Boxing Day with Turducken

See also:
December 4 - In Pursuit of Turducken
December 22 - Pride of Turducken
December 24 - Adventure with Turducken
December 25 - Fun with Turducken
December 26 - Christmas Eve with Turkducken
December 27 - Boxing Day with Turkducken
January 31 - Turducken at Large


I had leftover Alaskan king crab legs and fruit for breakfast today. Nothing much after that. This is to make sure I kept my appetite for the turducken tonight.

My sister-in-law and her family arrived in the afternoon. Our neighbours with young children were also home, so I invited them as well. We were six adults and five children at dinner. I made a cauliflower soup and a salad to accompany the leftover pickled beets, chambord carrots, and mushroom strudel. And of course the half turducken.

The turducken birds at purchase weighed:

turkey - 17.5 lbs
duck - 5 lbs
chicken 3 lbs

That's 25.5 lbs of birds before deboning. Let's say after deboning, we had 20 lbs of meat. Half of that is 10 lbs. That's the amount of meat we had tonight from the half turducken, plus stuffing. We managed to eat about half of that. That means I still have a quarter turducken in the fridge!

So how does the turducken taste? Meh.

It's not that it was bad. It was good. But not great. I think what makes a roast bird enjoyable are the stuffing and gravy. Mine were okay. The meat was tender but it lacked inherent flavour. I guess nothing quite compares to the free-range turkey I made a few years ago.

Would I do a turducken again? Yes. It was relatively easy. Not much more work than a turkey. But I would want to be more selective about the birds. Go free-range or go home. As our friend said tonight, a turducken is great food for a large group. I think it is more a conversational dish that holds the promise of sumptiousness.

But the evening itself was a blast. Generally good food and great company. I love my neighbours and brother-in-law (BIL) because they are so not shy about new food combinations. And so not shy about showing off their talents. BIL brought his new guitar and amplifier. Neighbour went home to get his guitar and amp. The Boy set up his drums. They jammed. I recognized The Wait and I think Brown Eye Girl. This was an unexpected gift, to hear them play.

The Boy loves board games. He's beaten me at every game so far. Tonight, he had his fill of gaming with so many willing partners. At one point, we even played Boggle when The Boy wasn't looking. He was quick to catch us and joined in.

Everyone has gone home now. Turducken and I have gone through a lot together. What will be my next culinary challenge?