First time cooking Thanksgiving Dinner...?

Question

My mom will be recovering from surgery this Thanksgiving, but I still want to cook for my father, brother, and boyfriend. Any suggestions to make it a wee bit easier? I will be depending on the internet to learn everything, making a turkey, stuffing, etc..

Answer 1

In an Oven Bag---Very Easy! It takes less time, comes out moist and juicy; and delicious! I won't cook a Turkey any other way! Try it, you won't be disappointed!

Herb Roasted Holiday Turkey
1 Reynolds Oven Bag, Turkey Size
1 tablespoon flour
2 stalks celery, sliced
1 medium onion, sliced
12 to 24 pound turkey, thawed
Vegetable oil
1 tablespoon dried sage
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon seasoned salt

PREHEAT oven to 350°F.

SHAKE flour in Reynolds Oven Bag; place in large roasting pan at least 2 inches deep. Spray inside of bag with nonstick spray to reduce sticking, if desired.

ADD vegetables to oven bag. Remove neck and giblets from turkey. Rinse turkey; pat dry. Brush turkey with oil. Combine sage, thyme, rosemary and seasoned salt. Sprinkle and rub herb mixture over turkey, turning to coat evenly.

PLACE turkey in oven bag on top of vegetables.

CLOSE oven bag with nylon tie; cut six 1/2-inch slits in top. Insert meat thermometer through slit in bag into thickest part of inner thigh. Tuck ends of bag in pan.

BAKE 2 to 2 1/2 hours for a 12 to 16 lb. turkey, 2 1/2 to 3 hours for a 16 to 20 lb. turkey, and 3 to 3 1/2 hours for a 20 to 24 lb. turkey, or until meat thermometer reads 180°F. For easy slicing, let stand in oven bag 15 minutes before opening.

REYNOLDS KITCHENS TIPS:

- For stuffed turkey: Lightly stuff turkey with your favorite stuffing recipe before brushing with oil. Add 1/2 hour to bake time.
- If turkey sticks to oven bag, gently loosen bag from turkey before opening bag.
- Estimate 1 pound per person for generous servings with leftovers.
Nutrition per 3 oz. serving of cooked turkey.

Number of Servings: 15-30

Nutrition Information:
(Per Serving) calories 138
grams fat 3
% calories from fat 21
milligrams cholesterol 83
milligrams sodium 76
grams carbohydrates 1
grams fiber 0
grams protein 25
http://www.alcoa.com/reynoldskitchens/en/recipes/product_recipe_search.asp?Step=ShowRecipe&RecipeID=906&parent_info_page_id=744&info_page_id=745&prod_id=1790&cat_id=1337

Answer 2

Don't over complicate it by going through all the Recipes online..Most of the traditonal dishes on thanksgiving can be made very easily and with out much fuss.
Aside from the turkey. all the other side items can be made from a box...and trust me...your brother,father and boyfriend wont know the difference.
Stove top Stuffing...works great. Just follow the directions on the box. Mahed potatoes....cook your potatoes, add milk and butter...whip.
Gravy, Lots of gravy mixes out there. Buy a powdered one "Mc cormick" makes a pretty good one. Most just add water and bring to a boil and its done. Cranberry sauce...In a Can. If you want to make fresh cranberry sauce thats pretty easy too. Basically just fresh craberries, a little water and about a cup of sugar per bag of cranberries. Cook on low heat til the cranberries are soft.
Pies? Lots of great pies already baked or ready to bake at your Grocery Store. If you feel the need to bake your own, at the very least get already made crust...Crust is a pain in the a$$ to make from scratch. Yams? Canned yams....add butter and brown sugar...baked til the sugar melts.
You want Ham? Get a spiral cut ham at your grocery store. It's already cooked and sliced...all you have to do is warm it up.
As far as turkey Goes...there are forty billion different ways to cook them. Don't bother trying to figure out some new Gormet way to cook it. Bake it. And just make sure to keep it basted through out the cooking time. If you feel more confident and have some time to mess around with it. Go on www.foodnetwork.com
They have tons of recipes rated by how easy of a recipe it is.
Also some other great and easy baked breads. Can be found at the grocey store. Jiffy brand makes great cake, bread and bisquit mixes for extremely cheap. You want fresh rolls at dinner? Buy the frozen dough in the freezer section of the grocery store.
Don't go over board your first year. It will be way more stress than neccesarry since Thanksgiving dinner takes hours to prepare and about an hour at most to eat. My suggestion, Keep everything easy and maybe do one thing that you made from scratch.
Every year it will get easier and easier and then you can experiement. Good Luck!
PS....Im a Chef and cook for 100 people at thanksgiving every year....I take short cuts too sometimes...its ok if everything is just plain old thanksgiving...most people prefer it that way.

Answer 3

a cooking bag is a good bet for the novice turkey preparer, boil potatoes till they are soft for mashed potatoes, gravy, pickles veggies , olives etc. you can get from cans & bottles, the most important thing about roasting a turkey is go slow & make sure it gets done all the way, good luck.

Answer 4

if you put an apple inside the turkey when you cook it, it will give it flavor. also if want a ham putting a can of coke over it and cooking it, it gives it glaze! on stuffing i would just stove top.

Answer 5

If it is the first time, maybe it is best if you don't try to cook everything and get some side dishes already cooked.

If you are planning any baking, do it in advance.

Start practicing now.

A couple of tips at:

http://www.world-food-and-wine.com/food-in-usa-thanksgiving.html

Answer 6

All fruits are fruit and vegetables. A "vegetable" is a plant, any part of which can be used for food.

Answer 7

In the superstore, fruits are usually picked out far too soon. Some are rocks, many are bad. Some of the fruit and vegetables are generally right (zucchini, onions, garlic, lettuce, greens, and a few others) so I'd have to go with vegetables.

Answer 8

Most bigger chain grocery stores offer a heat and eat dinner.It is easy and not very expensive, check with the deli dept.Good luck!!

Answer 9

Get everyone to be in charge of one part of it. Shares the workload and if anything messes up chances are it wont be your fault!

Answer 10

Go to www.marthatstewart.com
She has great ideas and how to's for Thanksgiving planning. Excellent resource!