Page 10 Portland Observer, Novem ber 24, 1982
Economy And Convenience Transforms Eighteenth Century Turkey Dish
With convenience and bud
get as a prerequisite for a
h o lid a y e n tre e , one o f
Thomas Jefferson's French
dishes can still be part o f any
family's observance Jeffer
son's “ Dindon a la Daube"
entree was served at the
White House during his ad
ministration Today you can
economically serve it to your
family.
The original recipe was a
“ boned and stuffed turkey,
served in a casserole," accord
ing to an historical reference
Our modern variation o f
Tom's Turkey uses a turkev
breast, easier to bone, stuifed
Although turkey and all the trim
mings is still the centerpiece of the
holiday meal for most Am erican
families, the turkey now comes in a
variety of forms to meet the needs
and tastes of everyone, points out
Nellie Oehler, Oregon State Univer
sity Extension home economist.
The traditional whole bird, pur
chased fresh or frozen, is still the
most popular. Lower in price,
frozen turkeys retain their high
quality during storage because they
are frozen rapidly immediately after
slaughter. Taste tests show little or
no flavor difference between fresh
and properly defeosted frozen birds,
Oehler reports.
A marketing twist with the whole
bird is the frozen turkey with a sea
soned stuffing already in the body
cavity. Prepared under sanitary con
ditions, this may be ideal for those
who don’t have a favorite recipe or
who d o n ’t have time to prepare
dressing.
However, the home econom ist
stresses, it’s im portant to roast a
pre-stuffed turkey in its frozen
state. These turkeys must never be
allowed to thaw before roasting. Ex
tra time must be allowed to cook
pre-stuffed birds.
Turkey breasts, or packages of
dark meat, may be preferred by the
small fam ily. Turkeys are sold in
parts in the frozen meat section of
the grocery store.
A nother convenience turkey
product is the boned and rolled
packages of light and dark m eat.
Boned turkey takes shorter roasting
times and has little waste. However,
because of the labor involved in
separating the meat from the bone
and rolling and tieing, the final cost
is more per pound than whole birds.
Since most turkeys or turkey pro
ducts are bought frozen, it is
important to use proper methods to
thaw the bird in order to have a safe
product, Oehler adds.
Thaw the turkey in the refrigera
tor, if possible, leaving it in its orig
inal wrap and placing on a drip pan.
It will take two to three days to thaw
a 12-20 pound bird.
For a quick defrost method, thaw
the turkey in cold water. Leave the
bird in its original wrap and place in
cold water in a sink or large pan.
Cold water defrosting will take from
6 to 10 hours for a 12-20 pound tur
key.
A fter preparing the turkey for
roasting , wash the work surfaces
with soap and water and then rinse
with a bleach solution, Oehler ad
vises.
Turkeys may be roasted stuffed
or unstuffed. The safe way to roast
large birds is unstuffed, Oehler says.
The dressing is cooked along with
the bird in a side dish. If you prefer
to stuff your bird, do so just before
roasting.
Large stuffed turkeys should be
roasted at 325 degrees F. in an open
pan. Smaller birds may be roasted at
a slightly higher temperature. Use a
meat thermometer to check the in
ternal temperature. It should reach
180 to 185 degrees F. in the thickest
part of the breast.
Oehler recommends checking the
internal temperature of the stuffing
inside the bird to make sure it
reaches 165 degrees F.
"Cooking a turkey partially and
then finishing it later is not recom
m ended,’’ Oehler stresses. " B a c
teria can survive and m ultiply in
partially cooked poultry.”
As soon as the Thanksgiving din
ner is completed, refrigerate the left
overs. Separate the meat from the
carcass and package the turkey,
stuffing and gravy in separate con
tainers. Turkey left-overs can be
frozen for later use.
1 package (6 or 7 ox.)
cornbread stuffing
mix
1/2 cup butter or
margarine, melted
1/2 pound bulk pork
sausage (optional)
Vegetable oil
Saucepan Gravy*
pan Pour 1/2 cup water over
vegetables. Combine stuffing
mix, melted butter and 1/2
cup water. Cook, crumble
and drain sausage, stir in
to stuffing Spread stuffing
along center and one half of
boned turkey breast Fold
turkey breast in half length
wise, fasten edges and ends
together with skewers Brush
surface of breast with vege
table oil. Place* stuffed breast
on top of vegetables inside
bag Close bag with nylon
tie, make 6 half-inch slits
in top o f bag Insert meat
thermometer through slit in
top o f bag into thickest
Tom's Turkey
1 tablespoon flour
1 package (7 /8 ox.)
turkey gravy mix
1 medium onion, sliced
2 stalks celery, sliced
1 cup water, divided
5 to 8 pound turkey breast
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Shake flour and turkey gravy
mix in large size (1 4 " x 2 0 '‘)
oven cooking bag, place bag
in 13x9x2 inch baking pan
Spread onion and celery in
bag along the length of the
part of turkey breast. Cook
2-1/4 to 2-3/4 hours or until
meat thermometer registers
180°-185°F . Let stand 15 to
20 nunutes before removing
turkey from bag
Makes; 8 to 10 servings
How to debone a turkey
breatt First, rinse, drain and
pat dry. Then, using a sharp
knife, slice rib bones away
from meat. Next, separate
meat from both sides of
upper breast bone Ixiosen
bottom o f breast bone and
lift meat from bone. To stuff,
lay boned turkey breast, skin
side on flat surface
SAFEWAY
it V, t ’ *
Turkey comes
in many
packages
with a mix and cooked to
perfection in an oven cook
ing bag The oven cooking
bag is an easy no-tending
method for cooking meats
moist and tender. Boning the
turkey at home is not d iffi
cult and an excellent cost-
cutting measure.
Sales
Limited To
Retail Quantities.
Price Effective 11/26 Thru
11/30/82 A t Safeway
In The Portland Area.
Bonelem op Sirloin *Fried Chicken
Safeway
Quality
Beef
Steak
2 Lb. Box
Braunschweiger
Manor House. Asst'd
Varieties, 8 Ounce
Stick. Dubuque
Brand
NuMMk
Frozen Pizzas
Asst'd V a n e t ie s ^ ^
Creamy, I
Chunky i
3 Lb. Jar
12 To 12 5
Oz Pkg.
Tick Tac Mints
Baker’s Chips
Mild Cheddar
ed Delicious Ap
M llv
Shem
Spread
Dressing
33 1/2% Less Cal
Than Margarine
32 Oz. Tub
NuMade
32 0/
■111
Laundry Detergent
Krusteaz Pancake
Asst'd Flavors
5-0unce
I
t
P p ilC i F rP P
Lucerne Cheese
2-Lb. Loaf
I v p o l
fresh
Picked
Delicious
Setved
Northwest
■ A'
«
Hoi landaise
cjödays Safeway" Where you get a little bit more
V IC C
Safeway
Assorted
Sizes 200 Ct
Reg. Or S ub
8 P a c k .1 6 0z.B tl
Absorbent
SAFEWAY