Pantry: Delicious ideas for your Thanksgiving leftovers
Several people I know like to cook a turkey for the holidays not so much because they love the main meal but because they want the leftovers.
Some prefer to stick with the traditional flavors, with hot turkey sandwiches slathered with gravy and topped with stuffing and cranberry sauce. Others prefer to make stock out of the carcass and then enjoy turkey gumbo, turkey risotto and turkey soup, all of which I love and make fairly often.
My favorite soup, which you can find at Eat This Now at pantry.blogs.pressdemocrat.com, is turkey barley.
Another option is to make curry and there are so many ways to do so, all with delicious results. When I’m in an East India sort of mood, these are my favorite dishes at this time of year.
And on that note, I’d like to wish a Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. This year I’ll think of all of you, as I am deeply grateful for all who read this column and especially those who take the time to email or write, even when you disagree with something I’ve written.
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Classic English Mulligatawny Soup is typically made with chicken but there is no reason at all not to make it with turkey. If you use dark meat, it will actually be better than when it is made with chicken breast. The soup’s name has an interesting history, though it’s not possible to confirm it. It supposedly came from Tamil Nadu, a state in southern India that is the home of true pepper, or piper nigrum. Tamil is the language of the native population, also known as Tamil, and their expression for “pepper water,” molaga-tanni, is said to be the source of the name. As the story goes, a British colonist requested some more of that “mulligatawny,” referring to a spicy soup he’d enjoyed. Countless versions have been made since that first awkward request, though the main characteristics - a mild spiciness and heat, a bit of sweetness from apples, and chicken - are constants. In this version, I sauté the apples and use them as a garnish instead of incorporating them into the soup.
Turkey Mulligatawny Soup
Serves 4 to 6
1 cup raw jasmine rice
4 tablespoons clarified butter (ghee)
2 firm sweet-tart apples, peeled and cut into 1/8-inch lengthwise slices
1 tablespoon curry powder, commercial or homemade
1 teaspoon ground cumin
- Black pepper in a mill
- One 2-inch piece cinnamon
1 yellow onion, minced
2 carrots, peeled and minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon grated ginger
1 teaspoon turmeric
¾ teaspoon ground cardamom
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, plus more to taste
- Kosher salt
1 cup fruity white wine
4 cups turkey stock
6 cups cooked turkey meat, torn into bite-sized pieces
- One 14-ounce can coconut milk
- Whole milk yogurt
- Chopped cilantro leaves
- Chutney of choice
Put the rice in a strainer or colander and rinse it under cool running water until the water runs clear. Put the rice in a large saucepan with 1 ½ cups cold water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan, and simmer for 20 minutes without lifting the lid. Remove from the heat and let the rice steam undisturbed for 10 minutes before fluffing with a fork. Fluff the rice, cover, and set aside while you prepare the soup.
Melt 2 tablespoons of the clarified butter in a large soup pot.
Cut the apple slices in half crosswise, add them to the pot along with a pinch of curry powder, a pinch of cumin and several turns of black pepper. Add the cinnamon stick. Sauté until the apples are tender and golden brown. Use a metal spatula to transfer the apples to a plate or bowl, leaving the cinnamon stick behind.
Add the remaining clarified butter to the pot and, when it is melted, add the onion and carrots, and sauté over medium-low heat until very soft and fragrant, about 15 minutes. Stir in the garlic and ginger, sauté 2 minutes more, add the curry powder, cumin, turmeric, cardamom and cayenne and cook for 2 minutes. Season with salt and several very generous turns of black pepper.
Increase the heat to high, add the wine and cook until it is nearly completely reduced. Add the turkey stock, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Stir in the turkey and coconut milk and heat through. Remove from the heat, taste and correct for salt, pepper and spice, adding more cayenne if you like its heat.
Use tongs to remove and discard the cinnamon stick. If the soup is too thick for your tastes, thin with a little stock or water and reheat thoroughly.
Divide the rice among individual bowls and ladle the soup over it. Top each portion with a generous spoonful of yogurt, some of the sautéed apples and cilantro leaves. Serve immediately, with the chutney alongside.
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Curried chicken salad comes in and out of fashion and has, in the United States, for decades. It was common in the 1940s and 1950s, faded away in the 1970s, emerged again in the 1980s and on and on it goes. Turkey prepared similarly is a perfect way to use your leftover Thanksgiving bird.
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