Forest to Feast: A Christmas Turkey's Voyage

Christmas means resonating happiness. Christmas means nostalgia, and more than anything else, christmas means love- love for your family and friends, people around you and most importantly- love for food! Whenever someone puts the words christmas and food together, all we can think about is Christmas dinner.

Dinner parties at christmas are all about going back to your traditions. Some like to indulge in a well roasted goose. Some people like to have it the old way with a roasted/grilled beef or duck joint.

But most people would not look elsewhere and stick to perhaps the most widely consumed christmas feast across the globe - the turkey.

HISTORY OF TURKEY

The common turkey is a type of game bird that has been reared to be the centrepiece of dinner tables since ages. Native to the North America and some parts of Mexico, there are only 2 species of this delicious bird in the whole world- one being the Wild Turkey, which gives us the domestic turkey that we all love feasting on during the holiday seasons. The other one is known as the Ocellated Turkey, which is mostly found in Mexico and the southern and central parts of America. This specie of turkey makes a loud, whistling noise as opposed to the wild/Domestic turkey, which are usually heard clucking and gobbling. This game bird was not only domesticated for its rich and succulent meat, but also for its vibrant feathers which were used as decorative ornaments on costumes and attires.

INTRODUCTION OF TURKEY IN EARLY BRITAIN

Even though approximately 80% of Brits has the turkey as the table centrepiece for Christmas feasts, the bird had no connection to the country until about the mid-1500s. That is when the early Spanish explorers discovered the bird in parts of America and exported them to Europe. Interestingly, the bird gets its name because of a confusion. Initially the bird was traded into parts of Europe through a route which involved the country Turkey. When it first arrived in the continent, it was mistaken to be the guinea fowl, as they were imported into Europe from Turkey. This resulted in the confusion of the new bird being associated with and named after the country it was being imported from. It wasn't much later after that when it was known by Britishers, and before anyone could give it a thought, the turkey had become the hero dish of festivals and celebrations. It was specifically because of the size and taste of the bird, that it was chosen to be the main course during large gatherings. Typically, a large whole roasted turkey could easily fill the bellies of about 15-18 people at a time, which was also the main reason for its rapid popularity.

FROM FOREST TO FEAST- REPLACEMENT OF TRADITIONAL GAME BIRDS WITH TURKEY ON CHRISTMAS

Long before turkey was even a thing, Britain's festive feasts included meats of goose, duck boar and even peacock. The only problem here was that only the rich and the wealthiest households could afford these birds. That's when turkey stepped in and changed the game. Due to its size, rich flavour, easier farming and low costs, it became a household favourite in no time. But this happened much later, when the bird was known by almost everybody. Thanks to King Henry VIII, turkey was first included in the christmas dinners under his monarchy. The bird's reputation grew because of the royal support, eventually becoming a symbol of luxurious celebration. Cut to the 19th century, the bird got even more prominent in terms of cultural heritage and tradition. In his timeless tale "A Christmas Carol", Charles Dickens associated turkey with Christmas. The bird's texture and royal taste were so well described that it left the readers no choice but to try the meat themselves. This led to even more popularity of the bird as a festive must-have on the dinner tables.

CHRISTMAS TURKEY- THE MODERN WAY

Time changes everything. Even Christmas feasts. In the olden days it was all about diving in the delicacy of the festive food, especially the trending turkey. But with time and emerging technology, even this has now changed. Unlike earlier times, feasting on turkey in the modern days is a blend of traditional cooking methods with all new farming and breeding techniques. Not only that, choosing and preserving your turkey is a whole another ball game. Here are some tips on how to carefully select, store and cooking your turkey bird this festive season:

Choose between heritage and commercial turkeys: choosing the right breed for your turkey is as important as cooking it correctly as the taste of the meat highly depends on it. Usually there are 2 breeds to choose from, particularly the Heritage breed and the Commercial breed. The Heritage turkey is raised with patience, making the meat smaller in size and more complex flavour wise. The heritage meat is juicier and more tender, but also more expensive as compared to the Commercial breed. Commercial turkeys are more easily available as they are cheaper. This breed is raised specifically to yield the most amount of meat. They grow faster and much larger than the heritage breed turkeys.

Organic and Free-range turkeys: organic turkeys are raised more naturally, i.e. without any growth steroids and antibiotics, making it rich in flavour. The free-range turkeys are raised in open environments making their meat more tender and succulent. Check out some of Farmison&Co's premium quality free range heritage breed turkey cuts.

Storage: if you prefer buying your turkeys fresh, we recommend buying it only a couple days before christmas and storing it for about a day or two before cooking. If you choose the frozen option, buy it well in advance to ensure the meat unfreezes on time. Give it at least 24 hours to unfreeze before cooking.

The turkey has been the prime celebrity of festive dishes for ages now. Whether it's Christmas or Thanksgiving, or despite the innovations adapted in farming techniques in terms of raising the turkey, this bird manages to remain one of the most cherished items among friends and families. Get into the festive mood this year with Farmison&Co and elevate your Christmas parties to a whole new level of indulgence.