Turkey. The main attraction at almost every American table this Thanksgiving, and the main ingredient of many meals eaten as leftovers for the days or week(s) following this favorite holiday.
As November’s mascot, turkey is kind of a big deal this month. People don’t call it “Turkey Day” for no reason.
Though turkey was not the center of the table in 1621 for the first Thanksgiving, it’s abundance and easy affordability over the last 200+ years have won it the prized seat (or should I say plate) at most homes in the United States on this day of gratitude and thankfulness.
Afterall, what would Thanksgiving dinner be without this gobbling bird?
Inexpensive for Lovers and Haters
I think answering this question puts us all in two camps : those like me who argue Thanksgiving dinner just wouldn’t be the same without the delicious aroma of turkey on the table, and those in my husband’s camp who argue they’d rather consume steak or a pizza – anything but turkey.
Whether you fall in camp with the lovers or the haters, there is no denying that turkey is one of the most affordable meats you can offer to your family’s table. Compared to any other meat in equal quantity, it is hard to beat a frozen whole turkey bought in the month of November.
A frozen turkey bought during the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving can easily cost less than a dollar per pound. And it is not uncommon to get an entire turkey free.
Grocery stores are literally giving turkeys away this time of year. And free meat is pretty hard to beat.
Go Big or Go Home
Like all things meat, the start of getting that bird to my dinner table begins with the hunt. Because I’m not into hunting birds and in fact have very little camo in my wardrobe to start off with, nor do I have my own flock of turkeys wandering about my yard – the hunt for me happens in the meat section at my local grocery store. (I know, that makes me sounds like a city kid, but there it is.)
Though there are many grocery shoppers who seek out a modest-sized bird to fill their oven Thanksgiving morning, I am that person who digs around until I have found the largest bird I can [reasonably] fit in my cooker.
You better believe I’m putting a 20+ pound frozen ball of meat in my grocery cart every year.
Then I dive in again to find the next largest bird I can find.
[Do note most stores won’t let you buy one bird and get a second for free. If you are a Monthly Grocery Shopper like me, consider splitting your list in half and buying half of your groceries now and the other half later on in the month.]
Not a Turkey Fan?
For those of you readers who fall into my husband’s camp of really not liking turkey at Thanksgiving dinner, I can understand your skepticism at buying a bird anyone just because it’s inexpensive.
This is a valid argument, and I would be going against my own claim that sale buying is unhealthy for you and your pocketbook if I told you to buy a turkey just because it’s on sale.
However, before you scratch off the notion of buying a turkey this year because you’re “not a fan”, I encourage you to pause a quick minute and reflect on why you don’t like turkey.
Is it because turkey is rather dry and really makes you pile on the gravy when you eat it for Thanksgiving?
Are you not a fan of turkey because it is a lot of dark meat and you prefer white meat?
Does it make you sleepy?
Does turkey make your stomach feel uncomfortable?
These are just some of the reasons I have heard people say they would rather not eat turkey, for Thanksgiving or any other day of the year.
I must say, if any food makes your body feel yucky or unhappy, then eating it just because it is cheap is horrible reasoning. We eat food for our body. And if our body says it doesn’t like something, then consuming whatever food it is, simply isn’t worth it.
That said, if you are distancing yourself because turkey is dry or because you are unsure of ways to use up all that brown meat, then I hope you will reconsider.
Honestly, without the very low price of turkey meat, I do not think I would go out of my way to buy turkey. I go out of my way to buy ham, bacon, hamburger, beef roast, chicken breasts, and fish. But turkey …. Well, the meat just really isn’t anything special.
Though the meat isn’t anything special, the price point is. And it’s special enough it should get all our attention if we are trying to cut down on expenses.
Besides that, there are a lot of ways to eat turkey without it notably being turkey on your plate.
Tastes like chicken … almost
When it comes to turkey meat, think of it as a half-priced substitute for chicken.
Obviously, there are some meals that you don’t want to substitute for turkey. Meals like orange chicken, chicken nuggets, bacon wrapped chicken, wing, grilled chicken meals – those are foods that are somewhat reliant on the shape and cut of your meat.
However, any meal that you can used shredded chicken for instead of diced chicken or chicken breasts, then you can substitute that shredded chicken with turkey meat.
- Such meals include:
- Chicken noodle soup
- Chicken enchiladas
- Chicken tacos
- Chicken and rice
- Chicken salad sandwiches
- Stir Fry
- Pulled Chicken sandwiches
- Shredded Chicken Gravy
- Cold Chicken Caesar Salad
And so much more.
Why buy TWO?
We’ve already established that turkey is inexpensive to buy this time of year. And by inexpensive, we mean that it is basically, if not literally, free at your local grocery store.
But even if you do fall into the pro-turkey for Thanksgiving dinner camp, why buy more turkeys than you’ll eat for this face-stuffing holiday?
The answer (drum roll please) : Because then you can eat turkey all year long.
I know, I know. The thought of eating a Thanksgiving-like dinner in March or July seems really off and borderline wrong, but hang with me for a quick minute while I explain. –
By buying two (or possibly three) fresh or frozen turkeys within the next handful of weeks before the big day, you will be able to pick up quite a few pounds of meat at a very reasonable price. And though you might be roasting your big bird and dressing it up fancy for the big meal later this month, there is no rule that you have to prepare a turkey like, well, a turkey every time you cook one.
In fact, no one has to know you are eating turkey in the spring and summer.
You’ll just be eating white bird meat. And as far as anyone else is concerned, it’s chicken – just bought at a much lower price than your usual whole chicken.
By buying more than one bird now, you are able to save money on buying meat.
Plain and simple.
A Bird for Fall, a Bird for Spring
In our home, I like to buy two turkeys between Halloween and Thanksgiving Day. Even going to the grocery store the Saturday after Thanksgiving, you’ll find the price has nearly doubled for a frozen bird versus what it cost on Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving.
The timing really is crucial if you plan to save money, which is the entire purpose of buying two turkeys.
After buying my turkeys, one gets thawed out and eaten for Thanksgiving dinner, while the other gets to hang out in the deep freeze a few months longer until I am ready to cook it in the late spring or summer.
Of course my bird that gets roasted for Thanksgiving dinner lasts my family a lot longer than just the holiday weekend. I like to package up my white meat and dark meat, and toss that pre-cooked meat into the freezer to be pulled out for quick chicken-based meals in the following weeks months.
I like turkey, but no likes to eat the same meal, or even the same meat, meal after meal. My husband might swear that he would rather eat beef everyday for the rest of forever, but I would put a hefty bill on the table to bet that sentiment (from him and others who claim the same) isn’t entirely true. We all have days where chicken noodle soup sounds like the only meal our tummy and congested head can handle. There are days when shrimp, salmon, or another type or fish gets takes the win for what sounds delicious. And don’t get me started on bacon-centered meals.
My point is that we all like variety.
It might sound silly to some to buy a frozen bird, thaw it out, cook it, eat only part of it, and then but the rest of the meat right back in the freezer. But that is exactly what I do.
By freezing the cooked turkey meat, I get to have a quick grab meat source ready for an easy weekday meal spread throughout December, January, February, March, and often into April.
We don’t grow sick and tired of eating turkey because we spread it out.
Then, just before the weather turns too hot to cook it, I roast my second turkey (my Spring Turkey) for easy pre-cooked meat that I don’t have to heat my house up for in the unbearably warm summer months.
That spring-cooked meat gets us through the summer. And when October has come and gone, we trek our way back to the meat section of our grocery store to buy more birds. []
