THANKSGIVING DINNER

Whats the best way to make a turkey? I say Kalua a turkey, roasting it underground Hawaiian style, the flavors are awesome, very easy seasonings, Hawaiian salt, and lots of banana stumps gives it a unique flavor. If you can't roast a turkey underground, here's a simple way to do it.

We'll use your oven- if you're using a gas oven, make sure you got a full tank, and if you got an electric, you did pay the electric bill.

What size turkey should you buy? Well, how many people are coming to dinner? Just figure you'll have other foods so if you are going to have about 20 people show up, and each person is going to eat about 1/2 a pound (or more), multiply 8 oz. (half a pound) buy 20 you will get 160 ounces, divided by 16 ounces (per pound) is 10 pounds of bird, but always tack on 5 more pounds to ensure for extra guests, or leftovers, so buy about a 15 pound bird give or take a few more pounds, so what ever weight you do buy, make sure you understand that it takes about 25 minutes per pound at arouond 325 deg. F. 15x.25 = 375 minutes = 6 hours and 15 minutes. But, here's the thing, you're going to cut the turkey in half. Of course it has to be thawed, and here is the trick to thawing your turkey, get a large cooler, fill it with ice, and let it thaw for a day and half, always having fresh ice in the cooler to prevent food poisoning. A turkey should be chilled at around a constant 40 deg. F or lower, any higher and it is the danger zone. Or keep it in the fridge once it softens.

Remove all the innards of the turkey, the neck, gibblets, etc. Pat down the bird with a dry towel, then using a sharp knife or cleaver slice the turkey down the middle length wise, so you'll have two halves. Rub either Hawaiian Salt or Kosher salt generously all over the bird, inside the cavity and under he skin.

Place it in a deep roasting pan, or two separate ones, fill it with about 1 liter of water for each pan or 2 liters for one pan with 2 halves. Get some liquid smoke, and pour several tablespoons all over the turkey.

Preheat the oven to 325 deg. F.

Place the pan on the lowest rack, cover with foil, and roast it for 3 hours.

After 3 hours, remove foil, and continue to roast for another 2 to 3 hours, adding more water if necessary for steam. Because the turkey is cut in half, it should cook faster, the 2 to 3 extra hours is really a guide so you won't eat raw turkey.

Use an instant read thermometer, and stick in in the thighs and if the bird registers 180 deg. F it is actually safe to take out and let it rest as it will continue to cook, the positive of this style of roasting is the water keeps the bird moist and not dry. It will resemble pulled pork sort of, but that's the way I like Thanksgiving birds.

Serve it with rice or potatoes, and use the drippings from the pan as a sauce. Or other ways would be to deep fry the turkey whole, the oil needs to be very hot, and enough oil to fry it. Deep fry turkeys are popular, it takes roughly 12-14 minutes per pound to deep fry a turkey, it is like a huge fried chicken. Try that instead of traditional roasting.


Pictured below is a traditional Kalua Turkey
with Ti Leaves and Taro Leaves, picture
curtesy of sizzleonthegrill.com

Oven roasting will not look like this of course but
this gives you an idea what traditional kalua will
look like. But home kalua will be the next best
thing.


Ron Sambrano
808-385-7667
ronsambrano@live.com