Turkey Poll

[TiggerTrigger]

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

We always carve it in the kitchen and put the meat on a nice platter. The platter along with all of the other food ends up on the table in the dining room so we can take turn passing things around and serving ourselves.

 

[Micca]

I recently visited Plymouth Rock, The Mayflower II and Patuxet during a trip to Boston. It was very interesting and the historical reenactments at the sites were very well done, including a role-play of Thanksgiving between the residents of Plymouth Plantation and the Village.

Sounds nice! I don't suppose they sold those ginormous turkey legs you see people eating at state fairs and theme parks?

 

[ronandannette]

Sounds nice! I don't suppose they sold those ginormous turkey legs you see people eating at state fairs and theme parks?

Not that I noticed but in the Patuxet Village they were roasting a duck on a spit over hot coals in a fire pit. And burning out a huge log to make a canoe and stone grinding corn and doing all sorts of other great stuff. At Plymouth Plantation most of the actors were ladies lamenting about having to leave the relative comfort of England for this "new world" nightmare. They were amazing, actually. Oh, and we got a kick-butt hard apple cider slushie in the interpretive centre snack bar. If you're ever in the neighbourhood, I highly recommend a visit.

 

[RedAngie]

It's Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada and many of us will be gathering at bountiful tables. Best wishes to all who are celebrating and grace and peace to those who find such occasions difficult.

Question: Do you serve your turkey as a showpiece and carve it at the table, or pre-carve it in the kitchen?

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Why does Grandpa, who probably is incapable of boiling water, get to carve the turkey at the table? He likely hacks it to bits.

Every Thanksgiving except once the turkey was pre-carved in the kitchen and placed on a platter for people to take what they wanted.

That one time the turkey was carved at the table was a complete disaster. The potatoes and other sides were placed in large bowls and passed around so-called family style.

Nobody knew whether they were supposed to wait until everyone was served or to start eating right away.

 

[soccerdad72]

Happy Thanksgiving.

Always carved in the kitchen. There's too much mess to deal with at the table.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I cook the turkey (and stuffing) the day before and carve it then. That way I'm not spending the whole next day in the kitchen. Reheating the turkey takes about the same length of time for all the other food prep (couple of hours). I found when I cooked everything on Thanksgiving, by the time I'd been in the kitchen all day (yes, big turkey takes a long time), smelling all the food cooking, I just wasn't up to actually eating a big meal. Now I can enjoy my meal with the rest of the family.

 

[Kitty 34]

Happy Thanksgiving.

Always carved in the kitchen. There's too much mess to deal with at the table.

Yes on the mess!! In my earlier post I said DH always carved the turkey in the kitchen and not at the table. If he did it at the table the "picture" would have looked like something out of a Halloween cut'em up thriller ad.

 

[ford family]

Not really. The closest we have is Bonfire Night where we celebrate an assassination attempt on the King and his advisors being killed by explosion bypass Guy Fawkes. Always takes place on November 5th at night - HUGE amounts of fireworks, fires, effigies, dancing, music… it's really cool.

Not quite right, we don't celebrate an assassination attempt on the King, we celebrate the foiling of an assassination attempt on the King.
Subtle difference but a difference nevertheless!

ford family

 

[Neapolitan Ice Cream]

Not quite right, we don't celebrate an assassination attempt on the King, we celebrate the foiling of an assassination attempt on the King.
Subtle difference but a difference nevertheless!

ford family

Aye, you are 100% right.

 

[Babs Johnson]

Almost always the turkey is carved in the kitchen before guests arrive. Sometimes the evening before.

Two or three times I’ve attended dinners where the host attempted to carve at the table. It wasn’t pretty.

 

[bcwife76]

Happy Thanksgiving! Just about to pull our bird from the oven my husband carves it in the kitchen and puts it all in a big platter for the center of the table. My house smells amazing right now

 

[NAB]

Happy Thanksgiving! Just about to pull our bird from the oven my husband carves it in the kitchen and puts it all in a big platter for the center of the table. My house smells amazing right now

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

[fly girl]

Happy Thanksgiving!

Agree @ronandannette stuffed roasted turkey smell is the half of the joy of Thanksgiving.

We carve in the kitchen, and it is funny as our taste buds are very gender driven in our extended family (odd, but true!) The ladies all prefer dark meat, the gentlemen prefer flavorless white.

 

[ronandannette]

Almost always the turkey is carved in the kitchen before guests arrive. Sometimes the evening before.

Two or three times I’ve attended dinners where the host attempted to carve at the table. It wasn’t pretty.

I hear that. DH tried with both drumsticks of ours today to get them off the bird whole, so his grandsons could do the "caveman" thing with them. Both fell apart in his hands and were totally mangled. Luckily there were no witnesses except me, and I'm not telling.

 

[dizneegirl]

Why does Grandpa, who probably is incapable of boiling water, get to carve the turkey at the table? He likely hacks it to bits.

My grandfather was more often the one who cooked, and he was extremely good at it. He was also the resident carver, and was extremely good at that, too. Never hacked a bird to bits. Depended on how many were at dinner as to whether it was carved at the table, or in the kitchen.

As far as our turkeys, we've done it both ways, and dh is pretty good at the carving either way.

 

[NYCgrrl]

Later in life we set up for a buffet and served two to three turkeys. It was simpler to have say, three-12 lbers than one of the gigonda birds that needed a specialized roaster. So a bird would be pre sliced while its replacement sat on the table looking “pretty” until its turn came.

 

[fab1976]

Our Thanksgiving was different this year. We had one of those meals that was prepared by a grocery/restaurant place so no real cooking. It was kinda odd to be honest. Great to not have to stress about cooking and getting it all ready, but just putting things on a plate from big trays and then microwaving it….odd. I am really bad at cooking turkeys, so it usually falls to my mom or one of my sisters so really, I have no say. But man I missed the smell of it!

 

[slo]

Happy Thanksgiving!

We pre-carve in the kitchen, but I do love the idea of carving it at the table. My DH would feel to confined carving it at the table - he likes a lot of room in the kitchen on our large counter that has nothing on it. He also prefers not having an audience while carving - normally his dad is the only one that is with him him during the process.

 

[White Cat]

Our Thanksgiving was different this year. We had one of those meals that was prepared by a grocery/restaurant place so no real cooking. It was kinda odd to be honest. Great to not have to stress about cooking and getting it all ready, but just putting things on a plate from big trays and then microwaving it….odd. I am really bad at cooking turkeys, so it usually falls to my mom or one of my sisters so really, I have no say. But man I missed the smell of it!

Farm Boy?

 

[MIGrandma]

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!

I voted other as we don’t cook a turkey at our house. For many years, when my parents were alive, they took the whole family to a restaurant for Thanksgiving dinner. Now, it’s just DH and me, we had been getting the Bob Evan’s Thanksgiving dinner and bringing it home. But the price keeps going up and last year the quality was not good. I’m not sure what we will do this year. Our daughter and her family have had us at their house for Thanksgiving a couple times too, that’s always nice. But it isn’t a yearly thing.