Yesterday we had roast turkey. Tanya was nervous as it was her first time to cook one. I did the honours of carving it. It was a genuine organic farm raised free range turkey. "Eight years old", lean, narrow and tough as shoe leather. Should have cooked it in a slow oven. Next time. I even made gravy. Very good gravy, I might add. Which only I used.
Today was turkey soup day. I threw the turkey bones in a stock pot, covered them with water, simmered them for three hours, picked the meat off the bones, threw the meat and the leftover gravy into the stock, added the usual salt, pepper, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, poultry seasoning (I have no idea what I am doing), threw in left over vegetables and coloured pasta somethings. Decided it was too watery. Threw in another bag of pasta somethings. I now have pasta turkey stew; enough to feed the entire village according to Tanya.
The reason the left over gravy went in was that it is an unknown dish in this country. Mashed potatoes with lots of butter and milk, yes, but gravy from any source is unheard of. Tanya says it is too fatty. This from a woman who on a good week can use a litre of cooking oil and who buys boneless, skinless chicken breasts, dips them in egg and flour and fries them in a quarter inch of sunflower oil. I don't argue.
A favourite traditional Ukrainian/Russian dish, which I love and which everyone yesterday ate more of than turkey was liver kutletta. This is the most delicious way to eat liver ever but preparation is NOT for the weak of stomach.
1 kg fresh (beef) liver
4 large onions
4 eggs,
1/3 cup of flour (2 heaping serving spoons)
2 dollops of sour cream or mayonnaise
Run the liver and onions through a meat grinder (a food processor would likely work), add the eggs, flour and sour cream. Mix thoroughly, season to taste with salt and pepper. (Note: you have NEVER seen anything as gross as this mixture unless you have lanced a large abscess on a cow).
Ladle about a quarter or half a cup at a time into a frying pan, the hotter the better, with enough oil so it won't stick. It should make a thin "pancake". Fry it fast and flip it so it is evenly cooked on both sides.
It is delicious, trust me on that. Hot or even cold.
BF I'm surprised. You have access to every pro chief in the world via internet. Even an idiot cook like myself can come out like Rammsey, Emeril, or Child.
ReplyDeleteLove onions but they hate me.
True, D, but it isn't access to the chefs that I need, it is access to their ingredients. I make do with what I have until I get to a big enough store that carries a wider range of ingredients than the local stores. Reading their recipes would just be frustrating. Besides, turkey soup is hard to ruin. No matter what I do and I have made it several times, it tastes good.
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