Thanksgivin Favorites

[Lilred]

One of my favorite subjects...:D

Since Mama is older now, the past few years I have been the Thanksgivin hostess fer the family. :rolleyes:
We always have the same thing...turkey & all the trimmins..and...my personal fave..PUMPKIN PIE. Good Lordy...

So I was thinkin bout doin Thanksgivin a different way this year....like they used to have it. Corn pone and roast venison with vegetables, corn on the cob and pralines fer dessert. (Still gotta make the pumpkin pie)

How well do ya think that would go over with the city slickers in my family? They might hate it so bad...they might not come back next year. ;)

Anyways...what is ya'lls Thanksgivin favorites?
And another thing...how many of you fellas have ever cooked a Thanksgivin meal fer your family? I was curious cause me and my sister was havin that discussion the other day, and I told her I knew the perfect place to ask such a question.
She got all red in the face, I think she thought I was gonna barge in some men's locker room somewhere and just make myself at home and ask em.. :p

[Tater]

I've made Thanksgiving dinner a couple times (Easter and Christmas too). And if the "city slickers" don't wanna come back just because you tried something different then you're better off without them. Thanksgiving isn't about what's on the table; it's about who's around the table. BTW, what are corn pones?

[Gunslingergirl]

My Dad has cooked Thanksgiving dinner several times. He's a very good cook.

I'm a traditionalist when it comes to Thanksgiving. Turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, stuffing and green bean casserole. We also have some corn casserole for Dad and, of course, pumpkin pie.

GSG

[Duffy]

Actually, I usually cook the birds for our feast. Normally, I cook a small turkey in the deep fryer. This year, we are hosting a few extras, so I'll be cooking a turkey and a couple pheasants. My wife and sister-in-law handle the sides, which my wife says she is more than happy to do since she doesn't have to worry about the birds. And I love it because while I'm out cooking in the driveway, the garage TV (albeit small) will be showing football, and the fridge will be supplyig me and anybody else standing around the fryer with plenty of "antifreeze"!

[Dan Morris]

I've done the traditional for years, turkey/cornbread dressing/yams/pea salad/pecan n mince pie.Ifn they like it great....if not....sorry.
Reason is...I'm a better cook than wife.... even she knows it!LOL
Dan
:D

[Lilred]

Thanksgiving isn't about what's on the table; it's about who's around the table.
Amen to that Tater....I wouldnt mind runnin a few of em off from round the table...more fer me LOL :D

Cone pone...is nothin but cornmeal, salt & water formed into small dough squares. Pone is best cooked over a wood stove or campfire...you'd be surprised the difference in the taste of the meal. Some folks use pone fer "corn dodger" (a simple kind of cornbread) to go with pot likker...(very salty meat..with some flavorin added. Some folks call it "corned") which is awesome btw.

It's good to know you fellas do cook thanksgivin meals...i lost 10 bucks...but still....good fer you fellas!
lol
:rolleyes: :D

Hey Dan...I hope your wife takes advantage of the fact that you are a good cook!

[Mil Dot]

I've cooked several times, try to use some variety:

Turkey Oven Baked / Grilled & Smoked / Deep Fried

Stuffing: Corn Bread / oyster / Southern Minnesota traditional

Scalloped Corn / Green Bean Casserole / Yams / Squash

Apple Pie / Pumpkin Pie / Carrot Cake / Ice Cream

I've done Prime Rib or Ham as well

Lil Red -- Corn Dodgers ... True Grit Style :D !

Most of the sides show up annually, in fact I've got a niece that won't let me in the door without the Scalloped Corn.

This year I'm responsible for the SC and a dessert ... Apple Crisp & Ice Cream is my choice.

Happy Thanksgiving folks.

[Swift]

Rice filling and dried corn!

[Gunslingergirl]

Scalloped Corn! That's the corn casserole my Dad likes.

Couldn't remember the name earlier.

It's mandatory at our Thanksgivings, although no one really loves it but Dad.

GSG

[jmarriott]

I use the smoker for almost 13 years now for the family bird.

Get up at midnight, start the coals, water pan, start the bird on the bottom shelf with 2 pork loin roast on the top shelf. Go to bed then up at 4 am to add coals and wood chips, check the water level and the cooking temp. out the door at 5 am to deer hunt. back about 10:30 or 11 to add more coals. (Wife adds coals and water/wood chips at about 8-9 am.) the bird is about done at noon if the temps has stayed up and we did not buy the 30 pound turkey this year. add the cored apples with butter and brown suger on the top shelf at 11 am and remove the pork loins and maybe the bird. buy 1 pm tthe bird is done and people start arriving about 2 pm. buy about 3 pm the apples on the top shelf at done for a hot finish.

Sounds like a lot of work but it is just 5 minutes checking coal/temp/water levels. that 30 pound bird took some 16 hours to smoke up right cause is was windy and about 13 degrees that year. had a devil of a time getting the temp to stay up.

All i do is the bird and the apples.

[VaRedneck]

about smoking turkeys....

A coupla years ago I wanted to smoke a turkey an the grill...like my dad used to do when I was a kid. I had forgotten pretty much everything he'd done for prep so I went looking on line.

What surprised me was being told to keep the bird under 8lbs or so. It seems that a larger bird stays in the "danger zone" 120*-140* for too long to be deemed safe. Well...I didn't like that, especially since I had already bought a 16lb bird. The fix for this was to "half" the bird.

It worked great. Thing is though...cooking time was also reduced by half. Both halves were done before noon. Since everyone showed up early we all sat down...15 minutes later we lost power. Didn't bother anyone...everything was finished cooking.

The meal...even without power in the house..was a success. Since we couldn't watch the game...we broke out the shotguns and busted clays in the back yard.

Nope the neighbors didn't say boo.

[jmarriott]

The hardest thing about smoking turkeys is keeping them lit.

Never had anyone get sick and have been doing it for years.

[GoodOlBoy]

Never had a smoked bird make anybody sick myself and I have smoked birds up into the 30+ lb range. The trick is to actually smoke them, not use a gas blah blah, or a electric coil blah blah with wood chips. Charcoal or wood for 12+ hours. You will get a truely smoked bird.

GoodOlBoy

[VaRedneck]

Oh, I agree with you both.

Dad smoked 20+lb'rs and we never had a problem.

Maybe it was the "new and improved nanny state" advice that I found.

When the weather warms a bit I'm gonna try again, without splitting the bird.

While it's being smoked, have you guys brushed the bird with mayo?

[GoodOlBoy]

uhmm no. Mayo goes bad outside in Texas at staggering rates. I have used beer mixed basting sauces with varioues ingrediants in them though.

GoodOlBoy

[jmarriott]

I place a couple of pork loins on the top shelf of the smoker and that basts them while they cook. Nothing like pork fat for basting.

[VaRedneck]

I understand about mayo going bad...outside. But in an oven, smoker or grill? I don't baste the bird till after the skin starts to darken...just a little. I believe it helps keep the bird moist.

I'd like to do the pork on the top shelf but I got a char-grill bbq with a side smoker....no "verticle" room. I put a small pile of charcoal to one side of the grill with (wet mesquite, hickory or cherry wood) chunks on top. For extra smoke early on, I duplicate the same in the side smoker. After a few hours when the temp has reached 150* or so I just keep the main going..charcoal and wood chunks.