Creating new traditions with Thanksgiving turkey

Houston has been described as “the new Creole city” — a busy port town where many cultures merge to form a thrilling new humanity.

So what does that have to do with Thanksgiving? Quite a lot. Anywhere you have great diversity, you’re going to have a mash-up of ideas and traditions that eventually become the norm.

Which brings us to our Thanksgiving Day turkey. This year the Chronicle tapped Jim Mills, chef/partner of Cherry Pie Hospitality (State Fare Kitchen & Bar and Star Fish restaurants), to share his recipe for what he calls “three-step” turkey. It is essentially a bird that has been dry-cured with salt and sugar then rubbed with an herbaceous butter slather. The turkey is cooked hot at first then slowed down to finish. It is a fragrant, moist bird with a mottled skin and classic, herbal flavor.

But it also sings a Creole city hymn. Mills, known to many for his nearly 20 years at The Houstonian, credits a friend and former co-worker at the hotel, Weli Jabur, for the inspiration behind the distinctive holiday turkey.

Mills recalls a conversation with Jabur about how his mother roasted meats back in the day. Of Iraqi descent, Jabur explained how his mom would make a paste of onions, garlic and herbs that was spread on lamb and cooked at a high temperature so that the paste formed a nubby crust. Then she would cover the meat in foil, reduce the heat and roast the meat slowly to doneness.

“I thought that would be great for turkey,” Mills said.

After some experimentation, Mills has perfected the recipe that he said yields a tender, juicy bird fragrant with aromatics. “It’s exceptionally moist. Most turkey breasts are dry, but this method keeps it super moist.”

“Some people don’t like to experiment on Thanksgiving because it’s completely about nostalgia,” said Mills, who pairs his hybrid turkey with a classic gravy recipe. “But some people do experiment, especially young people who don’t have traditions and are looking for new directions.”

That “new directions” group might be larger this year after Hurricane Harvey destroyed so many homes and ruined beloved family recipes with its floodwaters. Recipe ideas — from classic preparations to new flavor paths — are surely welcome as the city gets back on its feet.

“Houston is about change and all the many cultures that come together,” Mills said. “There’s plenty of room for us to learn from each other, particularly when it comes to food.”