Thanksgiving table inquiry

Traditional American Thanksgiving tables normally have a turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, rolls, cranberry sauce, and corn or maybe a green bean casserole. Dessert, at least at my house, was 3 kinds of pie- pumpkin, apple, and blackberry. Some variation of this is pretty standard, or so I thought. A friend told me his family had always done rib roasts. Anyone else have a different tradition?

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There were only 10 to feed this Thanksgiving. We had the normal “fixins” with a small turkey and my son-in-laws special !0# pork loin wrapped in Blue Ribbon bacon with poblano and cream cheese stuffing. We survived…

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Yes, some friends of mine and I got together for Thanksgiving. My friend and host is a Chef and I had built him this Trash Can Smoker as a gift for his graduating from culinary school several years ago. So we had been buying Turkey Breast when they were on sale earlier to brine and smoke for the Holidays.

We had the full complement of dressing, gravy, rolls, cranberry sauce, candied yam’s, steamed Fordhook lima’s, and the Turkey Breast we smoked in the smoker. This was cut with an electric carving knife and was quite tender and juicy compared to the usual roast turkey we’ve prepped before.

He put together a pumpkin dessert that was somewhere between pie and cake
with a recipe he found somewhere. Was good but different.
that was topped with chopped pecans.

The Turkey was exceptional this year. Brining makes such a difference.

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We do turkey at Thanksgiving, rib roast on Christmas, My brother smokes the turkeys when we go to his house. A thermometer is your best tool. As for dessert I only make Key Lime pies. My other brother has the market on scratch carrot cake and cream cheese frosting… No complaints last few decades.

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It’s very common in Minnesota for there to also be a ham. In Christmas we have a lot of families that have Norwegian foods. Mine is Polish so we had different things. Also we open presents on Christmas Eve.

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Your list of traditional thanksgiving meal is what I grew up with the only addition was we also had a seafood Gumbo and Dirty rice. Fast forward to today and we have a lot of unrecognizable additions. We have several younger family members that are vegans and we get a lot of weird holiday dishes tofurkey etc.

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I use a sweet brine for the turkey:
2 gallons of water
Quarter cup plus 2 tablespoons of kosher salt
Three quarters cup sugar
2 onions chopped
1 celery rib
1 leek
4 sprigs of thyme
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon of black peppercorns
1 tablespoon of coriander seeds
Quarter teaspoon of fennel seeds
Quarter teaspoon of red pepper flakes
2 star anise.
The brine recipe is American and is from Alice Waters from Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California.
Thanksgiving only has meaning to those with American connections down here as we are in late spring. Turkey is a relatively new meal at Christmas, more common is ham and spring lamb.

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I forgot the deviled eggs. My wife always makes those too!

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I didn’t make it this time but I make deviled eggs with avocado and lump crab meat mixed in. Sprinkled with hot Hungarian paprika.

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I tried making a hash out of left over pork roast/taters/carrots & onions … it’s edible but i think it’d power a detroit if you shoved it in the blower.

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Turkey carcass is in the large slow cooker. A hearty soup is on the way.

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Just because I have worked on so many Thanksgivings (both when at sea, and after having come ashore), I got out of the habit of cooking for Thanksgiving. I usually go to a friends huge get together and it has a “Texican” slant. The wife usually goes to her sister’s and they have their meal. Well, this year, the 'rona changed everything. The usual get together for me was canceled, so I was going to head to my sister in law’s. Well, they canceled the day before, so at the last minute, we put together our own feast. I cooked the turkey, sourdough dressing, truffle mashed potatoes, sourdough dinner rolls, gravy and chocolate chip cookies. The wife made the green bean casserole, broccoli rice and candied sweet potatoes. Oh, and then my daughter brought over her scratch made pumpkin cheese cake. Not bad for an unplanned meal. . . . and no, I actually lost weight over the holiday weekend. . .

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