Posted on 11/20/2005 2:09:19 PM PST by cloud8
It may be the biggest contest of the Thanksgiving festivities. Bigger than the football games. More of a fight than the battle over the wishbone.
Across the county, the true holiday battle is all about turkey: fried vs. roasted.
The holiday bird will be the centerpiece of many a meal Thursday. For many, there is a distinct preference as to what style of turkey gets gobbled up for Thanksgiving.
Both styles have their fans. A flash poll of Daily News readers showed the preferences split almost down the middle.
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The Old School Way
Representing the traditionalists is a county chef who did not even grow up celebrating the U.S. holiday.
Still, he knows a thing of two about turkey from his days in the family kitchen in Dublin, Ireland.
Paul O’Connell is the head chef for Benno’s Enterprises, the longtime Galveston catering and restaurant company owned by Benno Deltz.
The 36-year-old kitchen master grew up on the Emerald Island before making his way to Galveston Island.
For him, the best turkey dish begins with the best bird.
“What I am looking for is a real plump breast with no off color,” said O’Connell. “You want a fair size, nothing too big or too small. You should go with a 14-pounder; any bigger than that is too much.”
Prepping the bird means taking strips of bacon and placing them over the turkey breast. O’Connell then fills the bottom of a roasting pan with a medley of vegetables.
“That gets the turkey off the bottom of the pan, helps it cook evenly and it doesn’t stick to the bottom,” he said.
The turkey is then tied off to help press the meat up at the breast.
“It’s like a woman who wears stiletto heels — it forces the thighs up,” he said.
Then comes a special O’Connell touch. He de-bones the legs and fills them with stuffing.
“That makes for a better looking bird, and it is so much easier to slice straight down,” he said.
The bird is then placed on its side, later to be rotated back down into the pan to allow for the juices to flow better. About four hours later, the holiday’s main course is ready to be served, complete with gravy made from the juices and vegetables in the bottom of the pan.
O’Connell, who admits he is also a fan of fried turkey, spices things up with some different stuffing, including a batch that includes dried apricots and cherries after being soaked in some “Irish booze.”
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Southern Style
Growing up in Ohio, Kevin Yackly didn’t come across fried turkeys much. Like O’Connell, the owner of Grand Prize Barbecue in Texas City remembers the roasted turkey on the big platter each holiday.
These days, though, he is a big fan of deep-fried birds. A big reason: Customers bring in more than 300 turkeys, and half ask the restaurateur to fry ’em up.
Fried turkeys come from a tradition in the South, and especially the bayou lands of Louisiana.
It’s also a simple process. It requires a pot big enough for a 12-pound bird filled with oil, high heat below and a way to hang and dip the bird into the scalding oil.
Yackly said he prefers peanut oil because it provides the best flavor. Too many people have allergies, though, so vegetable oil will do.
The process begins by marinating the turkey the night before.
“You inject it and rub the marinade over the entire body,” said Yackly, whose marinade includes Italian dressing, chicken spices, lots of butter, a dash of cayenne pepper and some Tabasco sauce.
“We actually inject the turkey three times,” he said. “Once when you begin the marinade, again when you are about to fry it and then once again after you are done.”
Oh, one more ingredient — a fire extinguisher.
“You’ve got to make sure you got one handy because there is always a risk of the pot boiling over and you having a big fire,” said Yackly, who added the risk is worth it when you taste the fried bird. “It’s much more dangerous than a barbecue pit.”
Once the turkey goes into the pot it doesn’t take long.
“Usually about 45 minutes, but the basic rule is: If it floats, it is ready,” said Yackly. “And it’s best to serve it right away when you get it out.”
If his business is any indication, the fried turkey craze is a trend.
“You can almost track it to Emeril Lagasse and the Food Channel,” he said. “We prepare 300 to 350 turkeys each holiday and it’s about 50-50 these days.
“Smoked turkeys used to be the thing.”
But taste wins out, he said. The proof can be found in his own house.
“We serve fried, roasted and smoked in our house each Thanksgiving,” said Yackly. “The fried always goes first, then the smoked and then the roasted.”
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Turkey To-do
The Daily News conducted a flash poll of 45 readers as to their preference for style of turkey for Thanksgiving. The unscientific results:
Fried — 47 percent
Baked or roasted — 43 percent
Other (including smoked, Hawaiian style or raw) — 8 percent
None — 2 percent
What about rotisserie over a BBQ, lightly smoked? yummmm
It's like cranberry sauce on Thanksgiving. I don't care for it, the wife doesn't care for it, and I don't think we've ever had a guest who cared for it...but it is a staple on the Thanksgiving table every year.
May I add over real wood,apple or hickory not little black chunks of carbon.
Do people really eat raw turkey?
Never had the fried turkey, but sounds tasty.
Not much of a cook, but I always help out in the kitchen (trying not to chop my fingers off).
Sent Turduckens to the disparate four family Christmas gatherings last year. Not bad eatin'.
Google Turducken if you want to check them out. There's multiple mail-order suppliers out there. The Katrina affected one even sent me an email that they were still in bidness.
Fried is better. I just get too squeamish injecting the marinade.
Once you have had a taste of a fried turkey, you will not go back to roasted.
To add to the article, a fried turkey cooks up at 3 1/2 mins per lb. (350 degree oil).
Roasted and a honey baked ham for Thanksgiving and Christmas, fried any other time of the year. Problem solved.
Fried turkey is good but NO GRAVY!!
Fried turkey is excellent, but.......
Don't do it like the lady who used to work with me did.
Her idiot husband decided it would be ok to set up the turkey cooker on their covered front porch.
He fell asleep on the couch and set the Christmas tree on fire. Burned out the living room, sun porch and kitchen, including their brand new plasma TV.
And, Heaven help you if you get that 350 F oil on your arm.
The worst turkey I ever had was a cajun fried one cooked too long.
I looked at a turkey cooker for my brother today. But being that he's a bit of a Pyro......I bought him nice pans instead :)
I might try drunken Turkey this year, stuff that sukka
with the giant can of Fosters lager and put it in the
kamado.
Always glad to try something new. Thanks for the tip. My husband fries a turkey breast while I roast one the traditional way with stuffing and all the trimmings. My favorite part is the sausage stuffing. YUM!! Have a great "turkey day!"
Doesn't gravy come out of that can? :)
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