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Author Topic: To Die For Turkey Soup  (Read 1334 times)

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Offline jvk

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Re: To Die For Turkey Soup
« Reply #15 on: November 25, 2018, 03:44:01 PM »
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    At what point do you strain the broth?
    That would remove the meat, cartilage, small bones, everything that isn't liquid.
    The bones release their nutrients very slowly, so the vinegar takes at least 2 hours, maybe 3 or 4 to extract the gelatin and calcium and stuff.
    I've been afraid of letting too much water evaporate, so I ADD some after a couple of hours.
    But if I add too much the soup gets weaker.
    This is always a learning process. The work of a chef is never done!
    I strain right before canning.  Then I let the bones cool and pick off the meat, and can that.  Or, of course, just make soup. 
    How funny you add water!  I never do, because I'm afraid it will taste too watered down.  I LOVE rich, flavorful soups. 
    If you have access to it...not everyone does...you can salt and then smoke squares of pork skin from a freshly butchered pig/hog.  Throw in a couple of THOSE tasty chunks and you get the best bean soup ever!  Does wonders for adding flavor to anything, from soup to potatoes to green beans. 


    Offline LaramieHirsch

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    Re: To Die For Turkey Soup
    « Reply #16 on: November 26, 2018, 10:18:45 PM »
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  • Ok.  Made some of this tonight.  Smells great, tastes fine.  Salt and pepper helped a bit.  I added 5 carrots and 3 large potatoes.  The turkey was just a 5 lb. turkey breast.  Looks good.  

    Add parsley for the "health" look.  
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    Offline Neil Obstat

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    Re: To Die For Turkey Soup
    « Reply #17 on: November 27, 2018, 01:35:19 AM »
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  • Ok.  Made some of this tonight.  Smells great, tastes fine.  Salt and pepper helped a bit.  I added 5 carrots and 3 large potatoes.  The turkey was just a 5 lb. turkey breast.  Looks good.  

    Add parsley for the "health" look.  
    .
    I haven't been thinking much about appearance, but if you're going to present a dish to friends or neighbors, you have to make it presentable. 
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    I overcooked a turkey recently by leaving it in the oven an extra 2 hours, with heat reduced to 200, but I got distracted with arriving guests and forgot to check that the liquid in the pan under the bird wasn't drying up. So it got dangerously low. Fortunately I kept it covered with foil, tucked under the brim of the roasting pan to keep the humidity in around the turkey. When I finally remembered to look at the liquid level, it was about 1/4 inch deep! You should maintain about an inch of water under the turkey to prevent the breast meat from drying out. And the instructions say to remove your foil covering after the first hour, but I've had too much trouble with dry breast meat syndrome doing that, so now I just leave the foil on the whole time, because that gives you moist white meat.
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    When you have this condition of going past prime and into the BROWN phase (which precedes the "getting burned" phase) the meat on the outside of the bird will have a campfire-roasted appearance and taste, which isn't necessarily bad, tastewise (a little like barbeque) but the APPEARANCE can be a problem. Especially for the soup you make with all the drippings and bones. I'm not for sure certain, but I suspect people are not going to think that brown chunks in their soup will be appealing, visually.
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    If anyone has an idea how to extract the marrow from the bones, please post! 
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    Today I tried breaking some bones in half and splitting them lengthwise, but the bones would shatter, leaving small, sharp shards, which would become quite DANGEROUS if they got into the soup. I thought of using a bone saw, but the sawdust seemed like a problem. I used heavy pruning shears and that works okay, to cut bones into 2" long pieces. But I'm beginning to think that small BOLT CUTTERS would be even better. Any thoughts? 
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    Offline Neil Obstat

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    Re: To Die For Turkey Soup
    « Reply #18 on: November 27, 2018, 01:55:34 AM »
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    How funny you add water!  I never do, because I'm afraid it will taste too watered down.  I LOVE rich, flavorful soups.

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    The water added is to prevent the meat from drying out. White breast meat really gets tough and unappealing when the moisture content gets low.
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    The drippings reduce to a flavorful golden brown thick gel, but in just a few more minutes it can become a smoking black mess.
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    To prevent the latter, I add water. Problem solved. 
    (Can reduce heat. Or take the turkey out of the oven, but then it starts to cool off and you might not be ready to serve the meal yet.)
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    During the simmering of the bones, the vinegar takes HOURS to extract all the flavor from the bones, so again, there is the danger of letting the liquid level get too low from evaporation (even when covered). I suppose I could use a pressure cooker to speed it up, but that tends to break down nutrients too, making the soup less healthy, therefore counterproductive. It's not just flavor that I'm after! 
    .
    I've known several people who have marveled at how their grandmother was able to get a Thanksgiving meal all on the table at the same time, with all the different dishes at the correct temperature. But I have yet to meet anyone who sat down with their grandmother to find out and record how to deal with all the obstacles that can come up to get in the way of a successful presentation. 
    .
    I know one man whose mother recently passed away. I recall suggesting to him to sit down with her to write down some of her recipes, and he explained how that would be impossible. He said that over the years, he tried to observe how she cooked in the kitchen, but whenever he asked her how much of an ingredient to add, her answer would be "USE YOUR JUDGMENT!" 
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    Being able to perform amazing feats in the kitchen is one thing, being able to describe how to do it is quite another. 
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    Offline jvk

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    Re: To Die For Turkey Soup
    « Reply #19 on: November 27, 2018, 07:00:02 AM »
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  • I didn't realize you were talking about adding water when cooking the turkey in the oven.  Sorry!  I thought you were referring to cooking broth. 

    As far as the bone marrow goes, I don't know how to extract it out of chicken bones.  When we butcher a beef or goat, my husband uses his meat saw to cut the bones in half lengthwise for me.  If you strain it with a fine cheesecloth or thin towel, that removes any bone dust, sharp shards, and other unsightly meat globs/blood clots. 

    Good idea on the vinegar...never had thought of that. 

    And as far as how long I boil the meat to extract flavor: usually 4-5 hours.  And then I'll strain it, and sometimes will reduce it further.  I think it takes longer to get flavorful stock from bones that have already been cooked with the meat on it.  I think it's the meat juices that give the broth a more rich flavor.  That could just be me, though.