Thanksgiving Day, an annual national holiday in the United States celebrates the harvest and other blessings of the past year. Americans generally believe that their Thanksgiving is modeled on a 1621 harvest feast shared by the English colonists (Pilgrims) of Plymouth and the Wampanoag people. Things have changed since the time of the Pilgrims but the art of giving thanks has not.
Being grateful and appreciative each day is a behavior, when mastered, can bring a lifetime of happiness. We believe a key to this success is making sure you are engaged in worthwhile work each day. Reflecting on this concept and determining what worthwhile work might be to you is a great launching point for a meaningful life.
Aside from worthwhile work interests, our family is engaged regularly in cooking and entertaining. To some, cooking can be an arduous task required to provide nourishment to one’s body. For our family, cooking and entertaining provides a platform for friends and family to create lasting memories over a carefully prepared meal.
I have shared my individual cooking journeys via text with close family and friends since I can remember. The texts became a means to share the process of preparing the meal as well as what they should expect for dinner. One particular friend suggested I engage in blogging, which is what prompted the start of this blog post in 2020.
For years, we have smoked Turkeys for Trebbi Custom Construction and Architecture’s employees in appreciation of their hard work and dedication to the team. I am the punctilious person throughout the entire process to assure we meet the intended outcome. I am also a bit more of an “artist” when it comes to cooking (i.e. creating my own recipes) while Ron is the consummate food scientist and has mastered the art of smoking. Each year, Ron records pages of data to further perfect his process, somewhat how Ron approaches the business.
My journey begins on the Monday before Thanksgiving with two key locations: 1) Delaware Chicken Farm & Seafood Market and 2) Restaurant Depot.
Ordering fresh whole turkeys from Delaware Chicken is key to a great meal. Plus, the large order allows me to pick them up curbside without leaving my car. Over the years, with the help of Delaware Chicken's wonderful staff, I have loaded up to 250 #'s of turkey into large coolers into the truck. If you have never purchased a fresh turkey for Thanksgiving, there is a huge difference in texture and flavor. The intense flavor also imparts into well-prepared stocks that are used for stuffing, gravy and other creations, providing an even deeper flavor profile. The turkeys are always fresh from Delaware Chicken, typically from Pennsylvania. Sensenig Turkey Farm is a good example of one of their great sources for fresh turkeys.
Second stop, Restaurant Depot. Someone once asked me, “What is the one thing you could not live without?” My immediate response: my Restaurant Depot Card. This card provides access to shop where professional chefs and restaurateurs acquire higher quality products, typically sold in bulk quantities (ie: a wheel of cheese, a whole tenderloin, etc.). Restaurant Depot not only makes large meals possible, but enriches the dining experience with lots of people in attendance.
By the time I arrive home, numerous coolers have been iced down to keep all the ingredients at the proper temperature. Owning a commercial ice machine is key to this process. After the turkeys are settled into the coolers, the breakdown process begins. The neck and organs are removed from the turkey. The necks go into a stock pot with a traditional mirepoix (onions, celery and carrots), with plenty of salt and pepper for a rich and gelatinous stock to be used for gravy and stuffing.
The gizzards go into a stock pot with mirepoix, salt and pepper for an intensely flavored stock, also to be used for gravy. The plentiful number of livers are immersed in heavy cream, soaked overnight to be used for a delicious Turkey Mousse, an annual tradition. For the breast-only requests, turkeys are broken down so the breast can be easily smoked.
Wings and legs, are roasted in the oven over a mirepoix for pan drippings to be used for gravy production. The excess roasted vegetables can be used to make "Turkey Pot Pie".
The backs go into a pot with mirepoix, salt and pepper for another rich stock. This stock is used for stuffing, gravy, and fresh cream of mushroom soup.
Three different stocks allow for great layers of flavor in preparation of various items.
Excess thighs are prepped to confit, a traditional French cooking method. Confit originally referred to anything preserved by slowly cooking it in any liquid; fruits, for example, would be cooked in sugar syrup. Nowadays, however, confit tends to refer to food that's been slow-cooked in fat and not necessarily aged or stored. The process produces a super moist and delicious product.
All turkeys to be smoked end up back in the cooler to be brined overnight in a properly maintained and sanitary environment. Brining is the process of submerging a cut of meat in a brine solution, which is simply salt dissolved in water (we also add sugar). The meat absorbs extra liquid and salt, resulting in a juicier and more flavorful final dish. This technique is particularly great for lean cuts of meat that tend to dry out during cooking.
Then on to prep for stuffing production and cream of mushroom soup (Yes, it’s still Monday!) A 10# case of domestic mushrooms serves the purpose and are sliced and ready to go for the next day.
Necks are removed from the stock and the meat is stripped off to add to the stuffing. This is a family tradition on my side of the family passed down from my grandmother on my dad’s side. The meat is sweet and imparts great flavor to the stuffing.
Then crouton prep for the stuffing. I buy fresh Hoagie rolls made by a local baker and cube them before drying them in the oven. Drying is required so the bread will absorb the rich flavor of the stocks added to the stuffing. Layering of intense flavors is critical for a delicious stuffing.
Roasted garlic is prepped, which will be used for the roasted garlic smashed potatoes. Think of whole roasted garlic in mashed potatoes like biting into a warm cookie with soft chocolate chips. It is also great for as garnish, and can also be used as a spread when the garlic is extracted from the bulbs. It can easily be stored in the fridge soaked in olive oil.
After the garlic bulbs are slow roasted in the oven, the soft garlic cloves are extracted to be used in the mashed potatoes. I typically use Russet potatoes with skins on mixed with a healthy portion of butter and sour cream then finished with salt and pepper. The roasted garlic is a nice touch.
After a 12-hour day cooking and prepping, I can continue my cooking marathon on Tuesday!
The key to stuffing is using the freshest ingredient possible. I use the recipe below as a guideline for the most part. I also use the 3 different stocks for a deep flavor profile and sauteed mushrooms. Typically, I mix the stuffing in a five-gallon bucket due to the extensive quantity.
If I have vegetables left from pan roasting the wings and legs, I will make Turkey Pot Pie. Publix pie crusts work great. I mix the roasted vegetables from the wings and legs, with cooked turkey meat (legs mostly) and then add enough stock (cooked and thickened with flour) to moisten the mixture. The mixture is then tucked in between two layers of the pie crust and baked until finished. Basically, all the ingredients are cooked in advance then heated together. This has become a tradition to utilize some of the byproducts of turkey processing. If I have extra turkey, I will also make turkey salad for turkey salad sandwiches (turkey, celery, vidalia onion, Duke’s Mayo, Sour Cream and salt and pepper) which are quickly gobbled up.
Ahhhh, the gravy! Utilizing the caramelized pan drippings from the legs and wings together with the 3 stocks as a base, I then finished it with butter, heavy cream and salt and pepper. I typically add some of the roasted vegetables blended with stock to help thicken the gravy to avoid using flour as a thickening agent. Mushrooms are also added to a portion of the gravy. Some of the gravy is added to the remaining sauteed mushrooms (olive oil and butter) which is later pureed with more heavy cream into cream of mushroom soup.
Finally, the Turkey Mousse. I follow the recipe below pretty closely. I did not have an apple so I added some raspberry preserves which ended up being delicious. The Mousse can actually be frozen and it typically appears for Christmas!
And now it’s Wednesday! Time to season the birds to prep for the smoker. Ron makes a delicious flavorful rub that he uses on many cuts of meat. We also use a standard poultry seasoning for those that want a more traditional flavored turkey.
Meet our new custom designed smoker by Lang BBQ Smokers, including a Trebbi Custom Construction Logo on one end!!
Originally, we used two smokers due to the quantity of birds to be smoked. There is information at the end of this blog regarding these smaller smokers that worked great for us for years. In 2022, we picked up our custom-designed smoker from Lang BBQ Smokers located in Nahunta, Georgia. The smoker was made with Ron' specifications and we can smoke over 16 turkeys at one time. It took nearly 6 months for the smoker to be ready for pick-up due to the high demand for Lang BBQ Smokers! It was well worth the wait!!!
Following the invention of the Lang BBQ Smokers® by Ben C. Lang II in 1988, Lang's smoker cookers have become the standard for the industry for over 25 years. As a family owned and operated business, personal care and pride of ownership has made the Lang family icons in the barbeque industry. Ben Lang's unique design featuring reverse-flow, an off-set fire box, and 1/4 inch welded steel provided consistent cooking results, attracts thousands of customers world-wide. Ben's design gives BBQ enthusiasts exactly what they wanted and needed, consistently perfect barbecue. Feel free to visit their web site for more information.
Finished product
Example!
Although we typically only have an organized breakfast on the weekends, Thanksgiving is a perfect time to create your own omelette. In this case, it was a stuffing omelette topped with gravy. The eggs were a nice enhancement to the flavors of both the stuffing and gravy.
If you don’t know what to do with the turkey carcass remaining after it’s stripped of its meat, save it for the next day to make turkey carcass soup. It is simple, stick the entire carcass (leftover wings if you have them are great) into a large pot with onions, celery, carrots, parsley, and salt and pepper and let it cook on the stove. It produces a very rich stock you can use stand-alone or freeze it for other sauces and soups in the future. If you need a recipe, feel free to select something you like on the internet.
If you need full guidance through the Turkey process, Ron and I both love J. Kenji López-Alt, author of the Food Lab, where Kenji unravels the mysteries of home cooking through science. The Food Lab is our go-to source as well as Serious Eats, where Kenji parks a lot of his knowledge. If I ever have some unusual ingredients on hand and need some ideas, I go straight to Serious Eats.
Much of the excess production is carefully packaged and placed in the freezer to prolong the enjoyment of the delicious items prepared on this special day. Although Thanksgiving is an annual event, you will always find something good cooking in the Trebbi Home.
SMOKERS FOR SMALLER QUANTITIES
We started initially with a traditional smoker with the firebox outside. The smoker had great sentimental value as close friends gave it to us after they moved to Texas over 20 years ago. We had shared many enjoyable dinners with them, typically their perfected brisket. The smoker was a key tool for our household. The smoke and heat from the fire on the left in the smoking box moved through the smoking area in the center and out the exhaust on the right side of the smoker, infusing smoke into the meat during the cooking process. Ron liked to use oak to fuel the smoker together with charcoal. In the spirit of giving, we gave the smoker to a friend after we purchased the Lang BBQ Smoker.
The second smoker we used over the course of time was a La Caja China. The La Caja China is an outdoor roasting oven that uses coal placed above the meat for cooking. The La Caja China works by circulating hot air around the meat, no fire ever touches it. It can roast a 50-pound pig in a little over three and a half hours.
In closing, let us remember that,
As much has been given us, much will be expected from us, and that true homage comes from the heart as well as from the lips, and shows itself in deeds.
~Theodore Roosevelt
Happy Smoking from the Trebbi Family!
Kathy and Ron - we are truly in awe . . . WOW - simply amazing and our mouthes are watering 😋