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Your Thanksgiving Menu: Choosing the Right Wine

November 19, 2009

Let yourself off the food and wine pairing hook this Thanksgiving – it turns out it’s not as big of a deal as you might think.

The Thanksgiving Food and Wine Conundrum

As turkey day looms there’s an uptick in Thanksgiving wine advice from magazines, blogs, and wine merchants. Most talk about the difficulty of finding a wine that works well with so many different dishes. Others focus on how to pair wine with the turkey, because, well, it’s the star of the show. Even so, just about every article I read ends with a list of this year’s recommended wines and leaves me to my own devices when it’s time to make the “red or white”, or more specifically “pinot or Riesling” decision.

As part of my quest to dig a bit deeper into answers to the most oft-asked holiday questions, I once again connected with an expert from my local Central Market to get the scoop on finding the right wine for my Thanksgiving table. Just as Howard Miller educated me on all aspects of turkey buying, Paul Schunder gave me much food for thought on the subject of Thanksgiving wine selection. Paul has been with Central Market for many years and for several of those he was the Chef de Cuisine of the Central Market cooking school. He taught me much of what I know about cooking and entertaining and gave me an amazing foundation of knowledge on which to build this very blog. He also spent a couple of years in the wine department, working with shoppers every day to match wine with their food and budgets. His combined experience made him the perfect person to help me understand the ins and outs of Thanksgiving wine.

Thanksgiving Dinner: Not Your Typical Dinner Party

While I expected our Thanksgiving wine conversation to start with a discussion of varietals and blends, we started (as we should have) with the food and the people. Paul’s take on Thanksgiving dinner is that it’s not like any other dinner party you throw because in many situations:

  • You have limited control over the menu. There are all kinds of expectation (aka baggage) that comes with Thanksgiving meal. Unless you’re lucky enough to have complete authority over the menu, you’re often stuck with family favorites like green bean casserole and cornbread stuffing. You simply don’t have the luxury of crafting a menu with specific wine pairings in mind.
  • You have limited control over the guest list. Unlike a dinner party where you can choose your guests based on their pallets and wine preferences, Thanksgiving is all about friends and family (and their quirks and pickiness) that you might not otherwise mix at the same dinner party. This adds a new level of complexity when it comes time to select wine for such a diverse set of preferences and wine appreciation.
  • There are a lot of sweet tastes at the table. From sweet potatoes to cranberry sauces, marshmallows to glazes, there’s a lot of sugar on the Thanksgiving table that simply doesn’t pair well with many wines. Going back to the first item on this list, it’s not like you can just ditch these sweet dishes from the menu so you’re stuck with them.

Given all of this, the first rule of Thanksgiving wine selection is to remember you’re not operating within the status quo and to give yourself a break.

Thanksgiving Dinner Simply Isn’t About the Wine

As much as we want to have good wine pairings with Thanksgiving dinner, the plain and simple reality is that, for most of us, wine takes a back seat to the food and family at Thanksgiving. If you can keep the role wine plays in the dinner in perspective, you’ll be able to free yourself to focus less on the wine and more on the food. Similarly, you’ll probably find that your guests’ expectations for the wine at Thanksgiving aren’t the same as they might be in other dining situations. They aren’t there for the wine, they are there for family connection and tradition first, and then food, with wine coming in a distant third.

Stress Free Wine Selection

Hopefully, freeing yourself from the expectation of making the perfect pairing takes you a long way toward a more relaxed Thanksgiving wine-selection expedition. To further simplify the process, Paul offers this advice:

  • Find out what you can about your guest’s wine preferences. Does Aunt Judy only drink oaky Chardonnay from Napa? Does cousin John only like zinfandel? The more you know about their pallets and proclivities the easier it will be to hone in on specific varietals or styles.
  • Buy 2 of each color: red and white. Choose a light/dry white as well as an oaky Chardonnay to cover the white spectrum. Next, select two light and easily quaffable reds like a Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, or Shiraz. If your menu is extra-laden with sweet flavors, Zin and Shiraz are particularly your friends. Avoid big fat reds though because they will simply overwhelm everything else at the table.
  • Consider starting the meal with some bubbles. I’m a big fan of sparkling wine because it’s so light and also happens to be a pallet cleanser. Serve it with appetizers as a fun and cheerful way to start off the day. Don’t feel like you have to buy expensive champagne either, an American sparkler or even a French Blanc de Blanc will do just fine.
  • Skip wine with dessert and serve (spiked) coffee. One of the rules of pairing wines with sweets is that the wine should be sweeter than your dessert otherwise it will taste sour. Considering the typical Thanksgiving dessert spread – pumpkin pie, mincemeat pie, pie, pie, and more pie – you’ll have to pick up some pretty sweet dessert wines to compete. These aren’t often the favorites of many folks, and they are often pricy, so just skip them all together.
  • Break out the good stuff later. If you do have friends and family who enjoy a really great wine and you happen to have one around, enjoy it with them a few hours after Thanksgiving so it can really be appreciated. It won’t be competing with anything and you’ll be able to truly savor it.

Seek Help

You don’t have to figure this out alone. Your local wine shop gurus are more than happy to help you find the right wines in your price range – and if they aren’t, find another wine shop. While they will most likely point you toward “Thanksgiving-friendly” wines like Pinot Noir and Rieslings, you can help direct them a bit more by providing them with a few pertinent facts:

  • Any details on your guests’ wine preferences or dislikes that you may have.
  • Your budget and the number of bottles you think you’ll need.
  • Wines you’ve served in the past that have gone over well or been utter failures.
  • The flavor theme you might have going on for your dinner (Southwestern, Italian, etc).
  • How many different styles of each color of wine you’d like (red and white).
  • If you’d like to branch out a bit and try a new blend or varietal that still fits the general characteristics of a quaffable wine that won’t overwhelm the food or your guests. You’ll never know what interesting wine you might get to taste.

Some Suggestions to Get You Started

In the tradition of any good Thanksgiving wine post, I’ll close with a collection of Paul’s recommendations for Thanksgiving wines. He has great taste, so I guarantee you won’t go wrong with any of these.

All of the prices listed here are the current retail cost for these wines at our Austin, Texas Central Market. Prices will vary by region and retailer, but these are a good guide for what to expect.

And finally, here are a couple of other lists of Thanksgiving-friendly wines from sources I trust:

Happy turkey and toasting.

Posted in * Wine, Holiday Food & Entertaining | Tagged | 1 Comment »

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Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas: Side Dishes Made Easy

November 17, 2009

It’s been almost a decade since I’ve had to plan a Thanksgiving dinner but this year I’m on the hook. After spending a few hours on recipe creation and planning, I remember why it’s such a huge pain. Putting together a big collection of recipes that all work together not only from a flavor-perspective but from a sheer doability perspective is a challenge. And of course, that pesky turkey is taking up the oven for most of the day, which adds a whole new layer of fun to the complexity.

As I started thinking about tactics for making the day more manageable, I found myself focusing on the sides. Short of choosing a different cooking vessel for your turkey (grill, smoker, fryer, etc), side dishes offer the most opportunity to mix up your preparation techniques to make the day more manageable. Along the way, I came up with five tactics to find side dishes that won’t be competing with the turkey for oven space during day. As I was thinking of sharing my tactics here, I realized examples would be useful, so I hunted down a collection of recipes that represent these tactics, which you can of course use as is, or use as a guide for your own menu planning. Of course, if you have two ovens, you have a little more leeway, but even so, unless every dish cooks at the same temperature, I think you’ll find that these tactics will be helpful even if you have the luxury of extra oven space.

Do you have a favorite tactic or recipe to make Thanksgiving menu planning and cooking easier? Please share in the comments.

Remember the Turkey Has to Rest for 30 Minutes

When I was putting my Turkey Buying 101 post together, the expert I interviewed stressed several times that letting a turkey rest for at least 30 minutes after cooking and before eating is critical to serving a tasty turkey. While it does mean your whole kitchen has to smell like turkey for an extra 30 minutes before you can east, it also means that you have 30 minutes of oven time to use to finish, reheat, or even wholesale cook a side. While many vegetables and stuffing recipes call for up to 60 minutes of oven time, if you look for recipes that cook in 30 minutes or so or that are of the make-ahead and re-heat variety, you can make the most of this precious time.

Make the Most of Your Stovetop

Your stovetop has several burners, use them! You can do a lot more on the top of the stove than mash potatoes or steam vegetables so look for recipes that spend all or most of their cooking time on the stove top to take advantage of every heat source you have to work with in your kitchen.

Use Your Slow Cooker

Many favorite Thanksgiving sides are long cooking, making them perfect candidates for your slow cooker. The recipes I’ve found are really templates for your own versions of them, so start with these as a base and customize them to fit your personal taste. To find other slow cooker versions of your favorite sides, simply Google “slow cooker side” and you’ll find more options than you can shake a stick at.

Consider a Salad

While a plain tossed salad doesn’t seem appropriate for a Thanksgiving table, an interesting and next-level salad absolutely does. Many salads can be made ahead or require no cooking at all, and they can bring a lighter option to what is a traditionally heavy meal. Look for salads that feature fall ingredients and more substantial dressings.

Find More Sides

Finally, as you are recipe hunting for sides that fit these tactics, you’ll find these sites most helpful.

Posted in * Side Dish, Holiday Food & Entertaining | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

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Austin Foodie Bits: Week of November 16, 2009

November 16, 2009

dishola_ad_square3Turkey day is almost here. Are you read? Or are you in denial and ready to find some way to keep distracting yourself in lieu of planning for the big day? If distraction is what you’re looking for, you’ll find plenty of options in this week’s food and wine events. Cooking classes, a Gourmet magazine memorial feast, and cupcake and wine tasting are all on tap to grab your attention.

Before I jump into the list for this week, I’d like to let you know about a really great way to do something good for someone in need without even leaving your chair. If you’ve had a great, good, or even not so great dish at a restaurant in the last few months or so, and you’re willing to write a few words about your experience between now and November 30, Dishola will donate a dish of food to Meals on Wheels and More in your honor. For just a few minutes of your time spent reviewing a single dish (not even a complete meal) you can help be sure the elderly, working poor, and children are better fed this holiday season.

I am a HUGE fan of Dishola and post all of my restaurant-related reviews on their site. I like the focus on a single dish because I’m often on the hunt for a specific dish when selecting a restaurant, or when I dine, one dish really stands out out for me. It’s also much easier to write a review of a single dish than an entire dining experience. I’m so excited to know that the collection of reviews I’ve built up over the last few months to submit will help feed those in need. So please, take just a few minutes to share your experience with a particular dish at any restaurant in any town, so we can help them donate 1,000 meals. And while you’re on the site, look me up and become my tablemate. The more the merrier!

And now, on to the list.

Be Spontaneous: This Week’s Events

  • [NEW] [VALUE] November 15 – 18: FLAVORS of Austin at Get Sum Dim Sum – Get Sum Dim Sum is a cool little spot on North Lamar near 45th street that occupies an old Panda Chinese fast-food location, and they have improved on the previous offering one thousand fold. The menu includes all sorts of nibbles and bites that you can mix and match to your heart’s desire. And while the food isn’t necessarily authentic Sunday afternoon dim sum, it’s still a nice change of pace, and frankly, lots of fun. This week they are participating in FLAVORS of Austin so you can stop into try their fare. The menu includes small and large bento boxes that will give you a nice survey of their menu, while still keeping the tab under $20.
  • [UPDATED] November 17: Gnocchi Workshop – Gnocchi are a great alternative to pasta and they also boast the benefits of being inexpensive and easy to prepare at home (with a little practice). You can infuse them with all sorts of savory flavors and top them with just about any sauce. In this class at the Whole Foods culinary center you’ll learn the ins and outs of making your own gnocchi from potatoes, pumpkin, spinach, and ricotta so you’ll be well-prepared to devise your own gnocchi creations at home. 6:30 pm – 9pm. $65. Reserve online.
  • [UPDATED] November 17: Wines for Turkey – Not sure how to pair wine with your Thanksgiving meal? You can wait for my post on the subject later this week or even better, read my post and take this class so you’ll be fully-armed with the information you need to select the right wines for your table. Central Market Westgate. 7:00 pm. $30. Reserve online.
  • [NEW] November 18: FINO Chef’s Table Gourmet Magazine Memorial Feast
    – The great and venerable Gourmet magazine is no more. In celebration and remembrance of a publication that has contributed so much to America’s culinary culture, join Owner Emmett Fox, Chefs Jason Donoho, Andrew MacArthur & Andrea Bearce as they share stories, recipes and inspirations from Gourmet Magazine. $65 with an optional $25 wine pairing. 6:30 pm. Call 474-2905 to reserve.
  • [UPDATED] November 19 and 20: Alaskan King Crab Fest – It’s Alaskan King Crab season and what better time to learn how to prepare this fantastic food so you truly do it justice. Scott Loranc is a seafood expert, fantastic chef, and great teacher, and he brings all of those traits to the classroom to make you more confident in the kitchen. The class is offered on two different nights to fit your schedule. If you are a connoisseur of King Crab and want to know how to cook it at home, this class is for you. 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm. $70. Reserve online.
  • [UPDATED] November 19: Vegan Thanksgiving Dinner Cooking Class – If you are sharing Thanksgiving with a vegan or are a vegan contemplating your Thanksgiving menu, this class at Whole Foods is a good place to start. You’ll learn how to craft a menu from seasonal flavors that you can recreate at home on the big day. 6:30 – 9:00 pm. $65. Reserve online.
  • [NEW] [GREAT VALUE] [DO GOOD] November 21: Cupcakes and Wine Benefiting Capital Area Food Bank – House Wine and the Cupcake Bar are at it again: pairing cupcakes and wine for a new taste experience that also benefits a local charity. At this tasting you can try three different fall cupcakes featuring flavors like sweet potato, cranberry-vanilla, and chocolate-pecan. Pair them with your choice of wine from a collection that includes Bogle 2007 Chardonnay, Louis Perdrier Sparkling Rose, and 2008 Wrongo Dongo Monastrell. Proceeds benefit the Capital Area Food Bank. 8pm – 10 pm. $13 or $10 + 3 canned goods. RSVP to the eVite.
  • [UPDATED] November 23: Holiday Appetizers to Go Cooking Class – This Whole Foods cooking class offers an almost irresistible opportunity: learn to cook four great appetizers and make enough to have on hand to serve before your big Thanksgiving meal. You’ll make pecan and goat cheese marbles, camembert and caraway spread with pita points, spicy crab dip with rice crackers, and phyllo-wrapped Moroccan-spiced lamb to amaze your guests and break away from the same ol’, same ol’.

Eat Well, Do Good

  • November 18: A Slow Taste of Tuscany Benefiting Urban Roots – You are invited to be part of a celebration across North America of Slow Food and Douglas Gayeton’s new book Slow: Life in a Tuscan Town. Join Slow Food Austin and Edible Austin in honoring the simple and superb pleasures of local, fresh food that has been prepared slowly and locally at Austin’s own Primizie Osteria. Tickets are $85 and include not only a four-course feast highlighting local ingredients, but an autographed copy of the book ($50 value), and a contribution to Urban Roots. Gratuity and taxes are separate. Reserve online at Open Table for November 18 and note “Tuscan Dinner” in the comments box. Seating is limited.
  • November 19: Seventh Annual Big Reds and Bubbles –The Wine & Food Foundation of Texas is ringing in the holiday season with their seventh annual Big Reds & Bubbles wine and cuisine showcase at the lovely Driskill hotel. This event will feature over 50 champagnes and fine wines, plus nibbles from 20 of Austin’s top chefs. You can also participate in a unique silent auction, the perfect way to get a head start on some of your holiday shopping. Proceeds from the event will support the foundation’s many charitable activities. $90/per person ($75 for members). 6:30 pm to 9 pm.
  • [GREAT VALUE] November 22: Austin Empty Bowl Project – As cool charity events go, the Austin Empty Bowl Project is one of the coolest. You buy a pretty and fun bowl for just $15, fill it with soup from fantastic local restaurants, and enjoy it even more knowing your money is going to support the Capital Area Food Bank’s very important Kids Café program. Imagine what it’s like to not know if you’ll be having dinner each night. The Kids Café program is trying to be sure that feeling isn’t a part of the lives of Austin children and for just $15 you can help. 11 am – 3 pm. Mexican American Cultural Center.
  • [NEW] [VALUE] November 23: Movember Benefit at Parkside – Mosaic wine group and Parkside restaurant are teaming up to support the Movemeber movement, a month-long project that raises money to fight prostate and testicular cancer. Movember participants spend the whole month growing mustaches and soliciting support from friends and family for their efforts. At this event, you can enjoy wine from Mosaic, Parkside’s most excellent food, and live music, all for $25 per person. Even if you can’t attend the benefit, consider donating money to the cause as it is an important one. 7pm – 10 pm. Buy tickets online.
  • December 5-12: Eat Local Week –Eat Local Week, Edible Austin’s winter fundraiser event, is an invitation to Central Texans to explore and celebrate the abundance of local food and to raise money for Urban Roots. Eat Local Week will kick off on December 5 at the Austin Farmers’ Market with the City of Austin’s proclamation and with support from GO TEXAN and other Central Texas communities. Dine out and shop locally, attend featured events, throw a dinner or cocktail party or simply make a home-cooked meal using local foods and beverages.

Plan Ahead: Events in the Next 3 Weeks

Posted in Austin Eats | Tagged | 1 Comment »

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Thanksgiving Cooking Tips: Turkey Buying 101

November 10, 2009

SmallTurkeyWhen I was growing up, the turkey on our Thanksgiving dinner table always started out frozen and the biggest differences among turkeys in the grocery store were brand and price. My mother would keep an eye out for the best combination of these two attributes, and often our turkey would be free with a grocery purchase of some pre-defined amount. We’d pay cents per pound for turkey and plan for it to spend a couple of days defrosting in our extra fridge. My mother and grandmother were fantastic cooks, so our Thanksgiving turkeys were always tasty, but to be honest, we weren’t worried then about the source of the turkey much less its living arrangements or diet. Based on a totally unscientific poll of my friends, my family was not alone in its approach to turkey procurement.

It’s Not Just About Price-per-Pound Anymore

With the proliferation of organic food, the renewed focus on shopping locally and sustainably, and the rejuvenation of all sorts of heirloom species – from tomatoes to turkeys – buying a turkey isn’t quite as simple as it used to be. Terms like “organic”, “free range”, “all natural”, and “heritage” complicate matters greatly. A massive difference in price across the spectrum from frozen turkey to fresh heirloom doesn’t help matters much either. While it’s really fantastic that we have so many choices, for a family trying to find the perfect bird that fits their priorities and their budget, things can get just a little hairy, or should I say feathery?

In an attempt to figure this all out, I asked Central Market for help and boy did they ever deliver. They connected me with Howard Miller, a man who knows more about turkey and groceries in general that I thought possible. He’s been working in markets for his entire career and can tell you in what order people typically shop for Thanksgiving groceries (canned and boxed goods first, then turkey, then fresh veggies), how the size of a family’s refrigerator and the room a turkey takes up in it drives the entire Thanksgiving plan, which shoppers are ready to move up to the next level in turkey quality, and much more. He’s a veritable font of turkey knowledge. Thanks to his generosity in time and information, I can say that I feel like I can confidently shop for a turkey.

Howard taught me that turkey buying comes down to three key decisions:

  1. Traditional or heritage?
  2. Fresh or frozen?
  3. All natural or organic (or neither)?

Beyond those decision points are some other characteristics to consider as well, including:

  • Free range
  • Pre-cooked
  • Local source

The bottom line is, the turkey you buy is directly related to your personal priorities around (but not limited to):

  • Budget
  • Expectations of friends and family
  • A desire to support local and sustainable farming
  • A desire to avoid artificial ingredients, antibiotics, and hormones
  • A preference for organic products
  • A preference for humanely-raised food

Once you have a good handle on what’s important to you and how turkey characteristics related to your prefences, the rest is easy (I promise).

Traditional Turkey or Heritage Turkey

You probably won’t be surprised to know that the turkey we all think of as “traditional”, isn’t the same turkey the pilgrims would have come across when they first took up residence here in the new world. The turkey we see on glossy magazine covers and expect to carve at our Thanksgiving table has been bread to support our love of white meat. These big-breasted turkeys couldn’t fly if their lives depended on it.

Heritage turkeys are old old old school birds. They can (and do) fly, which means their proportion of dark meat to white meat is much different than a traditional turkey. They also tend to be smaller and have a more distinct, earthy flavor. In some ways, heritage turkeys are to traditional turkeys as ducks are to chicken. Heritage turkeys exist because a group of dedicated farmers are committed to bringing back these nearly extinct breeds so they aren’t lost forever. As you might expect, it’s more expensive and time consuming to raise a heritage turkey, and there are fewer sources for these turkeys than traditional turkeys. A heritage turkey is really a completely different type of taste experience, and it’s important to know that before you choose to pick this path. If you want to know more about heritage turkey and the revival of these older breeds, a quick Google search will give you plenty to read.

A traditional turkey is probably right for you if:

  • You want to host a typical Thanksgiving with a crowd that isn’t quite ready to rethink how they see turkey
  • Most of your guests prefer white meat
  • You are trying to be budget conscious
 A heritage turkey may be right for you if:

  • You want to create a new taste experience at your Thanksgiving dinner and your guests are ready for it
  • You and your guests are okay with less white meat
  • You want to support local, sustainable farming and a return to heritage breeds
  • You have room in your budge to pay upwards of $5/pound for your turkey

Note: if you elect to go with a heritage turkey you can pretty much skip the rest of this blog post. You’ll want to spend your time looking for a local provider who has available turkeys (Google “heritage turkey” and your city/region). Not all heritage turkeys are organic, so if that’s important to you be sure to look for the label. Even so, the devotion required to raise this type of breed pretty much guarantees they will be all natural and free-range. For my Austin and Central Texas readers, you’ll be happy to know you can get a Mary’s heritage turkey at Central Market or from Alexander Family Farm in Del Valle. Wherever you are, I’d recommend you order your heritage turkey sooner rather than later.

Fresh or Frozen

I’ll say right now that a frozen turkey isn’t a bad thing at all. Many of us grew up on them and had great Thanksgivings. The two biggest benefits to frozen turkey are:

  • Substantial price-per-pound savings as compared to fresh (frozen can be ½ the price of fresh).
  • The ability to secure your turkey a week or two before Thanksgiving and avoid the craziness of stores that week, assuming you have the necessary freezer space.

However, if you choose a frozen turkey, it’s very important that you thaw your turkey the right way to not only ensure that it tastes good, but that it’s safe. A big frozen bird takes a while to defrost, and ideally you should slowly thaw the turkey in the refrigerator because it has the most consistent temperature of any place in your house. You’ll keep the bacteria at bay, but it can take up to 6 days for 20 lb. turkey to thaw, so you’ll have to be ready to give up fridge space for a while. You can also thaw it in cold water, changing the water every 30 minutes or so, for a faster thaw, but it will still take 10-12 hours for a 20 lb. turkey to thaw this way.

As the name implies, a fresh turkey has never been frozen. The USDA regulates fresh turkeys and requires that a turkey labeled as such has never been stored below 26 degrees. Because this is technically below freezing, ice crystals may form on your turkey. While a fresh turkey will be more expensive than a frozen one, you can probably expect to pay less than $2 per pound, which is a great deal given the price of other proteins these days. If you’re looking to take your turkey up a notch from frozen, a fresh turkey might be the next step.

A frozen turkey may be right for you if:

  • You have the refrigerator space to properly thaw the turkey for several days
  • You are trying to be budget conscious
 A fresh turkey may be right for you if:

  • You have a little more to spend on your turkey (fresh can be up to 2x the cost of frozen)
  • You don’t have the refrigerator space or time to thaw a frozen turkey properly
  • You can pick up the turkey a day or so before cooking
  • You are ready to make the move to all natural or organic turkey (these may only be available as fresh turkey)

Because your refrigerator can’t maintain the same low-but-not-freezing temperature that a grocery store’s can, you should wait to pick up your fresh turkey as close to cooking as possible to keep it in good condition. If you are planning on a fresh turkey, I’d recommend ordering it from your local market and setting a pick-up time on Tuesday or Wednesday so you’re guaranteed a turkey. You don’t want to show up at your market on Wednesday afternoon to discover that your only option is a frozen turkey you’ll have to babysit in cold water all night to be ready to cook the next day.

All Natural or Organic

We’re rightly concerned these days about the environment in which our food is raised and how it impacts us as consumers of the food. The labels all natural and organic can help you select a turkey that fits well with your family’s food priorities. Both of these designations are regulated by the government, which makes it a bit easier to select a turkey without knowing the intimate details of its upbringing. An all natural turkey should have the following characteristics, as per the USDA:

“A product containing no artificial ingredient or added color and is only minimally processed (a process which does not fundamentally alter the raw product) may be labeled natural. The label must explain the use of the term natural (such as – no added colorings or artificial ingredients; minimally processed.)”

Howard’s take on all natural is that it’s all about the turkey’s diet and what doesn’t happen to the turkey. It’s sort of funny that turkey that costs more has had less done to it (this is even more true with organic), but that’s a subject for another post.

While all natural turkey may have been frozen, and the package must say so if it has been, many all natural turkeys are fresh. It is possible to get a fresh turkey that isn’t labeled as all natural but that is free of hormones (required by US law) and antibiotics. In that case, the turkey may have flavor enhancers injected into them for additional flavoring. In general, I’d look for the “all natural” label to be on the safe side.

For many of us, going all natural is an important step in putting turkey we feel good about on our family’s table. However, if you want to go one step further, you can purchase a USDA Certified Organic turkey. For a turkey to have this label, its entire environment from feed to yard to processing must adhere to government standards. Organic turkeys bring with them all of the goodness that other organic foods do. By the very nature of organic farming, organic turkeys are going to be all natural, and then some. As with the all natural turkeys, most organic turkeys are fresh but you may be able to find a frozen one if you look around.

An all natural turkey may be right for you if:

  • Avoiding antibiotics, hormones, and other artificial elements is important to you.
  • You have a little more to spend on your turkey
  • You can manage a fresh turkey or have the time to locate a frozen all natural turkey
 An organic turkey may be right for you if:

  • Buying organic food is a priority for your family
  • You have the budget for an organic turkey (organic can be up to 2x the cost of fresh, non-organic turkey)
  • You can manage a fresh turkey or have the time to locate a frozen organic turkey

Other Considerations

After you get through making your three big decisions, there are some other turkey characteristics you might want to consider:

  • Is the turkey free range? Free range turkey is turkey that doesn’t spend its life in a pen so it’s done more than just eat and get fat. This is a more natural environment for the turkey and more humane. A quick Google search revealed that there is much debate over the health benefits of free range farming, and because I’m not at all equipped to contribute to the debate, this post won’t begin to tackle it. This is another characteristic of your turkey that, from my perspective, is completely related to your priorities for yourself and your family. If it’s important to you that your turkey be raised with access to open ground, then look for a turkey with a free range label. Many organic and all natural turkeys are also free range because raising birds in this way is consistent with the farming practices that lead to those designations. Do remember though, that free range doesn’t mean all natural or organic, so look for those labels in addition to the phrase free range.
  • Is the turkey pre-cooked? You can buy your turkey already cooked and ready to re-heat. If you want to skip cooking the turkey yourself you can buy an already cooked turkey that you either warm up or serve at room temperature. For example, Central Market has Greenberg Smoked Turkeys and Butterball makes a frozen, fully cooked turkey. If you choose to go down this path, remember that this is an additional consideration beyond the turkey’s starting state of all natural or organic.
  • Buying from local and sustainable sources. If it is important to you to shop locally, you’ll want to spend some time researching turkey farms in your area that raise birds that are consistent with your priorities. As you talk to these farmers or read their web sites, you’ll still be answering the same important questions about traditional or heritage, fresh or frozen, and all natural or organic. You may have to pay a little more to one of these farmers than you would your local grocery store, but if you can afford it, it’s a great investment in our future as well as a tasty turkey.

How Much Turkey Should I Buy?

Really the answer to this is based entirely on how much leftover turkey you want to have. Some of us love eating turkey for days, other of us, not so much. A good rule of thumb when you calculate turkey per person is to plan for 1 lb. per person. Some other words of advice from Howard on the subject are:

  • If you are going to be feeding a huge crowd, you might buy two 12 pound turkeys instead of one 24 pound turkey to make cooking easier (if you have the oven space). You could also roast one yourself and purchase a smoked turkey for a different flavor profile and to save on oven space.
  • If your guests really like white meat, buy a smaller whole turkey and supplement that with a turkey breast.
  • Skip the whole turkey entirely and buy turkey parts (breasts, legs, etc) and roast them separately to avoid having to deal with the entire bird.

Buying the Turkey Is Just the Beginning

At the end of my conversation with Howard, he reminded me that buying the turkey is just one piece of the Thanksgiving puzzle. More often than not, people can mess up a perfectly good turkey by handling and cooking it improperly. The Epicurious Turkey Primer is a great place to start if you want to be sure you can do your carefully selected turkey justice.

My Family’s Thanksgiving Turkey

After all of this, you may be wondering what kind of turkey will be on my Thanksgiving table this year. We’ve chosen a 14lb. fresh all natural, free range traditional turkey. While we aren’t going organic, all natural and free range farming are important to us. I’ll also be feeding a group of people who aren’t ready to see their traditional turkey replaced with a heritage bird (just yet) – they revolted when I suggested swapping out mashed potatoes for another potato preparation. We’ve ordered the turkey from the butcher and are picking it up on Wednesday morning. I’m not sure how we’re cooking it yet – I’m figuring that out once this post goes live.

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