Two questions I need to sort out

[conuly]

One, do I have a big enough oven for a (small) heritage turkey and two, do I want to go this route if I do?

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Comments

[mtbc]

Maybe splitting it as with spatchcocking could be a useful fallback if not? Depending on the dimensions…

I seem to like turkey more than many so the effort would get my vote.

[moxie_man]

Two more things to consider: Heritage turkeys are a lot more expensive and have less breast meat.

[conuly]

The latter is not much a concern, we're not big white meat fans here.

The former IS... but if we invite lots of people and insist they cover all the sides, that should even out. But then again, I like cooking the sides.

[hudebnik]

We ordered a heritage turkey from a farm at the NYC Greenmarket for Thanksgiving about 15 years ago, and were astounded by how flavorful it was. The next year we ordered a turkey from a different farm at the Greenmarket, and it was pretty good but nothing special. The latter has happened more often than the former, perhaps because we were getting standard breeds that happened to be humanely raised rather than actual "heritage" breeds. The word "heritage" apparently really makes a difference (which makes me wonder how legally-protected it is, and why not everybody uses it).

[conuly]

Google suggests that you have the best luck if the seller upfront tells you the specific breed of the bird.

[sallymn]

Oh yes, your Thanksgiving is coming up isn't it? I am always fascinated by the food...

[conuly]

LOL, it's just a big late-fall/early-winter meal. Actually, like probably most people I mostly recycle that same menu for Christmas, and whatever I don't make again at Christmas I make again at New Years anyway.

And our Thanksgiving isn't for two months - Canadian Thanksgiving is the one that's coming up soon. It's just that every year I float the idea of getting a heritage bird, and then every year I forget that you can't just get them free at the store the week of if you only spend $50 on other purchases.

But I'm happy to share recipes.

[sallymn]

Being where I am, we tend to scale down the food - especially the hot and heavy! rom this point through to February. Chicken, salad and icecream, that's our Chrissie dinner.

I think my fascination is fueled by reading so many old cookbooks and some of the US family recipes - that seem to be always trotted out at Thanksgiving, and involve weird and wonderful ingredients smothered in mayonnaise and aspic - just do hit my weird domestic history buttons :)

[gatheringrivers]

Actual heritage birds are DELICIOUS, from the skin all the way to the bone. :) I like the larger percentage of dark meat, but also the fact that the skin is NOT leather after cooking.

(Alton Brown's "good eats roast turkey" method works well for heritage birds too.)

Well ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

They're more flavorful, but can be chewier. We quite liked the one we bought, but the farmer had sent a bird to be cooked and given out as free samples to drum up interest, so we had a good idea what we'd be getting. Pasture-raised, organic, heritage turkey. Cost an arm and two legs, but my parents paid for it if we'd pick it up, so that worked great. It was delicious.