Las Vegas Review-Journal (Sunday)
Sumptuous sides for your meal
New York Times News Service
Editor’s note: In the run-up to Thanksgiving, the Sun is publishing a series of stories to help hosts prepare for the big day, including meal planning, preparing the turkey, side dishes, pies, etc.
Stuffing, gravy, cranberry sauce or Brussels sprouts: It’s not Thanksgiving without a supporting cast of dishes. Let us help you perfect them, so every part of the meal shines.
Stuffing and dressing
For lovers of stuffing and dressing, Thanksgiving may be the apex of the year, though those dishes are welcome on the table anytime. Although the two terms may be used interchangeably, as we do here, stuffing is generally understood to be cooked inside the cavity of the turkey, while dressing is baked alone in a casserole or other shallow dish. As a result, stuffing is tender and moist, suffused with the juices and any rendered fat from the bird. Dressing has a crisper top from being exposed more directly to the heat of the oven.
Stuffing
If you love the brawny flavor of poultry juices mixed with your side dish, or if you’re simply a traditionalist, stuffing the turkey is the way to go.
Stuff the turkey just before it goes into the oven. We know you want to do as much ahead as possible, particularly on Thanksgiving, but stuffing ahead of time encourages the growth of bacteria. Don’t do it. This said, you can make the stuffing up to four days ahead and keep it in the refrigerator, then put it inside the bird just before roasting.
If your stuffing recipe calls for shellfish or turkey giblets, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends that these be fully cooked and kept hot before they are put inside the bird. So stir them into the mix immediately before stuffing the turkey.
Stuffing expands as it cooks, so fill the cavity loosely.
If you’re going to stuff your bird, you should truss it, or at least tie the legs together to keep the stuffing from falling out.
Bear in mind that stuffed turkeys take longer to cook than unstuffed ones.
Both the turkey and the stuffing need to be cooked to 165 degrees before they are safe to eat. Usually the bird gets there before the stuffing does. To avoid overcooking the turkey, pull it from the oven once the flesh hits the desired temperature. Then spoon the stuffing out of the cavity and into a baking dish and return to the oven (or stick it in the microwave). Continue cooking until the stuffing reaches 165 degrees.
Bread stuffing: Any bread, from soft white sandwich loaves to chewy bagels to crusty sourdough rye breads, can be turned into a stuffing or dressing. No matter what kind of bread you use, it will absorb more of the seasonings if it is stale and dry. You can either buy the bread several days to a week in advance and let it dry out at room temperature, or cube it and dry it out in a low oven (250 degrees) until thoroughly arid.
Or consider making your own bread for stuffing. Cornbread comes together especially quickly, and you can control the amount of sugar in the recipe, depending upon whether you like it sweet or savory.
Easy breads like biscuits, soda bread, no-knead bread and white sandwich bread all make great stuffing, too. Bake them several days ahead so they have a chance to get stale. Or bake them months ahead and freeze, then thaw them and let them dry out before making stuffing.
Grain stuffing: Bread stuffing is the classic choice at Thanksgiving, but you could use rice or other grains such as quinoa, farro or barley. Not only are grain stuffings elegant and refined, most also are gluten-free.
Grain stuffings don’t need to adhere the way bread stuffings do, so you don’t need to bind them with egg. Basically, your aim is to make a tasty rice pilaf or grain salad, then cook it again inside your bird, which will give it an even more complex flavor rich with drippings.
You can use classic bread stuffing aromatics (sage, celery, onion), or improvise another flavor combination. Chances are that as long as it tastes good on its own, it will taste even better after taking a turn inside the bird.
Wild rice goes particularly well with the earthy autumnal flavors of a Thanksgiving meal. Or try sticky rice for something unexpectedly terrific.
Dressing
Dressing is baked outside the turkey, which means it can achieve an appealingly crisp, browned top — a nice textural contrast to the softer layer underneath. And, with your dressing out of the way, you can add aromatics such as lemons, garlic and bunches of herbs to the turkey’s cavity for additional flavor. (Another bonus: An unstuffed bird will roast more quickly than a stuffed one.)
You can turn any stuffing recipe into a dressing by simply baking it outside the bird. Spread the mixture in a shallow pan and bake until the mixture reaches 165 degrees. Dressing is pretty forgiving, so feel free to bake it at whatever temperature you need for other dishes you’re cooking.
Vegetarians take note: Because it doesn’t touch the bird, dressing can be utterly meat-free. A rice stuffing with walnut and pears is one good option.
On the opposite side of the spectrum, you can add turkey stock or chicken stock, crisped poultry skin, schmaltz and/ or diced cooked gizzards, liver and shredded turkey neck to the dressing to give it a meatier flavor.
If you’ve got enough extra turkey skin, drape it over the top of the dressing before baking. The skin will turn into poultry cracklings and render its luscious fat all over the dressing. Outstanding. If the skin isn’t crisp when the stuffing is done, run it under the broiler for a few minutes to finish. (You can often special-order turkey skin from your butcher — chicken skin will work, too — or trim off the extra skin at the turkey’s neck when you are getting it ready for the oven.)
If you like a deeply golden top, dot the top of the dressing with butter before baking. And if the dressing cooks through before the top is brown, run it under the broiler for a minute.
Gravy
Good gravy is more than just a sauce for the turkey. It brings all the elements of the Thanksgiving plate together, elevating mashed potatoes, stuffing and turkey. You can use the classic method for making gravy, whisking it together at the last minute using the turkey pan drippings, or you can make the gravy ahead, then spike it later with the flavorful drippings.
Before you start
It’s helpful to have a fat separator, which looks like a measuring cup with a spout. It lets you pour off the gravy and leave behind excess fat.
You can use a wooden spoon to make gravy, but a whisk makes things smoother.
For silky gravy, or for added insurance against lumps, strain your gravy before serving. Have a sieve on hand.
Drippings from brined and kosher turkeys may be too salty to use in gravy, particularly classic pan gravy. Drippings from drybrined turkeys work in any gravy.
The stock
Whether you’re making classic last-minute gravy or one ahead of time, remember this: Great gravy can come only from great stock. It’s absolutely worth the time it takes to make your own turkey or chicken stock from scratch, but there are tricks to fortifying store-bought stock.
Homemade: To make your own stock, you need poultry bones, either cooked or raw or a combination. Some of the bones should have meat on them, but most can be picked clean. Two or 3 pounds of bones is plenty, but even 1 pound will give you enough stock to make gravy. If you’ve got turkey giblets from your bird (heart, gizzard, neck, anything but the liver), throw them into the pot with the bones and a big pinch of salt.
Add some vegetables and aromatics: a carrot, a leafy celery stalk, an onion and/or leek, a few cloves of peeled garlic, a bay leaf and/or some parsley stems, and a teaspoon of peppercorns.
Pour in enough water to cover all the solids by at least 2 inches. Then bring it up to a very gentle simmer and let it bubble for a couple of hours. Strain everything, pressing down on the solids, and chill for up to three days, or freeze for up to six months.
Store-bought: If making your own is out of the question, you can come pretty close with a good-quality poultry stock bought either from a butcher shop or a specialty shop (preferably one made in-house). You’ll often find pre-made stocks in the freezer case.
If the supermarket is your only option, the rule for canned or boxed stock, or stock sold in Tetra Paks, is to taste before using. If it’s terrible, you’re better off with a bouillon cube and water, which is a low bar but marginally better than water. As a last-minute fix for weak stock, simmer it with the turkey giblets for an hour or two. That will fortify it.
The roux
A roux, which thickens a gravy, is made with equal parts fat and flour. If you’re making classic pan gravy, you’ll use the fat in the roasting pan. If you’re making gravy ahead of time, use butter, melting it in a medium pan over medium heat.
Gently whisk the fat and flour together for at least five minutes, long enough for the raw taste of the flour to disappear. Keep cooking, whisking all the while, until the roux has reached your desired color.
The color of the roux determines what its flavor will be, and how effective it will be as a thickening agent.
A white or light roux, in which the flour is cooked briefly, will give you a mild mixture that lets the flavor of the poultry dominate. It’s also the most effective thickener. A dark, mahogany-colored roux adds an intense, caramelized, nutty flavor to the gravy, but sometimes at the expense of turkey flavor. Or strike a balance and cook the roux until medium-brown, which will give you a nuttiness that still allows the poultry character to shine.
Cranberry sauce
Classic cranberry sauce
A cranberry sauce, sweetened with sugar and seasoned with orange juice, is the most traditional approach. Our recipe for basic cranberry sauce (recipe follows) is easy to follow and practically foolproof, but there are a few things worth keeping in mind, no matter what tried-andtrue recipe you follow.
If you’re using frozen cranberries, there is no need to defrost before cooking.
Keep an eye on the sauce as it cooks. You’ll want to start thinking about pulling it off the stove as soon as the first few cranberries start to burst. For the best texture, you want some of them to break open, but others to remain whole.
The sauce can be made up to a week in advance; keep refrigerated, and do not add the nuts until Thanksgiving Day, a few hours before serving.
If your sauce doesn’t set after you’ve chilled it, put it back on the stove and simmer it for another 5 minutes or so, then let it cool and chill. That should do the trick.
Cranberry jelly
A shimmering cranberry jelly need not come from a can. This homemade version is bracing, syrupy and pleasingly wobbly, and a touch of Lillet makes it sophisticated.
To make it, combine 1 1/2 cups Lillet, 1/2 cup orange liqueur (such as Grand Marnier) and 2 cups sugar in a heavy saucepan. You could also add 2 tablespoons juniper berries for a dash of spice. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Add 2 (12-ounce) bags of fresh or frozen cranberries (about 8 cups) to the pot and return to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until all the cranberries burst and are very soft, at least 10 minutes.
Strain the sauce into a bowl through a sieve, pushing on the solids with a rubber spatula to extract all the liquid. Discard the solids. Stir the liquid and transfer to a pretty serving bowl or a mold. (A funnel or liquid measuring cup with a spout can be useful for transferring without splashing the sides.)
Cover and refrigerate. It will firm up within a few hours, or can be made several days ahead. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.
If you chilled the jelly in a mold, you’ll need to turn it out. To do so, place the mold in a large bowl. Carefully pour hot water into the bowl so it comes up the sides of the mold, melting the jelly just enough to release it. After 3 minutes, try unmolding the jelly onto a serving dish. If it doesn’t come out, return it to the bowl and try again 2 minutes later. Repeat until the jelly is released. If necessary, return it to the refrigerator to firm up before serving.
Make it nonalcoholic, or play with the flavor: Use 2 cups of orange juice, red wine, port or Madeira instead of the Lillet and the orange liqueur.
Make sure the water you use to unmold your jelly is quite hot, not just warm. You want to melt the outer jelly layer enough so that the whole mold can slip right out.
Brussels sprouts, 3 ways Steamed
To start, slice Brussels sprouts in half lengthwise. Fill a large pot (the wider, the better: A larger surface area will help the sprouts steam more evenly) with 2 inches of water, and place a metal steamer basket on top. Bring the water to a simmer, add the Brussels sprouts to the basket, season with salt and pepper and cover. Steam until the sprouts are bright green and just cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the lid from the pot and let them cool slightly before removing.
To serve: Nothing beats a generous pat of butter, lots of salt and plenty of cracked pepper. Should the spirit move you, anything stirred into the butter beforehand is a welcome addition (think finely grated Parmesan, chopped herbs, chili flakes or ground spices).
Sautéed
To properly sauté Brussels sprouts, you’ll need a fair amount of fat. Use any flavorful fat you like, whether sausage, chorizo, olive oil or schmaltz.
If using a meat, first brown it in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once it’s cooked, remove it with a slotted spoon, leaving the drippings.
Add halved Brussels sprouts to the fat, keeping as many as possible cut side down. Cook until they have a nice sear on one side, 5 to 8 minutes. Give them a stir and cook until they’re nicely browned and just tender on the inside, another 5 to 8 minutes. Just before removing from the heat, add in a handful of aromatics, such as chopped garlic, sliced onion or dried chilies, tossing to coat and cooking a minute or two.
To serve: Finish these with a splash of lemon or vinegar, or a handful of pickled onions.
Roasted
Halve Brussels sprouts (or quarter them if they are especially large), keeping any leaves that fall away, and toss with plenty of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper, and scatter them onto a rimmed baking sheet, making sure not to overcrowd. Brussels sprouts contain a good bit of water, and if they’re too crowded, they’ll steam instead of brown. Roast at 450 degrees, tossing every 10 minutes or so, until the outer leaves have begun to almost char, and the innermost part of the sprout is just tender, 25 to 30 minutes.
While they caramelize well on their own, the sprouts greatly benefit from a tablespoon or two of maple syrup, honey or light brown sugar.
To serve: Toasted sprouts are excellent with an aggressively flavored relish or vinaigrette. Their dark, caramelized bits play best with lemon or lime.