Recreating the Iroquois Hotel's turkey dinner

With the holiday season here, memories of one of the first meals I ever cooked for guests have come flooding back.

My dad was the chef at the Iroquois Hotel in Galt and he taught me hands on how to make turkey dinner. Over the years I found that some chefs would stuff the bird with the bread stuffing and roast it covered at low temperature for several hours to keep the meat from becoming too dry.

Other chefs roast the bird breast side down to keep the meat moist. Lately a few chefs boast deep frying whole turkeys, barbecuing them and slow smoking the birds with tasty results. I was shown this method to get a nice juicy result.

I first mix half cup of maple syrup, a half cup Kosher salt and half cup vinegar brought to a boil used as a brine when cooled. Cover the bird with cold water and the brine and let sit for four hours. I roast my turkey using this simple method because it gets the best results with the less amount of failure and stress to produce a tasty moist turkey.

Follow these next steps and it should produce a moist tasty bird and with flavourful stuffing. Thaw a frozen bird in the fridge starting several days ahead to retain the most moisture and limit bacteria. I then let the turkey soak in the sink covered in the brine mixture, turning periodically. 

When using a fresh air dried non medicated bird, keep cool till ready to season.

Supermarket purchased turkeys are grown specially for Thanksgiving and are the most widely used, but also come pre-stuffed and basted for convenience. Cooking time differs when roasting a larger bird due to its meat to bone ratio.

Some birds have bigger thighs and legs while other turkeys have more breast meat. Make sure the bird has lots of room in the pan and is not touching the sides.

You will need 1 turkey approx. 12/14 lbs.

Start by removing the neck, liver and gizzard from the cavity. Place into the brine mixture.

When ready, remove and wash the bird under cold tap water and pat dry with paper towels.

With the dry rub mixture massage into the skin as well as placing some into the cavity.

Dry rub mix

1 tbs of chicken bouillon base powder or paste

2 tbs kosher salt

2 tbs pepper

1 tbs garlic powder

2 tbs fresh dried sage.

1 tbs fresh dried thyme.

Place in a bowl and mix well then rub and massage into the bird.

Now let the turkey rest so the spices will flavour the meat.

To roast the turkey in the oven, bake at 350 uncovered for four hours. Twist a leg and if it's loose, cover and let rest till service. Use a thermometer to be precise.

While that’s roasting start the stuffing

Stuffing

8 strips double smoked bacon cut into small pieces

1 large Spanish onion small dice chopped

2 ribs of celery small dice chopped

1 large loaf of day-old bread, crust removed and cut into cubes and placed in a large bowl.

1 cup melted unsalted butter on hand

3 cups of good bouillon chicken stock

1 cup whole milk

2 tbs flour

2 eggs lightly beaten.

In a large pan sauté the onion celery and bacon till translucent now add the stock and butter. Simmer and remove. Pour this mixture a cup at a time and mix the stuffing. Add the second cup remix and adjust adding the rest of the mixture. Place into a greased baking dish and cover baking at 350 for one hour and fifteen minutes till golden brown top.

I usually do this after the turkey is cooked using pan juices and neck meat to make the turkey gravy by adding some chicken stock and a heaping tablespoon of flour. Mix in over medium heat till desired thickness is obtained. I use some club house turkey gravy mix to add extra flavour if needed.

Darn Delicious Garlic Mashed Potatoes

This is how I was taught to make garlic mashed potato. It was my signature way of getting a great tasting starch on to a plate that stood up with whatever it was sided with.

A good helping of mashed potato topped with a good gravy carried a lot of us cooks through a 14 hour stand on your feet in one spot all day short order cooking. It hit the spot. Not too many people I know that don't like mash potatoes, especially garlic mashed! With Christmas coming up, you always need a good side of mashed potatoes to take on that turkey gravy.

Here's what you will need;

1 fresh bulb of garlic

8 large potatoes, peeled and cut into even chunks

1/2-pint single cream (light cream or half-and-half)

4 tbs unsalted butter

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Pinch nutmeg

Slice off the top of the bulb of garlic and place a little olive oil onto the exposed cloves. Place in a microwavable bowl and heat on high for 3/4 minutes till soft.

Now with a clean towel squeeze the hot mushy garlic cloves back into the bowl and add the butter, 10% cream, salt and pepper, Microwave again in 4 x 15 second bursts. Watch closely not to boil over. It should be next to boiling and set aside.

Now cook the potatoes in boiling salted water until tender.

Drain and mash lightly until smooth.

Add the mixture of poached garlic cream, butter, a touch more seasoning and the nutmeg and mix well into your lovely mashed potato.

Tasty Cranberry Sauce

It’s quick and easy, so unless you’re devoted to the super-sweet jelled version that comes out of a can, whip up a batch for Thanksgiving.

2 lb. raw whole cranberries, washed and picked over

3 cups sugar

3 cups water

1 cup orange juice

Zest of one orange

Combine all the ingredients in a large saucepan and heat on medium, stirring occasionally, until the berries are softened and the sauce has thickened, about half an hour. Transfer to a bowl, then chill until ready to serve; the sauce will keep, refrigerated, for a week.

Makes a great omelette filling with some turkey and stuffing and a great glaze for pork or ham also.

Place the cranberry sauce and oven warmed bread and butter on the table. Serve it buffet counter style carving desired pieces of the turkey from the roast or pre-cut onto a platter and serve family style right from the celebratory table setting.

A simple mixture of some chopped bacon and onions sautéed and added to some steamed Brussels sprouts and sweet potato topped off the meal in a true holiday fashion.

A Holiday Toast

For each new morning with its light,

For rest and shelter of the night,

For health and food,

For love and friends,

For everything Thy goodness sends.

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

Interesting facts about turkey

• As far back as 1000 A.D., native American Indians raised turkeys for food. Aztec Indians in Mexico were raising them as early as 200B.C. Turkeys originally existed in the eastern part of North America and as far west as Mexico.
• The Canadian turkey industry grosses over half billion dollars a year.
• The Average Canadian consumes over 6 kilos of Turkey per year. Canadians consume over a few million pounds of turkey just on Xmas Day alone.
• Turkey, like poultry, is lower in cholesterol than beef and many other meats. The dark meat (thighs, legs) contains more fat and cholesterol than white meat. That's why dark meat tastes so good. 
• Male Turkeys are called "Toms", female turkeys are called "Hens" and baby turkeys are called "poults." 
• Turkey eggs are tan in color and speckled with brown. They are about twice as large as chicken eggs and carry more omega protein.
• That long, loose skin that hangs down from a turkey's neck is called a "wattle." 
• Sleepy after the big meal? Turkey contains an amino acid called "tryptophan." Tryptophan sets off a chemical chain reaction that calms you down and makes you sleepy.
• Does your family fight over the wishbone from the holiday turkey? Allow the wishbone to dry. Then, two people grasp each end of the wishbone. After making a silent wish, they pull it away. Whoever gets the joint portion, gets their wish. Known as a "lucky break" the tradition of tugging on either end of a fowl's bone to win the larger piece and its accompanying "wish" dates back to the Etruscans of 322 B.C. The Romans brought the tradition with them when they conquered England and the English colonists carried the tradition on to America and is still a family tradition today.

Wishing you all a very happy Christmas and new year.

Chef Wayne Conrad Serbu writes monthly for CambridgeToday. The former executive chef also shares recipes and memories from his more than five decades in the hospitality industry on his blog, the kitchenman.