The traditional Thanksgiving meal was not at all like the one today. In fact, Thanksgiving was not only held once a year, but several times. On these times, usually a big feast was not held, but Pilgrims prayed and fasted. However, after a harvest, there was a feast held. Food at this feast included (not usually all at once):
lobster, rabbit, chicken, squashes, beans, chestnuts, hickory nuts, onions, leeks, dried fruits, maple syrup and honey, radishes, cabbage, carrots, eggs, goat cheese, bass, cod, and of course wild turkeys.
Contrary to popular belief, there were no potatoes, as they had not yet been cultivated in New England, and butter and other oils were very scarce. Corn was served in meal form, not on a cob. If there was even any pumpkin pie, it would not have had a crust. =(
Let's Talk Turkey
Sure, today it's easy when we want to cook a turkey, but can you imagine trying to roast a turkey without an oven? Roasting was the preferred method of cooking meats, however, this required someone to stand turning a spit for an extremely long time. Also, remember you'd have to locate the birdshot in the turkey before serving it. Hunters usually brought back a lot more than one bird, so you can imagine how many bullets were overlooked. (yikes)
Turkey Today
Obviously, turkey today is a lot different than the turkey of the first Thanksgivings. Today, turkeys are sold whole or in separate parts. Most of them even have a built in plastic thermometer that pops up when the turkey is done. There are even self-basting turkeys! These have been injected with butter or vegetable oil. Other ways to prepare turkey include smoked or canned boned turkey.
With all of these choices making the holiday stressful enough, you also have to deal with actually cooking the turkey. How long do I cook a turkey for? Does the weight matter? What if it's stuffed? How bout oven baked or deep fried? Luckily for you, fellow poor burnt out holiday goer, you have come to the right place. Below, you will find our famous...
Turkey Calculator!!
Copyright 2002 Katie Malone and Heather Smith
