For the first time in six years, I have Thanksgiving off. I was originally hoping to spend it with my daughter and her boyfriend. But due to logistical issues, plus COVID-19, I am flying solo.
The irony is quite amusing. And mind you, I am not bothered in the least. As much as I enjoy the company of my loved ones, I've also always been a lone wolf who's very much comfortable with just her own company.
I have an entire universe in my head, so I am NEVER lonely. (And it's also why doing this COVID-19 social distancing is incredibly easy for me.)
Having said that, I was actually quite ecstatic about embarking on a new culinary adventure for Thanksgiving ~ one that would have me deviating far away from the traditional New England style turkey dinner that I have been long accustomed to ~ and venturing into unknown culinary territory.
(Dang! That was a long sentence!)
It's a good thing that Thanksgiving is not a sacred cow for me. That gives me license to play with my food. Booyah!
But enough said. Let's get cracking with the Cooking Palooza!
The star of the show is a Chili-Rubbed Turkey, which is quite the dramatic departure from the type of Thanksgiving turkey that I've known all my life.
It was a good thing that I read the entire recipe all the way through well before executing it, as this recipe required much preparation. The first thing I had to do was to make the chili paste on the morning before Thanksgiving.
Three cups of the chili paste was going into the brining bath, along with all those cans of Tecate. (And no, those cans were not for the chef. However, I did swill down one can last night to see how it tasted, and I was greatly relieved that it was much more passable than that weasel piss known as "Bud Light.")
The turkey is now happily swimming in its intoxicated and chili-ated briny bath. The next stage of the operation will take place well past midnight, when the bird gets a rubdown with the rest of the chili paste.
After placing the brining bucket in the fridge, the next item to focus on was the Mexican Turkey Stuffing. This recipe called for tons of ingredients and required lots of prep. Just look at the mise en place for this undertaking!
Holy moly! I'm not even halfway through the mise, and already Big Bertha is starting to buckle at the seams!
Dayum!
Just look at all that food! I can now see why the Mexican Turkey Stuffing recipe said to give it a good stir halfway through,
and to not discard the foil after the first stirring!
And here it is!
I did give it a taste. (In fact, I had a bit for a light late lunch).
The verdict?
It's definitely "different," But not in a bad way. It's just that having grown up with the New England style savory stuffing, the flavor combinations in this stuffing are very unfamiliar.
Also, it didn't taste "Mexican" in the familiar Mexican restaurant sort of way.
I was hoping for a more savory taste. But with all the fruit, it's definitely more on the sweet side. But it's not bad.
But it's also not "Holy moly! I gotta make this again!" great either.
Who knows? Maybe I'll learn to love this stuffing. And believe me, this recipe made a lot of stuffing, so I'm going to get a lot of practice in learning how to love it!
We'll see how well it goes with the rest of the feast foods. Perhaps I'll discover that the sweetness is a nice counterbalance to the Chili-Rubbed Turkey.
Finally, finally, FINALLY the moment had arrived when the bird was done sitting in its intoxicated briny bath and was ready for the chili paste rubdown.
After rubbing it down ~ a really messy process ~ I put the bird in the fridge, where it was to chill overnight. And after finally getting out of my food spattered clothing, I was able to get into my sleepy clothes, and do my own chilling with a glass of wine and a good book.
Morning had arrived. I stuffed the cavity with onion, garlic, and fresh oregano. And I was thrilled to have on hand exactly the needed two cups of homemade turkey stock, which I used in place of the specified chicken broth (which was not as flavorful as my own homemade stock).
Into the oven you go, you dirty bird!
After I threw the bird in the oven to roast, I set about finishing up the Hatch Chili Cornbread Stuffing, which was another one of those "let sit overnight" recipes. However, because it is already past hatch pepper season, I substituted Poblano peppers for Hatch peppers. And as an afterthought, I also threw in three jalapeños.
And dang it! This baby has heat! That's more like it!
I had some leftover black beans from the freezer and some leftover fresh corn. But dammit! I neglected to pick up some cilantro at the supermercado.
But have no fear! It's PC Willy's Green Chili Rub & Seasoning to the rescue! (Thank you, Ted!)
I wasn't planning on having just plain ol' spuds. But I happened to realize that I been neglecting these poor shriveling buggers. So into the pan they went, seasoned only with roasted garlic pink Himalayan salt and Nepalese Timut pepper.
Ah! The eagle...
...er...
the turkey has landed!
Meanwhile, this reduction is taking forever!
It's the last thing that stands in the way of me enjoying my Thanksgiving meal.
Fuck it! I'm stopping at one an a quarter cups! I wanna eat! What's an extra quarter cup anyhow?
Finally! The moment of truth!
<making obscene noises of gastronomical satisfaction>
Don't forget to make room for dessert!
This pecan pie is the only menu item that I did not make.
And here I am, enjoying it with a splash of Appleton Estate Rare Blend Jamaican Rum, which I also did not make.
All in all, this was a very fine Thanksgiving meal. And whereas I was a bit worried about the Mexican Turkey Stuffing's sweetness, it was all for naught, as all of the dishes came together in a beautiful synergy of flavors that I would certainly not mind enjoying again!
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