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Archive for the ‘Chicken & Turkey’ Category

November 27th, 2024

Blog, Chicken & Turkey, Cooking Technique, How To & Tips, Seasonal/Holiday Recipes, Thanksgiving Dinner

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Easiest, Go-To Roast Turkey Recipe – All in Pictures

Here’s an easy-to-use, go-to cooking technique that makes for a terrifically tender, fully flavor – and good looking – roast turkey.

First some quick tips:

I highly recommend using an oven-proof meat thermometer, as shown in the equipment needed picture below, to ensure roasting the turkey to the proper doneness temperature.
Traditional recipes usually call for roasting the turkey with stuffing in the main cavity. I recommend roasting the turkey without stuffing for the best turkey roasting result.
Make sure the turkey is completely defrosted, if you’re using a frozen turkey, and then allow that defrosted or fresh turkey to warm close to room temperature before roasting.
Start cooking the turkey breast-side down for most of the roasting timeand turn the turkey breast-side up for the last 50 minutes no matter the turkey weight.
Let the freshly roasted turkey rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before carving and serving.

Regarding temperature and timing, start with the turkey placed in a roasting pan BREAST-SIDE DOWN and cook at high oven heat (450℉/230℃) for the first 30 minutes no matter the turkey’s weight. After 30 minutes, turn the oven heat down to 325℉ /165℃ for the bulk of roasting time with the turkey still breast-side down. Again, no matter the turkey weight, turn the turkey breast-side up and keep the temperature at the same 325℉ /165℃ for the last 50 minutes of cooking. See the note below about how to turn the turkey breast-side down to breast-side up.

Here are all the ingredients you need to make a stress-free roast turkey.

Here’s the equipment you need.

The most difficult part of this recipe is turning the turkey from breast-side down to breast side-up, but the picture book directions show how to do that as easily and safely as possible as shown here.

Click this link or any picture on this page for a complete, newly revised step-by-step picture book recipe.

November 26th, 2024

Blog, Chicken & Turkey, Seasonal/Holiday Recipes, Side Dishes, Special Recipes, Thanksgiving Dinner

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Fresh Cranberry Sauce and More Thanksgiving Help

Fresh homemade cranberry sauce blows the canned version out of the water and is as easy to make as boiled water

Only two days til Thanksgiving but no need to make yourself – or anyone else – crazy.

One of the best ways to make Thanksgiving Day as fun as possible is to get some easy dishes made in advance, like fresh cranberry sauce. Fresh, homemade cranberry sauce, with its rich sweet and sour flavor and mouth pleasing snap-pop, blows canned cranberry sauce out of the water, is no-kidding just as easy to make as boiled water and keeps fresh for weeks in the refrigerator.

Here’s all you need for ingredients. You’ll see a carton of orange juice in the picture below. Most cranberry sauce recipes call for cooking the berries in water. Instead of water, I like cooking fresh cranberries with fruit juice – orange juice as shown or apple or any other juice – for added flavor.

Click this link or any picture above or directly below for an easy to follow picture book recipe and/or…

…this link for a short step-by-step video.

You can also click this link or the picture below for the Gotta’ Eat Thanksgiving Help page that I’ve been updating with additional recipes to give you more freedom of choice.

November 25th, 2024

Blog, Chicken & Turkey, Cooking Technique, How To & Tips, Thanksgiving Dinner

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Stress-Free Thanksgiving Dinner Planning & Timing Guide With Recipe Links

Thanksgiving food shopping list by grocery store aisle and stress-free Thanksgiving dinner planning and timing guide blog banner image.

All right! Thanksgiving’s just 3 days away, and if you’re the one on the hook to make Thanksgiving dinner, it’s time to flip the action switch to on – without making yourself crazy.

First, if you haven’t yet gotten all the ingredients you need to make Thanksgiving dinner, please get to the grocery store today (Monday) or tomorrow (Tuesday), especially if you’re roasting a frozen turkey as frozen turkeys take at least 2 days to defrost properly. To make grocery shopping as easy as possible either click this link or the picture below to download a Thanksgiving Dinner Shopping List Organized By Grocery Store Aisle.

Thanksgiving Food Shopping List Organized By Grocery Store Aisle

Next, either click this link or the picture below to download the Stress-Free Thanksgiving Planning and Timing Guide so you know in advance what to expect realistically over the next few days, which is all manageable even if you have little to no experience in the kitchen.

Next couple days: fully flavorful and easy-to-make Thanksgiving Day recipes.

November 13th, 2024

Blog, Chicken & Turkey, How To & Tips, Seasonal/Holiday Recipes, Thanksgiving Dinner

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Stress-Free Thanksgiving Dinner Grocery List and Timing Guide

Like I mentioned recently in Stress-Free Picture Book Thanksgiving Dinner Help, Thanksgiving’s by far my favorite holiday! All that’s expected is a good meal and getting together with family and friends. Not much more to be thankful about than that.

Of course, if you’re the one putting that uniquely traditional dinner together and are not comfortable in the kitchen, the challenge of pulling it off successfully can be overwhelming. I’ve sure been there, and relieving that stress is what this post and others like it are all about.

The two most important keys to putting together a successful and stress-free Thanksgiving dinner are planning and timing. That means making sure you have all the ingredients you need in advance (stores are usually – and thankfully – closed on Thanksgiving Day) and coordinating cooking timing in the kitchen.

To help you get the ingredients you need as efficiently as possible, click this link or the picture below for a grocery shopping list to make a traditional Thanksgiving dinner for 6-8 people that includes roast turkey, gravy, bread stuffing, fresh cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and pie dessert. Of course, just adjust those quantities as needed based on how many people you expect to join you for Thanksgiving dinner.

And, though though it’s a little early to start actually preparing any Thanksgiving dishes, click this link or the picture below for a timing guide that lays out clearly just about everything you’ll need to do to put together a traditional Thanksgiving dinner.

More about specific Thanksgiving recipes to follow that we’ll have fun putting together!

November 25th, 2023

Blog, Chicken & Turkey, Leftovers, Special Recipes, Thanksgiving Dinner

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Picture Book Cooking Thanksgiving Leftover Ideas

Leftovers are the most flavorful rewards of cooking Thanksgiving dinner.

First, I hope you had a fun time and fully flavorful Thanksgiving dinner with friends and/or family.

Second, one of the best rewards of making Thanksgiving dinner yourself is all the leftovers that actually enrich with flavor after the holiday meal itself.

First, click this link or the picture below for picture book directions that show how to remove and store meat from a cooked turkey.

Here are two easy to make turkey leftover recipes, turkey nachos and turkey parmesan, intended to inspire your imagination to make fully flavorful Thanksgiving leftovers that suit your taste.

Click this link or the picture below for very easy turkey nacho picture book directions.

Click this link or the picture below for easy-to-make and fully flavorful turkey parmesan picture book directions.

Enjoy the rest of your Thanksgiving weekend with full-on flavor!

Bruce

November 25th, 2021

Blog, Chicken & Turkey, Cooking Technique, Special Recipes, Thanksgiving Dinner

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How to Roast a Thanksgiving Turkey: Picture Book Directions

First, I wish you, your family and your friends a fun, relaxing (ha!) and fully flavorful Thanksgiving!

A very close second: there’s not a lot that feels and smells better than being in a kitchen while a turkey roasts in the over and all the side dishes cook on the stove. Terrific stuff!

The last few posts showed how to prepare Thanksgiving side dishes and desserts. This post shows how to make the traditional Thanksgiving centerpiece, roast turkey, which I found best to roast at high heat – and upside down – to start and then finish off a more moderate heat, as shown below.

I also strongly suggest not cooking the turkey stuffed but instead cooking the turkey and stuffing separately. The reason: roasting a stuffed turkey only adds mores cooking time and causes the meat to dry out.

Click this link or the picture below for step-by-step picture book directions that show both how to roast a turkey and remove the meat from the bird.

You can also click this link or picture below for complete Gotta’ Eat, Can’t Cook Thanksgiving help.

Happy Thanksgiving!

November 24th, 2021

Blog, Chicken & Turkey, Seasonal/Holiday Recipes, Side Dishes, Special Recipes, Thanksgiving Dinner, Video & Picture Ebooks, Videos

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Two Traditional Thanksgiving Sides: Bread Stuffing and Fresh Mashed Potatoes – Made Easy with Picture Book and Video Directions

Fresh mashed potatoes and bread stuffing are most flavorfully enjoyed when made just before serving dinner.

Last post showed how to make fresh cranberry sauce: killer flavor and as easy to make as boiled water.

This post shows how to make 2 traditional Thanksgiving side dishes: fresh mashed potatoes and bread stuffing, which you can learn how to make on the fly with the picture book and or video directions shown below.

First, here’s what you need to make fresh mashed potatoes, which are best made just before you serve dinner.

Click this link or the picture above or below for picture book directions or…

…this link/picture below for quick video directions.

Here’s what you need to make quick & easy bread stuffing, which is also most fully flavorful and best made just before serving dinner.

Click this link or the picture above or below for picture book directions or…

…this link/picture below for quick video directions.

Of course, please click this link for complete Gotta’ Eat, Can’t Cook picture book Thanksgiving help.

November 15th, 2021

Blog, Chicken & Turkey, Cooking Technique, Poultry, Special Recipes, Thanksgiving Dinner, Vegetables

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Thanksgiving Dinner Help: Stress-Free and All in Pictures

Just 10 days out to Thanksgiving, by far my favorite holiday because all that’s expected is a fully-flavorful meal and being together with family and friends.

At the same time, I know from my own experience that laying down a Thanksgiving dinner for those same family and friends, especially if it’s your first time around, can be stressful. The goal here is to provide straight-forward stress-relief, which you can access by:

clicking this link or the tab above labeled Thanksgiving Help for a Thanksgiving dinner planning and timing guide and uniquely easy to follow step-by-step picture book recipes that show how to make roast turkey, turkey gravy, mashed potatoes, bread stuffing, apple pie, and fresh whipped cream and more.
getting your own first-of-a-kind Stress-Free, Quick & Easy Thanksgiving Dinner video/picture ebook for $2.99 (it’s extraordinarily affordably priced, especially these days, to make it as widely accessible as possible). Click this link to a short video trailer about the ebook. The ebook itself is available at:

November 30th, 2015

Blog, Chicken & Turkey

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Easy Turkey Leftover Parmesan – All in Pictures

This turkey leftover Parmesan recipe is just as easy to make – and vary to your taste – as it is fantastically flavorful to enjoy.

Here’s what you need – if you don’t have leftover turkey or oven roasted squash as shown below, just substitute those with whatever meat/vegetable leftovers you have.

Turkey (Leftover) Nachos – In Pictures

Turkey nachos are great for a quick lunch or dinner or as a flavorful companion with your favorite drink when you’re watching sports or whatever you want to watch comfortably warm from the cold outside. All you need is your favorite corn (or any) chips, leftover turkey – or any other meat you might’ve had for Thanksgiving, canned beans (optional) and melted cheese topped with your choice or a combination of sliced avocado, chopped tomato, chopped onion, sour cream or plain yogurt and/or salsa. Read more »