Cheaper to go out to eat than to cook at home this Thanksgiving

[TUFKAK]

30 minutes ago, Uaarkson said:

Turkey is garbage meat no matter how you cook it

[CastlevaniaNut18]

I don't get excited about holiday food. I'm working Wed/Thurs and I'm not really upset. Husband is going to visit his family, but he's honestly dreading it. Their Thanksgivings are always turkey and a bunch of casseroles(which neither of us like). He'll be feasting on turkey and rolls. Plus, his family has really dwindled. Grandmother in the nursing home, severely depressed, alcoholic brother, his mom is busy taking care of his stepdad, who is laid up with a bad back, hip, and shoulder, his aunt died last year, etc. Oh yeah, there's also no internet down there. He's ready to get it done and rush back. I bought a big ribeye loin on sale at my brother's store last week and we'll be feasting on grilled steak and homemade mashed potatoes this weekend.

[marioandsonic]

I'm going to spend Thanksgiving with family at my one grandmother's house.  Honestly, I'm excited to surprise nearly everyone there with my new car lol.

 

Of course, that's during noon/early afternoon.  I can't cook for shit, so for the evening I bought a pre-made "holiday meal" from my local Wegmans along with a bottle of wine, and will have that.

[Anathema-]

did a restaurant bill write this

[Fizzzzle]

Roasting a turkey in an oven CAN be really good. Once I leaned about spatchcocking the bird so that it cooks much more evenly, I haven't looked back. 

 

(My dad absolutely refuses to do it and wonders why the breast meat is always overcooked to shit)

[Anathema-]

My wife's roast turkey is amazing, she follows Gordon Ramsay's method. Basically butter under the skin and lots of basting and lots of rest.

 

We also have an oven with a roasting feature that uses convection and pulses the broiler. It's fucking amazing.

[BloodyHell]

Turkey is delicious! Damn heathens! 

[Keyser_Soze]

39 minutes ago, BloodyHell said:

Turkey is delicious! Damn heathens! 

 

Especially @Commissar SFLUFAN's special boiled turkey!

[CitizenVectron]

Okay I finally read this "article," if you can call it that—there is nothing in it that says making food at home is more expensive than eating out. All it says is that the inflation on grocery items has risen faster in the past year than inflation on restaurant prices...but doesn't list absolute prices. That's because restaurant prices are still higher!

[BloodyHell]

18 minutes ago, Keyser_Soze said:

 

Especially @Commissar SFLUFAN's special boiled turkey!

Unless its boiled un hot grease, gross!

[Brian]

Thanksgiving is pretty cheap to cook at home. I shop at one of those grocery chains that if you spend $400, you get a free turkey/ham/chicken.  This is not hard to do with current prices.  I pick a turkey breast. No one cares for the wings and legs. Make a couple of side dishes and call it a day.

 

What I find to be the biggest rip off during the holidays is dessert. All the local bakeries are charging $40+ for a basic apple pie.  My wife will bake a pie instead.

 

Alcohol prices are pretty ridiculous out there. My local dive has added a couple of $30 beers on the menu. Come on. Who’s paying that for a beer?  Luckily NJ has a ton of BYOBs. We have been hitting those up lately to save a little. 

[Anathema-]

We did wind up spending a few hundred bucks but a lot of it was on stuff that we wouldn't have bought at a restaurant because it would be too expensive. Again, yes, alcohol being most of that.

[skillzdadirecta]

On 11/22/2022 at 8:20 PM, Uaarkson said:

Turkey is garbage meat no matter how you cook it

Lol I really pity you guys that have obviously eaten terrible turkey your whole lives. 

[skillzdadirecta]

13 hours ago, Fizzzzle said:

Roasting a turkey in an oven CAN be really good. Once I leaned about spatchcocking the bird so that it cooks much more evenly, I haven't looked back. 

 

(My dad absolutely refuses to do it and wonders why the breast meat is always overcooked to shit)

Yo I just heard you can do this! My stepfather (who didn't join us this year at my ster's because he's being a stubborn old man) apparently cooked his turkey this year like this. I couldn't imagine cooking a bird as big as a turkey like that. I imagine you'd need a nice sized oven. The secret to a moist turkey is making sure you baste it every 20 minutes. And I'm bugging about smoked turkey. I've had smoked turkey wings and legs before... we ususally use them to season vegetables like collard greens or green beans. I've never had a whole turkey smoked before.

[skillzdadirecta]

2 hours ago, CitizenVectron said:

Okay I finally read this "article," if you can call it that—there is nothing in it that says making food at home is more expensive than eating out. All it says is that the inflation on grocery items has risen faster in the past year than inflation on restaurant prices...but doesn't list absolute prices. That's because restaurant prices are still higher!

It's not just this article though, I posted it but there have been several news reports basically saying the same thing and they all lean into the premise that going out to eat "may" be cheaper than eating at home... which is complete bullshit and garbage journalism. They also purposefully obscure the context of the claim.

 

43 minutes ago, Brian said:

I shop at one of those grocery chains that if you spend $400, you get a free turkey/ham/chicken.

 

was it Shop Rite? My mom gets their free turkey every year.

[Uaarkson]

17 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

Lol I really pity you guys that have obviously eaten terrible turkey your whole lives. 

Blah blah, I’ve had “good” turkey before and it still pales in comparison to a good ham.

[Brian]

9 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

 

 

was it Shop Rite? My mom gets their free turkey every year.

Yea. NJ’s #1 grocery chain 

[BloodyHell]

You're all missing out on deep fried turkey! Turkey fryers are cheap.

 

***Always fry outdoors, turkey fryers are too dangerous for inside***.

[skillzdadirecta]

1 minute ago, Uaarkson said:

Blah blah, I’ve had “good” turkey before and it still pales in comparison to a good ham.

I don't eat pork so I can't compare. Don't believe I'm missing out either. 

 

Just now, BloodyHell said:

You're all missing out on deep fried turkey! Turkey fryers are cheap.

 

***Always fry outdoors, turkey fryers are too dangerous for inside***.

Oh no sir, my brother in law has promised to fry a turkey this year too. I've been a believer in it ever since my uncle did it a couple of years ago... it's a heavenly heart attack waiting to happen. Almost worth the risk of a four alarm fire. Almost.

[TUFKAK]

Just me and my fiancé, we do a duck. Just not enough to host so better go the true American bird route.

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

Deep frying is perfectly safe but it’s gotta be bone dry and thaw. Still have to prep the skin like it’s being oven cooked. Still the fastest and tastiest way imo
 

speaking of oven cooked, spatchcock and use a damn thermometer holy shit that’s the quickest way to ruin a bird is by not using a thermometer 

[skillzdadirecta]

6 minutes ago, TUFKAK said:

Just me and my fiancé, we do a duck. Just not enough to host so better go the true American bird route.

 Duck is the true american bird? Were turkey's foreign to america and introduced by pilgrims? Legit asking. I LOVE duck but have never made it myself or even tried to. Very fatty bird.

[BloodyHell]

Wild duck would be fantastic for Thanksgiving too. Spatchcock one for each guest. (Wild ducks arr much smaller than farm grown). Pheasant too. 

 

Whole Pheasant grilled, served with duck gumbo and scones is my traditional boxing day meal.

[BloodyHell]

2 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

 Duck is the true american bird? Were turkey's foreign to america and introduced by pilgrims? Legit asking. I LOVE duck but have never made it myself or even tried to. Very fatty bird.

Mayans domesticated them 2k+ years ago, and migrants brought them further and further north. They got to the US in the 1500's.

 

Wild Turkey are just escaped domesticated Mexican turkey that has bred for hundreds of years.

 

Or thats what I just quickly read. 

[Keyser_Soze]

52 minutes ago, TUFKAK said:

Just me and my fiancé, we do a duck. Just not enough to host so better go the true American bird route.

 

You mean Turducken?

[skillzdadirecta]

50 minutes ago, BloodyHell said:

Mayans domesticated them 2k+ years ago, and migrants brought them further and further north. They got to the US in the 1500's.

 

Wild Turkey are just escaped domesticated Mexican turkey that has bred for hundreds of years.

 

Or thats what I just quickly read. 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Just as long as I can order a veggie pizza from Domino's today, I'm good.

[marioandsonic]

Just played football with family, and then ate Thanksgiving food.

 

I'm ready for a nap now lol

[Kal-El814]

We love to see it. 
 

[Bacon]

12 minutes ago, Kal-El814 said:

We love to see it. 

Move that twig

[Chris-]

I usually don’t like smoked turkey but that’s how my FIL did it this year and it absolutely rules. 

[Ominous]

1 hour ago, marioandsonic said:

Just played football with family, and then ate Thanksgiving food.

 

I'm ready for a nap now lol

Why do white people eat Thanksgiving dinner before most people have lunch?

[Kal-El814]

37 minutes ago, Bacon said:

Move that twig

no u

[Bacon]

10 minutes ago, Kal-El814 said:

no u

wow wtf

 

[Spork3245]

I find this hard to believe unless you’re not taking leftovers into account. I use the meat left on the bird to make a large pot of turkey soup that lasts for 2-3 days, and have turkey and sides that last for multiple days for lunch.