Sunday, November 30, 2008

Don't forget to take out the junk first...

Hi there, blog. I'm sorry about the ongoing neglect. Anyway...

I cooked a whole turkey for the first time this Thanksgiving. When I mentioned my plans to a coworker on Wednesday, he told me to "just remember to take out the junk first." And I did remember, kind of.

While prepping the bird I found a meaty
neck tucked into the cavity, and I put it in a container for future soup purposes. But the cavity was otherwise empty, unlike those of chicken I'm used to cooking, which would contain a variety of small visceral organs. Doubting that there were none included with this turkey, I asked Kevin to shine a flashlight up the bird's butt so I could have a better look, but still we found nothing.

So, feeling safe, I went ahead with roasting, and it came out really well. Then I started to carve. I cut right into a neat little pocket of neck skin that they'd tucked the organs into, wrapped in paper. Dammit. Was it safe to eat? Kevin's mom hurried over to say that the meat should be fine, but we just shouldn't eat the organs. I wondered who would have turned down a leg for, say, a nice chewy heart... but I didn't ask. So we ate it anyway, and it tasted fine, and no one got sick. I still don't fully understand why it's dangerous to leave the junk in, but it would be nice if they didn't hide it so well. At least now I know where to look.