What Should Replace Roast Turkey as the National Thanksgiving Dish?
In 1981 Calvin Trillin wrote a hilarious piece for the New Yorker openly campaigning for spaghetti carbonara to replace roast turkey as our national Thanksgiving dish. In 1995 he wrote a follow-up to that story suggesting that a case for deep-fried turkey could be made. Neither campaign managed to gain much traction, but I must admit that as I dragged my 16-pound turkey home from my local supermarket last night (the bus never came, so I ended up walking half a mile with that damned bird), I started thinking about alternatives that would be easier on my back and balky hamstring.
New Yorkers might make a case for brisket or pot roast with potato latkes, which is what we serve the Levine family for Hanukkah. But that is a fairly radical suggestion—not as radical as Trillin's spaghetti carbonara, but fairly extreme all the same. Plus, brisket and latkes might give Thanksgiving a regional and religious skew the rest of the country might not find so appealing.
So I have a better idea, one I believe the whole country could get behind.
I want to propose a Thanksgiving repast inspired by one of Trillin's beloved Kansas City restaurants, Stroud's:
I think the following line-up is pure genius, as well as a marked improvement, over what we're all going to eat on Thursday. Think about it:
- Pan-fried chicken is way better than roast turkey. It's got more crunch, more flavor, and is in general more delicious
- Mashed potatoes are, in my estimation, better than sweet potatoes with marshmallows. They may not provide the same health benefits as sweet potatoes, but how healthy is it to eat sweet potatoes loaded with butter and marshmallows?
- Cinnamon buns replace the stuffing, which is to my way of thinking the best part of the Thanksgiving feast. This is the hardest change to justify and to swallow, but good, warm cinnamon buns without the yucky icing are one of life's greatest eating pleasures
- Pie stays in the picture, because, well, because it's pie. There can be no substitute
This meal is one that I would be most thankful for. I would like Serious Eaters everywhere to consider my idea and also propose their own alternative Thanksgiving feasts. I do think my idea could garner more support than Trillin's spaghetti carbonara.
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15 Comments:
If, as expected, our guests bow out due to the cold/flu that seems to be everywhere (I'm just recovering myself), I will be basing my meal on Durgin-Park, in Boston; that is, my dinner will revolve around New England, where Thanksgiving came from! Fishcakes, baked beans, cornbread, brussels sprouts, other veg, and the like. Followed by their quite austere dessert of unsweetened, very strong coffee gelatin, topped with sweet lightly whipped cream.
Ed, your menu just doesn't have enough--that is, any--vegetables (potatoes don't count in my book) for me. And that's going to be an awfully beige plate, unless you sprinkly the cinnamon buns with parsley.
Barbara Hanson at 9:24AM on 11/20/07
Instead of the cinnamon buns, I suggest fried okra or some kind of greens with onions, garlic and bacon. Don't drain that bacon fat, either.
dksbook at 9:25AM on 11/20/07
bacon.
french tart at 9:52AM on 11/20/07
I agree that pan-fried chicken does taste better than roast turkey, and I generally agree with the menu, but veggies are missing. A favorite at our house is Alton Brown's green beans with pecans, red wine vinegar and butter.
smorgen at 9:53AM on 11/20/07
Your proposal is good. My kids would like it (what kids wouldn't?) and I would like it too, particularly if it were a necessary tradition to have to travel to Stroud's to have it.
After much deliberation however I would like to propose an alternative. One has to consider not only the weight of the thing that you don't want to carry if you miss your bus and refuse to hail a cab but also what the most traditional American food is.
It came down to pizza or burgers in my mind. Pizza finally took precedence after I considered the many social gatherings of the innocuous kind where there is always pizza. There might be burgers sometimes at these things, particularly in warm weather - and there might be hot dogs if there are kids around (and the hot dogs are always burnt for some reason) but pizza is there too. Always. It's as if one is not expected to live without pizza so it is provided.
Menu:
Turkey pizza with gravy as "sauce" (round)
Stuffing pizza (square)
Brussel sprout pizzas (individual size round)
Mashed potato pizza (deep dish)
Cranberry pizza (sicilian)
Pumpkin Pizza (thin crust)
Apple Pizza (hand-tossed) (better throw in some rosemary)
Of course the table would need to have extra garlic, crushed red pepper, oregano, and grated cheese for those who wanted to add it. It is Thanksgiving after all and important details should not be neglected.
Karen Resta at 10:01AM on 11/20/07
BaHa, that sounds lovely and the only thing I'd change would be to serve Durgin Park's warm, spicy, cornmeal-based Indian Pudding as a second dessert.
Jenn Smith at 10:04AM on 11/20/07
i'm liking this idea.
besides the drumstick, i'm not really thrilled about turkey
fried chicken is definitely a good call but I'd like to nominate pulled pork.
do i hear a second?
crafty at 10:05AM on 11/20/07
For those of you who think I need something green on Thanksgiving, I would like to propose sprinkling some chives on the mashed potatoes, or if you insist on a principally green dish, fried okra (though fried okra is more beige than green, now that I'm thinking about it).
Ed Levine at 10:11AM on 11/20/07
Thanks Ed! This made me laugh... my family and I joked about Stroud's for Thanksgiving this year. We're actually going out to dinner instead of cooking (a first for me) and we joked how fun it would be to go there, but are opting for The Captial Grille instead.
As for a new Thanksgiving dish, I could go for swapping out a standing Rib Roast for the turkey.
Alm25 at 11:30AM on 11/20/07
fried chicken is definitely a good call but I'd like to nominate pulled pork.
do i hear a second?
crafty at 10:05AM on 11/20/07
I'll second it if I can put it in a pizza, crafty. Or maybe in a calzone.
Karen Resta at 11:53AM on 11/20/07
Alm25, I did a standing rib roast last year; and then I did it again for Christmas. Both were mighty fine. Fried chicken is hard to beat, as are mashed potatoes. Gotta have Brussels sprouts, and a dessert with substance like tarte tatin.
ride&cook at 12:03PM on 11/20/07
I am fine with the menu, except that I can't have Thanksgiving without stuffing. I neeed stuffing and I need it for days. I just keeps getting better. I don't need anything green and I don't care if it is Turkey or Chicken, I just need stuffing.
FoodBoy at 12:40PM on 11/20/07
if you insist on a principally green dish, fried okra (though fried okra is more beige than green, now that I'm thinking about it).
Fried okra is conceptually green, and that's what counts.
maggiesara at 12:44PM on 11/20/07
I actually have made a Cranberry pizza.
My husband makes the best pizza dough. We often entertain with a make-your-own-pizza dinner. (Love particpaptory food for entertaining.) One topping we have offered is duck confit and fontina, with a sauce made from fresh cranberries. It was *goooood*!!
kjgibson at 3:22PM on 11/20/07
what's with the compulsion to observe a holiday by doing the same thing as everyone else, or at least, as you imagine everyone else doing? Forget a national thanksgiving dish. Holidays should give us all license to eat what we like best. Some people have strange palates but as far as I am concerned: turkey is nasty. (So, for that matter, are pies. And families).
dbird at 11:58PM on 11/29/07