Whether you’re a turkey or side dish fanatic, the same menu at your family’s Thanksgiving gathering can become old and boring year after year. Celebrity chef and judge on Netflix’s new food show “American Barbecue Showdown,” Melissa Cookston will have you receiving all the thanks this holiday with her delicious Thanksgiving sides!
Taken from Cookston’s website, the below recipes for holiday smoked turkey, maple chipotle baked beans from scratch and southern deviled eggs with chive-truffle vinaigrette are a great way to satisfy the entire family this holiday season!
Holiday Smoked Turkey
"One of the reasons I love to smoke turkey for the holidays (or really, anytime) is the nuanced flavor and texture that smoking it adds to turkey. Generally, I try not to overwhelm any meat I cook with smoke, and with turkey that is especially important, and the neutral flavor palate of turkey is easily overwhelmed. Poultry doesn’t have the collagens to break down over a long cooking time, like pork or even beef does, so it doesn’t have to go 'low and slow.' I cook turkeys in my smoker at 275 to 300 degrees F, as I think this is a good combination of allowing smoked flavors to develop while not drying out the turkey."
Ingredients:
- 10-12 pound whole turkey
- 1/4 cup Memphis BBQ Company Ultimate BBQ Rub or your favorite rub blend
- 4 tablespoons cold salted butter, chopped into small pieces
- 2 ounces fresh sage sprigs
- 2 ounces fresh thyme sprigs
- 1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
- 1 medium lemon, quartered
Rinse turkey, then slide butter pieces under skin around the breast area.
Season turkey inside and out with BBQ Rub.
Fold wing tips under themselves to form a “platform.” Place in a pan, uncovered, in the refrigerator 8 hours or overnight to allow turkey to marinate and skin to dry.
Remove from fridge, stuff cavity with herbs, onion and lemon, then place in 250-degree F smoker, using apple or cherry wood.
After 2 hours, remove from smoker, place a meat thermometer (with an external reading) in the thigh, being careful to not place it touching a bone, and wrap fully in heavy duty aluminum foil, then return to smoker. As the thigh temperature gets close to 170 degrees F, check the breast temperature with another thermometer. It should read about 10 degrees F cooler. After the breast achieves 160 degrees and the thigh reaches 170 degrees F, remove from smoker, place in an insulated cooler and allow to rest.
Check the temperatures after 15-20 minutes and ensure the breast temperature rose above 165 degrees F (safety zone for poultry).
Continue to keep in cooler until ready to serve. Turkey may then be placed on a platter for carving at the table, or my preference is to carve on a cutting board and plate the meat on a platter for serving (much easier than trying to carve over a table!)
Maple Chipotle Baked Beans From Scratch
"Good side items at any BBQ party are mandatory and, with a little work, can be the star of the
show. At any outdoor picnic, baked beans are good. However, maple chipotle baked beans made from scratch are awesome! Revel in the recipe requests from your friends and family, soak up the adoration from those poor souls still making baked beans from a can. Yes, you too can win 'Battle Baked Bean' (and fool everybody into thinking it was hard work!)”
Ingredients:
- 1 pound northern beans, soaked overnight
- 6 slices bacon
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1/2 green or red bell pepper, diced
- 1-1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- 2 cups ketchup
- 1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1.2 cup water
- 1/4 cup Tabasco Chipotle Sauce
- 1 tablespoon basic BBQ rub
Drain soaked beans, then place in stockpot and cover with water to about one inch above beans. Bring to a boil then simmer for one hour, adding water if necessary. Drain beans.
Cook bacon in a pan until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, leaving rendered fat in pan. Crumble bacon after it cools.
Add onions and bell peppers and cook for 3-4 minutes or until softened but not translucent. Add garlic and cook for one minute, then remove from heat.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large baking dish add beans, onion/pepper/garlic mix from skillet and remaining ingredients. Mix well.
Bake for an hour and a half or until beans are tender and liquids have thickened around beans. Serve!
Southern Deviled Eggs with Chive Truffle Vinaigrette
“Deviled eggs are among the most Southern of items, and you absolutely must have a recipe available to you. Take heart, they’re exceedingly simple. However, sometimes you need to freshen up a classic recipe, and the addition of a simple, chive-truffle vinaigrette takes them to a whole new level.”
Ingredients:
For the Eggs
- 6 hard boiled eggs
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2-1/2 tablespoons sweet pickle relish
- 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
For the Vinaigrette:
- 2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon finely chopped chives
- 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons white truffle oil
To make the eggs:
Cut eggs in half and separate yolks. With a fork, break up yolks, then add relish, mayo and salt and pepper. Adjust seasonings, or mayo if stuffing looks too dry. If you're being fancy, place egg yolk stuffing in a piping bag and pipe into eggs. Otherwise, you can just spoon the stuffing back into the eggs. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to firm up.
To make the vinaigrette:
If you like whisking a lot, you can make this in a small bowl with a whisk. I prefer using a blender, an immersion blender or a food processor (depending on how much I am making.)
In a separate container, pour olive oil and truffle oil together. Add all ingredients except oils to bowl and whisk or blend thoroughly. While blending, slowly drizzle oil blend into dressing to form an emulsion.
Either using a squeeze bottle or a spoon, drizzle vinaigrette dressing over eggs and serve.
For these recipes and more, visit melissacookston.com.