Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

I think I'm going to go for this, but there's one problem. I have to have drumsticks for my dad. So I'm thinking I'll get a couple of turkey legs to cook along side the bird. Any tips on working out the timing? Maybe start the legs a little ahead of the stuffed breasts?

I'm sure you must feel you had it coming (I should've known, etc), I'm happy you chose to out them. I thumbed through my Zagat last week, checking my experiences against the ratings. I got several attacks of apoplexy. How could these anonymous morons rate this place or that one so highly? But Zagat is a democracy, and opinions are culled, and even dare I say, interpreted from many opinions. Grand Sichuan 9th Ave, one I especially hated for precipitously declining food and offensive servers, got raves. Bar Stuzzichini, one of the finest affordable Sicilian kitchens, passed for good, when after ten visits, I found to be stupendous.

We can all agree on one thing: My stomach and I have been friends too long to pull a thing like that on it..

I never have to go to these lengths, and I still end up with moist white meat, fully cooked dark meat, and an honest-to-God stuffing. Two simple steps:

I make a stuffing out of pork sausage, celery, apples, bread, and spices. My simple solution to bacteria? Cook the sausage before you mix it in the stuffing. Problem solved - the stuffing still sucks up lots of flavour from the bird (and my recipe makes a ton, so we end up with dressing as well, which is still good, but definitely tastes different) but it's fully cooked.

Second step: soak a triple (at least) layer of cheesecloth in oil, oil the breast, and then place the cheesecloth over the breast. After the first 45 minutes of cooking, baste every 20-30 minutes, paying particular attention to the breast. This means basting about 6-8 times, depending, for 2-3 minutes a time - 12 to 24 minutes total, which is a lot less than the time needed to dismember or debone the bird in the methods above. For the last half hour, carefully remove the cheesecloth so the skin can brown nicely. Don't just pull it off, as that might tear the skin underneath (hence the importance of oiling the breast before applying the cloth).

You end up with a beautiful, Rockwell-type bird, with a moist juicy breast, and crispy skin. I've used this recipe over thirty times, and never had a problem. Happy Thanksgiving!

Kenji, chefRobert -

Thanks for the info - I don't have a meat grinder (yet), but at least this gives me a goal for the next time I do a turkey.

@Carey Jones,

I was really pleased to read this review yesterday just before heading one block from my office to try this place for the first time. It is true that good places to eat around here are limited to Mooncake Foods, my favorite Halal truck, and the French Macaron Cafe, so I truly had high hopes for Lucy's. THANK YOU FOR THE WAKEUP CALL that was this review, but especially, thanks for the heads up about the ambience!

I felt like I was in a cross between the bar at the Cancun airport, and a hooters. CREEPY. However, I ordered the Baja sliders, and those tiny little burgers, covered in mystery sauce they may have been, were COOKED TO PERFECTION. None of the other sliders in the neighborhood come close to the medium-rare perfection of these tasty little treats. I chased them down with the most delicious Michelada I've had in months (I was able to substitute the recommended Corona Light for a Negra Modelo, thank goodness).

Despite being scantily clad on the rainy day that it was, the servers were very friendly. I think it's terrible that they have to wear those outfits, really.

@megperks - REAL Mexican food goldmine on East 116th Street, try Taqueria El Paso, among others.

I work in this area and so sad that we have hardly any good lunch options. Mooncake is the only place I can bring a friend to so far

@Chefrobert: Good information about food safety. I think a lot people assume that bacteria needs to be incinerated at leather-making temperatures when a much more reasonable temperature will do.

Also, you're handle always makes me think of Robert Irvine from Dinner: Impossible.

The Temperature Danger Zone for bacterial growth is 41-135 F. 135 F and above is fine. Good restaurants cook poultry to 140-145 F.

Potentially Hazardous Food:
-Moist Foods
-Neutral or Slightly Acidic pH (bacteria grows well between pH's of 4.6 - 7.5)
-Foods High in Protein (Fish, Eggs, Poultry, Melons, Dairy, etc)

FAT TOM: Food, Acidity, Temperature, Time, Oxygen, and Moisture
(The conditions needed by foodborne microorganisms to grow)

Populations at High Risk for Foodborne Illness:
-The Elderly, Pregnant Women, Infants & Children, Medicated or Chronically Ill
(Raw Ingredients/Foods that are not fully cooked, like oysters, raw meats and sushi are not safe for this population to consume)

It's not all about cooking temperature. Food can also become unsafe by purchasing from unsafe sources, using contaminated equipment, chemicals or physical objects added to food, holding or reheating it at improper temperatures, not cooling hot food quickly if eating leftovers later, leaving food in the temperature danger zone for 2 hours or more, poor personal hygiene, unsanitary surfaces, contaminated cloths/towels that transport microorganisms and not washing hands.

More often than not, foodborne illness is caused by these issues rather than improper internal cooking temperatures in protein. The truth is that most people tend to overcook meat.

@Tombolo - you could also just go with the second approach, making the breast "log," and serving turkey rilletes or crisp turkey confit on the side.

Michael, aka the douchey, backwards behatted bro, just doesn't get it. He's got a lot of chops but his ideas are masturbatory in their complexity. Simpler, well-executed & flavorful food always wins over a plate full of 40 different flavors of nouvelle late 80's 'America-in-its-fine-food-infancy' style cooking. He's like a kid with his or her first giant box of crayons - bizarre rainbows everywhere, well-drawn rainbows perhaps, but those colors don't work together. His ego is the one who does the cooking, not him.

I'd love to see Lucy's Cantina Royale's response to this.

Moe: “Bring us your finest food stuffed with the second finest.” Waiter: “Excellent, sir. Lobsters stuffed with tacos."

Haven't seen the episode yet (we seem to be a week behind in Canada), but I'm rooting for Kevin. Michael can complain all he wants about Kevin's dishes, but the guy is consistently in the top, or winning. It's that simple. He can cook very, very well, and can create dishes that fit the challenge. The fact that he has such a great attitude just makes him look better, and will serve to bolster what will undoubtedly be a long and stellar career.