WASHINGTON 鈥� Sam Sifton has advice for anyone who is on edge about cooking Thanksgiving dinner.
鈥淔irst of all, let鈥檚 all just take a deep breath,鈥� said Sifton, food editor for The New York Times and author of
Yes, prepping and pulling off the annual feast is no small feat, but there鈥檚 no point in sweating anything 鈥� other than the onions.
鈥淚t鈥檚 one of America鈥檚 great holidays. We love it as a people with a passion, but it鈥檚 hard. And there鈥檚 some anxiety attached to it. And we need to radically accept whatever it is that鈥檚 going to happen on that Thursday,鈥� he said.
Sifton says the best thing is to go into Thanksgiving clear-eyed and with a plan. Here鈥檚 his:
Avoid a dry turkey
Sifton says there鈥檚 a simple way to make sure the turkey you serve isn鈥檛 overcooked.
鈥淭he single most important thing you can do to achieve a good turkey is to get yourself an oven-safe digital thermometer that will tell you the interior temperature of the meat throughout the whole process of roasting the bird.鈥�
When that number hovers around 160/162 degrees, take the turkey out and let it rest under a tent of aluminum foil for 30 to 40 minutes. Letting it rest allows the juices to set while the turkey comes up to the proper temperature.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 a $20 investment that will pay off in years of perfect turkeys,鈥� Sifton said.
There are other methods that can help to keep the turkey moist. One is to cut the turkey into pieces and cook the pieces in a pan with a little bit of braising liquid 鈥� whether it鈥檚 wine or stock.
鈥淭his will allow the top, the skin, to become very crisp, but that intensely moist atmosphere will help keep the meat quite moist,鈥� he explained.
And while the jury is still out on whether basting keeps the turkey from becoming too dry, Sifton says it doesn鈥檛 hurt.
鈥淏asting is, I think, as much about ritual as anything else,鈥� he said, adding that pouring the juices and melted fat back over the bird is 鈥渁 terrific way of ensuring that you have a really nicely burnished skin when you鈥檝e completed the process of cooking it.鈥� 聽
There鈥檚 no need to drown your turkey in olive oil and butter. In fact, Sifton starts the cooking process with just salt and pepper on top and a little bit of butter under the skin, along the breast.
The turkey should be dry before it hits the heat; Sifton cranks the oven to 450 degrees for the first half-hour. The initial high heat causes the skin to tighten, almost like a 鈥渂lister鈥� around the rest of the bird, he explains.
鈥淚鈥檓 not losing a lot of juices and I鈥檓 not wasting oven heat trying to evaporate water. I鈥檓 going straight to crisp skin, and then I鈥檒l lower the temperature after a half-hour,鈥� Sifton said.
Stuff your face, not the bird
Some eaters are very particular about a popular Thanksgiving side dish and whether it’s cooked inside the turkey or in a separate dish. Sifton is a fan of dressing, not stuffing, which he says interferes with the turkey-cooking process.
鈥淔illing the bird with bread stuffing slows down the cooking process; it takes longer to cook it, and you don鈥檛 get a lot of stuffing out of it, either,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o I like to keep the cavity relatively free of debris.鈥�
However, he does advise throwing some salt and pepper inside the bird to keep it seasoned. Occasionally, he will add onion or citrus slices in the turkey cavity for flavor.
鈥淏ut not much. I like some hot air to be able to circulate on the inside of the bird and continue cooking at a relatively rapid pace,鈥� he said.
Don鈥檛 worry about adding a 鈥渘ontraditional鈥� dish to the spread
This year, Sifton and a team of reporters at The Times set out to learn .
鈥淭he overwhelming response is, 鈥極h we have a pretty traditional Thanksgiving,鈥欌�� he said.
But it turns out 鈥渢raditional鈥� doesn鈥檛 mean the same thing to everyone. People from different countries and cultures all over the world incorporate flavors from those cuisines into their Thanksgiving spreads.
The feature profiles a Midwesterner who has a staple dish that is German red cabbage with red wine and apples, and a Jamaican woman who prepares jerk-spiced turkey.
Sifton鈥檚 point: If you鈥檙e itching to try that Peking-style roast turkey, go for it.
鈥淚 am just marveling this year at what traditional Thanksgiving really means to each and every one of us as Americans,鈥� he said.
鈥楧ouble-down鈥� on the gravy
Thanksgiving is a once-a-year dinner. Despite turkey sandwiches being a popular lunchtime order at the deli counter, most people don鈥檛 roast turkeys at home except for that fourth Thursday in November. And Sifton says even less common than turkey throughout the year is gravy.
鈥淭he gravy experience is one that is really specific to Thanksgiving,鈥� he said.
And that is why he likes to make it 鈥� a lot of it. In fact, he allocates one gravy boat to every few people at the table.
鈥淚t鈥檚 the substance that binds the whole meal together in my view,鈥� he said.
Sifton makes his gravy from the drippings in the bottom of the roasting pan. (Tip: Farm-raised turkeys produce more fat, and thus more drippings, than the conventional birds sold in the grocery store.)
He whisks in a little flour to the fat (Sifton uses the brand Wondra, an instant flour that won鈥檛 leave lumps) and then a liquid or two, such as stock or cream, and some salt and pepper.
鈥淎nd that鈥檚 a pretty good gravy every time. It tastes intensely of turkey and salt and fat and cream 鈥� and that鈥檚 Thanksgiving,鈥� he said.
When it comes to dessert, more is better
Thanksgiving is all about indulging 鈥� and that doesn鈥檛 stop at the mashed potatoes. Sifton recommends having a variety of pies for dessert 鈥� apple, pecan, pumpkin, etc.鈥� since guests like to sample a little of each.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not really about who has the best pie; it鈥檚 about which pie do you like best this year,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 think following through on the plenitude of the main meal during the dessert portion is absolutely important.鈥�
Keep calm and cook on
On Thanksgiving Day, your kitchen is your safe place, so keep the guests out.
鈥淒on鈥檛 give out kitchen tasks if your kitchen is small or if you feel someone is going to come in there and metaphorically upset your apple cart. Do your work in the kitchen,鈥� he said.
And no matter what, maintain peace at the table. After all, the people you’ve surrounded yourself with are family and friends.
鈥淩emember that you鈥檙e not going to change anyone鈥檚 mind, behavior, personality, political stance on Thanksgiving. It鈥檚 just not going to happen,鈥� Sifton said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a really marvelous day and I think it鈥檚 a good time to put aside our differences and just eat a lot of turkey and then fall asleep on the couch.鈥�
