Thumbs-Up Turkey - Nov 24, 2011

Hello Dinner Clubbers! My sincere apologies for my long absence from the blog. Between travel, visitors, sickness, holidays, and one broken refrigerator things have been a bit hectic for Nick and I of late. I will attempt to bring you all up to date on our culinary adventures, starting with Thanksgiving. Nick and I travelled to his parents, where every year Nick's Dad makes his famous "Thumbs-Up Turkey." This year Nick and I had front row seats for a tutorial.



The story of this family tradition begins with the November 1986 Gourmet Magazine article on 'how to de-bone a turkey.' Chip thought that sounded like a fun project and has used this method nearly every year since. The idea is to cut out and remove the rib cage from the body of the bird, leaving the bones in the appendages, and then stitch up the incision made along the spine. This allows you to stuff the bird with dressing, to plump it back up to it's original robust shape, and to carve it directly into cross sections, for a slice of stuffing surrounded by an edge of meat. It also allows you to use the rib cage to make some of the best gravy known to man, which is the real reason that Chip goes through all the work. Every year, with the successful completion of this undertaking, Chip gives us the thumbs-up and we all feast like kings.



Here is Chip putting the final touches on the bird. The meal was delicious, as always, although due to a nasty little virus I contracted the week before, I actually ended up sleeping through the meal this year. Lucky for me, the leftovers are nearly as good!