Turkey Day is fast approaching, and if you’re in charge of preparing the feast you’ve got precious few hours left to get that bird defrosted. While online video can’t speed up the thawing process, there are a number of videos out there that will help you cook a turkey that is moist and delicious.
Sure, Butterball has been running its “Turkey Talk-Line” nearly all month, but when you’re trying to stuff a bird it helps to actually see what goes where. And that makes web video perfectly suited for cooking tutorials; aspiring chefs can plop a laptop down on the kitchen counter and then play, pause and replay a video until their culinary acumen turns out a dish that would make any visiting mother-in-law proud. After all, being able to stop the video so you can catch up or go back in case you missed something is what the seekbar was designed for. Additionally, many online cooking shows include the written recipe for each show’s dish, allowing you to make sure you get your dashes and pinches lined up before you hit “play.”
Food Wishes – Hot to Cook a Turkey
Chef John Mitzewich, About.com’s “America Food” expert, keeps the food front and center in his videos, which now number over 200. With the camera close in on the action, it’s easy to see exactly what’s going on, and Mitzewich’s no-nonsense narration is clear and concise. And the accompanying blog has the full turkey recipe so you can get the particulars just right. Part 2 has all the details on how to make the gravy, because remember, as Mitzewich says: “There is nothing to fear but the fear of dry turkey itself.”
Fearless Cooking – The Best Damn Turkey Show Ever!
Grace Piper, producer and host of the cooking blog “Fearless Cooking,” has a secret ingredient to make your turkey extra delicious — bacon! That’s pretty much all you learn from this video, but Piper is a spunky host and bacon is an important food group. The written blog post accompanying the video covers the step-by-step details for those who like to read along.
Cooking for Dads – How to Cook a Thanksgiving Turkey
Host Rob Barrett knows what Thanksgiving is all about — watching football. Which is why he ensures his viewers that you can get the turkey in the oven and still catch the game. This video is for someone who has no idea how to cook a turkey, doesn’t want to try anything fancy, but wants a decent bird to come out of the oven. His no-frills cooking methodology — which relies upon store-bought stuffing and gravy — and colloquial tone would definitely connect with my own dad.
AskChefTom – How to Cook Turkey for Thanksgiving
Chef Tom gets a little bogged down with the details of turkey prep (yes, we know we should keep towels nearby to dry our hands), but his thoroughness will be welcome to Thanksgiving chef noobs. Tom, who hails from L’Ecole Culinaire in St. Louis, covers every detail of roasting a delicious, organic turkey. His lecturing is a little verbose, but he keeps it moving, at times even making you feel like you’re a student in one of his classes.
If these prerecorded options lack the homey familiarity you’re looking for, perhaps setting up a video Skype or Ustream account for your mom or grandma will help ensure you’re getting the authentic family recipe. If you can’t be with your family in meatspace for Turkey Day, cyberspace isn’t a terrible option. Also, it’s nice to be able to hold a webcam over a turkey and ask, “Does this look right?”
Thanksgiving, the distinctly American holiday, has been evolving for decades (I don’t think the pilgrims used marshmallows in their sweet potato casserole) and the inclusion of web video to either help prepare the dinner or make a far-flung relative virtually present seems fitting. Once we figure out how to send gravy and biscuits across the intertubes, we’ll be set.
