Thanksgiving

Here is my menu and thoughts for Thanksgiving.

I am using a recipe from Anne Burrell of the Food Network for the turkey..

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/anne-burrell/brined-herb-crusted-turkey-with-apple-cider-gravy-recipe/index.html

But I am giving it a small Vietnamese twist. In the brine I am going to add a little fish sauce probably a table spoon to see if it gives a little kick. This is all going to be a experiment with my family as the guinea pigs. I am also going to add some Vietnamese mint and Thai basil to the herb butter mix from my garden. And here is the really scary part instead of chicken stock because Vinh is allergic I am going to add Coconut soda that I use to braise our pork belly recipe and numerous other dishes. This is going to be the toughest part I am not sure of the combination but worse case scenario no gravy.

I am taking the Turkey out of the freezer today and let it defrost. Sunday I am going to start the brining. Wednesday night I am going to the next to last step with the herb butter and veggies. I am going to add a little ginger and daikon to the veggie mix for the gravy and aromatic of the turkey.

My sides are going to mashed potatoes and stuffing. I am searching for a good stuff recipe that I can add some Vietnamese ingredients too. I think it is going to be Anne Burrell recipe as well from her Thanksgiving show. I am going to take the base of the recipe and add Chinese sausage instead. For dessert I am going to try and make an Asian pear pie from a simple apple pie recipe with my own pie crust.

On a side note I found out we are having Thanksgiving at my mother in law for lunch so I am going to have to work on my catering skills  at least I have a mini van. I should be nice a tired to watch the Cowboy games at my parents where thank goodness I am only going to make dessert.

Here is the recipe I am will be messing with.

Ingredients
Brine:
• 7 quarts water
• 1 quart apple cider
• 3/4 cup kosher salt
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 large or 2 small carrots, diced
• 3 ribs celery, diced
• 1 head garlic, cut in 1/2 equatorially
• 1/2 bunch fresh rosemary
• 1/2 bunch fresh sage
• 6 bay leaves
• 1 (12 to 14 pound) turkey, free range organic is great!
Herb crust:
• 1 bunch fresh rosemary, leaves finely chopped
• 1 bunch fresh sage, leaves finely chopped
• 3 sticks butter, room temperature
• Kosher salt
Gravy:
• 1 large onion, cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 1 large or 2 small carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 2 ribs celery, cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 4 cloves garlic, smashed
• 2 Granny Smith apples, cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 5 bay leaves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 bunch thyme
• Kosher salt
• 1 quart chicken stock, divided
• 2 cups apple cider, divided
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
Directions
Special equipment: butcher's twine
To brine the turkey: Combine all of the ingredients for the brine in a large container. Add the turkey and let it brine in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days.
To prepare the turkey for cooking: Remove the turkey from the brine the night before roasting and pat it thoroughly dry with paper towels. Combine the rosemary, sage, and butter for the herb crust in a small bowl. Season, to taste, with kosher salt. Work the butter under the skin of the turkey and massage it into the breasts and the legs. Massage the butter on the outside of the skin as well. Tie the legs together over the breast so they will protect it during cooking and help keep it moist and juicy.
Gravy preparation: Put the onions, carrots, celery, garlic, apples, bay leaves, cinnamon stick and thyme in a roasting pan and season with salt. Arrange the turkey on top of the veggies and refrigerate overnight UNCOVERED! Yes, that's right, uncovered. This will help the skin dry out and become really brown and crispy. Make sure that there is no raw food near the turkey in the refrigerator. After refrigerating overnight, the turkey is ready to go in the oven.
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
Put 2 cups chicken stock and 1 cup apple cider in the bottom of the roasting pan. Roast the turkey in the preheated oven until the skin gets really nice and brown, about 40 minutes. Lower the oven heat to 350 degrees F for the remainder of the cooking time. Baste the turkey every 30 minutes or so and add more stock to the roasting pan, if needed. Cook about 17 minutes per pound. Once it gets to the proper color, tent the turkey with aluminum foil to prevent it from getting too dark.
Remove the turkey from the oven when an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the turkey registers 160 degrees F. Make sure that the thermometer is not touching a bone when doing the reading. When the turkey has reached the proper temperature, remove it from the roasting pan to a cutting board and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. Cover loosely with aluminum foil.
Strain all the veggies over a bowl to separate them from the stock/mixture. Discard the veggies. Skim off the fat and add it to the roasting pan. This is the fat for the roux. Put the roasting pan over 2 burners and over a low heat and whisk in the flour. Cook until the mixture looks like wet sand, about 4 to 5 minutes. Slowly whisk in the remaining 1 cup apple cider, remaining chicken stock and the stock/cider mixture. Cook until the mixture has thickened and reached a gravy consistency. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Pour into a serving pitcher or bowl.

Back to the Beginning

As I am preparing my journey into cooking professionally I started to think what my first true experience with restaurant food was. It was when I was 8 or 9 living in Garland, Texas. We had just moved to Texas and only been in the States for about 5 years. There were only a couple of Vietnamese restaurants in the area and they were sub par to my mother’s cooking so we never went. What I do remember was this Chinese restaurant called Dinh Ho in Irving that served some amazing roasted pork and duck. It was amazing and that once a month trip was highly anticipated.

First Chinese BBQ

Roasted pork and duck are still some of my favorite dishes and I went to First Chinese BBQ in Garland on Jupiter and Walnut recently to see if I could capture that first kiss of restaurant food again. As I entered the restaurant I saw the tell tell sign of a good Chinese BBQ place; hanging meat. I could smell the smoky flavors of roasted duck, roasted pork, and Chinese bbq pork. It was a sight to see. A formidable cook with a wicked cleaver stood behind the display chopping the meat into bite size bits. He was amazing with speed and accuracy. I ordered a pound of the roasted pork and brought it home to my kids who love the stuff. As we ate it with pickled vegetables, rice, and soy sauce I savored not only the food but the connected memories.

Scared no more

I have not been writing in this blog because frankly I have been scared and embarrassed. I announced to myself and on this blog that I was going to go to culinary school. I used finances as an excuse to not going but it was because I was afraid. I was afraid I was to old and to fat. I have let my body and mind live in fear and the results are not pretty. The thing is there is still that seed, that wonderful scary seed that says this is what I love and could be my second act. Tomorrow I am going to El Centro and registering for their culinary arts program. No more excuses. I have started a real weight loss program. I am going to walk or exercise everyday for at least 20 minutes. I will not have any sodas;.I will not eat after 6pm. I will not eat any processed foods. I will accurately monitor my progress daily. That’s about all I can handle for now so hopefully I will get into cooking shape in time for classes to start in January