Thanksgiving in America - November 27th

We've had some large rafters of wild turkeys feeding in the fields around our place since mid October. The Tom's haven't been gathering Hens for mating purposes yet but they will begin their gobbling and puffing up soon. Like most males under influence of female allure, they appear to lose half of the already limited intelligence they possess when showing off for attention from the ladies. Few people around here actually try to roast and eat these birds but they make good jerkey.
 
Interesting factoid; the turkey part of Thanksgiving dinner doesn't turn out quite as tender and juicy as it used to because modern ovens vent heat and a lot of humidity out the top. The doors on old ovens were not sealed air-tight, so there was a constant cross-circulation of heat and (most importantly) humidity, and roasted meats came out juicier and more tender.

My gramma roasted turkey the same way after she got her first modern stove (in about 1962) as she did before - she always made a little 3 layers thick cheesecloth blanket, soaked it in hot melted butter and herbs, and draped it over the turkey before sliding it into the oven. Her turkeys came out perfect, imo, but still, she was always a bit disappointed with the oven on her new stove.
 
@Murrmurr, I agree that new stoves aren't what the used to be. I would still love to have an Aga stove, but I know that won't happen. If your not familiar with one: https://www.agarangeusa.com/classic/ranges

I have a roast chicken recipe that you put herb butter under the skin & cook it breast side down. Every 30 minutes you baste with more melted butter. During the last 30 minutes or so, you turn the bird breast side up to brown. Keeping the breast down I found out helps keep the white meat more moist. I've done the same recipe with a turkey & it has helped keeping the breast juicier, but I think part of the problem is how they breed the birds today.

In the spring Hubby brined a skin-on bone-in turkey breast & it came out very juicy. I think I'll try that recipe for Thanksgiving. If you or anyone is interested, I'll find the recipe in the book.
 
Lilac said:
@Murrmurr, I agree that new stoves aren't what the used to be. I would still love to have an Aga stove, but I know that won't happen. If your not familiar with one: https://www.agarangeusa.com/classic/ranges

I have a roast chicken recipe that you put herb butter under the skin & cook it breast side down. Every 30 minutes you baste with more melted butter. During the last 30 minutes or so, you turn the bird breast side up to brown. Keeping the breast down I found out helps keep the white meat more moist. I've done the same recipe with a turkey & it has helped keeping the breast juicier, but I think part of the problem is how they breed the birds today.

In the spring Hubby brined a skin-on bone-in turkey breast & it came out very juicy. I think I'll try that recipe for Thanksgiving. If you or anyone is interested, I'll find the recipe in the book.
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I remember my mom, my gramma and a couple of aunts sitting around the dining table at the old farmhouse jotting down notes in their old cookbooks so that the recipes would work ok with modern ovens. It was hours of one argument after another. :LOL:

I have the cookbook my mom made notes in that day. It's pretty beat-up, and a couple pages are missing, but I use it now and then.
 

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