Opening my internet browser this morning, I could not miss a prominently featured article titled “Why You Should Cook Turkey Breast This Year, Not the Whole Bird”.
In a nutshell, this article says that it is difficult to get a moist breast while making sure the dark meat is cooked through. Therefore, the solution is to get rid of the whole thing and simply deal with the breast.
How cavalier! Let’s kill a whole bird for only pieces of it. No problem at all. The turkey that gave its life for our Holiday will not mind!
There are ways to slow down the cooking of the breast while the rest of the turkey gets to the right temperature. Easy methods with aluminum foil are described here. If all fails, and the breast is still a little dry, gravy comes to the rescue!
If there is quite some meat left on the bones after dinner, let’s clean it up. Nicely sliced, great in sandwiches. Chopped up makes an easy turkey salad, delicious on crackers!
Whatever is left at this point can then go in a big pot of water and slow simmer for hours. Once the bones are cleaned up of any little bits of meat, they can finally be retrieved from the pot and discarded. The broth obtained, with all its meaty goodness, is ready to accept carrots, celery, onions, potatoes, your imagination is the limit! Season to taste, don’t forget your herbs and spices, and here you have it, a delicious and good for you hearty soup!
I wonder. Did this writer ever witness the killing of a turkey? I doubt it. That would be so gross, right? But maybe she should.
Maybe, after watching that turkey still alive, then killed, then plucked and readied for her table, this writer would gain a little dose of humility. Maybe this writer would not disregard so fast three quarters of what used to be a living, breathing animal.
What about honoring that turkey to its fullest instead?
It is bad enough that we must kill in order to live. The least we can do is make certain that we do not disrespectfully waste.
Katrin L.
November 12, 2019
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