table talk / By Bob Doran

Alt. Turkey

Local chefs offer alternative ways to cook the traditional Thanksgiving bird

(Nov. 19, 2009)  Thanksgiving came early to Bayside this year. Well, not exactly Thanksgiving, rather a grand meal on a Sunday in November centered on turkey and fixings — mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, roasted butternut squash — served to an intimate crowd of 160 plus at the Bayside Grange.

The event, “Eat From Your Watershed: An Awesome Autumn Feast,” was a benefit for the Jacoby Creek Land Trust’s conservation and education fund. Susan Ornelas, head of JCLT (and an Arcata city councilperson) came up with the idea for the locavore dinner. She raised the turkeys right down the road from the Grange on the land trust’s Kokte Ranch and Nature Preserve.

Brett Schuler’s apple brandy-glazed turkey breast with apple pancetta stuffing and turkey leg confit. Photo by Bob Doran

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Her idea was simple on the surface. With help from a crew of volunteers, she butchered the 5-month old turkeys. They’d grown extremely large: Between free-range grazing and the feed she brought them, most were over 40 pounds. She then distributed them to a collection of local caterers and restaurants who’d volunteered to cook them. On the day of the event they would be delivered ready to serve, with optional side dishes. Friends, family and the Delta Phi Epsilon sorority were enlisted for set-up, serving and so on.

When I arrived at the Grange at 2:30 Sunday afternoon, Brett of Brett Shuler Fine Catering was overseeing a crew who’d roasted a bunch of butternut squash and peeled and boiled 100 pounds of potatoes. He was slicing the turkey he’d prepared ahead. Like many of the chefs that day, his turkey method began with brining.

Here’s how he does it: “I heat up some water, dissolve salt and sugar in it, I can’t tell you the exact measurements [most brine recipes call for a cup of salt and sugar per gallon of water], but it’s strong since it will be diluted later — then I cool it down. Then I put a plastic bag liner in a big cooler, add the turkey, then the brine and enough water so it’s covered, then ice so it will stay cold overnight.”

Brett let his turkey soak overnight, then dismembered it. The legs were used for a turkey confit, slow cooked in duck fat. He made a separate apple pancetta stuffing. “Nobody cooks stuffing inside turkeys anymore,” he noted. He roasted the breasts, glazing them with an apple brandy glaze made with reduced chicken stock, spiced cider and cognac. The brining kept the turkey moist; the glaze made it delicious.

Around 3, more turkeys started arriving. Someone from Plaza Grill brought in a massive bone-in “citrus turkey,” but they were unsure how Chef Josh Wiley had prepared it. (The lemon slices and thyme garnish surrounding it offered a hint.) Tamra Tafoya of Celebrations Catering and Larrupin’ Café showed up with a tempting turkey mole with a side of Southwestern style stuffing.

Dexter Villamor from Wildberries’ Wildplatter Café came in with a “Oaxacan turkey” with roast pepper stuffing. “It’s rubbed with a chili paste, chilies and orange juice,” he explained. “I used three dried peppers, pasilla, ancho and mulatto; reconstituted them, then used orange juice, orange zest, garlic and olive oil.” The mixture was rubbed on a turkey brined with salt, brown sugar and dried peppers. “The roast pepper stuffing recipe came out of the same magazine,” Dexter added with a smile. “It’s basically just roasted Farmers’ Market peppers, prunes and bread.”

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