkey or chicken stock. The problem is how much to put in . A good gravy requires at least four cups of hot (not boiling) stock . The next part is going to be the deal breaker. This is the roux made with half a cup of flour and the turkey or beef drippings. Don't go crazy with the flour or you'll have lumps.
Whisk this together until smooth and then add the stock.Continue stirring until you have a smooth, satiny looking sauce. Add a dashes of fresh ground sea salt and peppercorn to enhance its; flavor.
Can there be gravy mishaps. Of course. The mos t important part is and should be well cooked. This is what gives the gravy its' color and slightly nutty flavor. Another is constantly waching it. it should be made right before the roast is served the table or it could get burned.
A good gravy will be remembered for decades. So will a bad one. Use care and concern to create one that is the jewel of your holiday table, one that will complement the roast.
Most gravies are nothing more than a well made mix of roux, pan dripping and turkey or chicken stock. The problem is how much to put in . A good gravy requires at least four cups of hot (not boiling) stock . The next part is going to be the deal breaker. This is the roux made with half a cup of flour and the turkey or beef drippings. Don't go crazy with the flour or you'll have lumps.
Whisk this together until smooth and then add the stock.Continue stirring until you have a smooth, satiny looking sauce. Add a dashes of fresh ground sea salt and peppercorn to enhance its; flavor.
Can there be gravy mishaps. Of course. The mos t important part is and should be well cooked. This is what gives the gravy its' color and slightly nutty flavor. Another is constantly waching it. it should be made right before the roast is served the table or it could get burned.
A good gravy will be remembered for decades. So will a bad one. Use care and concern to create one that is the jewel of your holiday table, one that will complement the roast.
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