OT: Thanksgiving lunch or dinner?
So I’ve always had Thanksgiving at noon for 40+years. Ate lunch, watched the Lions, then the Cowboys, reheated turkey for dinner and after age 21 drank alcohol into the evening and off to bed. My wife of 20 years just informed me that she always thought that was crazy. She and her family always had Thanksgiving “dinner” around 5 o clock. But she wasn’t going to rock the boat on my family “tradition”...cue Hank Williams jr. I get up at 6am and start smoking turkeys, and I gotta be honest, sometimes I wish it was for “dinner”, because that’s a lot of pressure to get food done and on the table by noon, especially if the weather is crappy for outdoor smoking/ frying etc. So do you guys do Thanksgiving “lunch” or “dinner” or somewhere in between?
November 25th, 2020 at 9:27 PM ^
What’s wrong with you?
your Wife must be a saint putting up with this for 20 years.
November 25th, 2020 at 9:28 PM ^
Both... Lunch at my family and dinner with the wife's family.
November 25th, 2020 at 9:29 PM ^
It's always dinner, but that's because dinner is the biggest meal of the day regardless of time. That said, noon-ish.
November 25th, 2020 at 9:35 PM ^
You put the bird in right before the Lions kickoff so that it's ready at halftime of the Dallas game.
November 25th, 2020 at 10:11 PM ^
Pretty much this as well. Revolves around the early Lions game depending on how good the Lions are. This year, don't care so much.
November 26th, 2020 at 6:19 AM ^
Then when have you cared?
November 26th, 2020 at 7:24 AM ^
So it’s been the same since the 60s? Save for maybe a year here or there in the last couple decades
November 26th, 2020 at 8:50 AM ^
Oh, gawd, I get to watch the Lions today? Fuck me...
November 25th, 2020 at 9:40 PM ^
We eat around 3, so in between.
November 25th, 2020 at 9:42 PM ^
Same. Brunch followed by "dinner," around 3-4 pm
November 26th, 2020 at 11:46 AM ^
This. Three p.m. is the appropriate time for Thanksgiving dinner. As early as 2:30 or as late as 4 p.m. is acceptable. I’m glad that somebody here gets it!
The appropriate time to start drinking is up to individual discretion.
November 25th, 2020 at 9:40 PM ^
Supper
November 25th, 2020 at 9:42 PM ^
My family adopted Thanksgiving, mind you - my parents are not American by birth and we made our own tradition over the years, up to and including our own version of the dinner. I do a Provencal style turkey, whereas my father prefers his own brined version with a vinegar sauce (it's quite good actually). I also go with the gratin dauphinois and some other sides including homemade stuffing.
We have all this around 5 PM or so. I can't fathom doing this as a lunch - you get people to eat if they anticipate it and then you're not sending ridiculous plates home with people. Also, you get people through the afternoon with hors d'oeuvres served at strategic intervals.
November 26th, 2020 at 6:26 AM ^
Are your parents French?
I've added Herbs de Provence to my brined turkey before but not the citrus. What does your recipe entail?
November 26th, 2020 at 9:26 AM ^
My parents are English and German (father and mother, respectively). The French version of these things is simply far more flavorful. I actually do the herbs and the citrus. I will stuff the turkey with fresh onions and garlic as well as sliced oranges and lemons. The gravy that this eventually helps produce is exquisite too. Use fresh herbs in the stuffing too, straight from the market if you can.
November 26th, 2020 at 9:50 AM ^
The vinegar brine sounded almost German sauerbraten-esque, so I wondered if that's where it was coming from ... but you say your father is the French half. But I'm not that well-versed in continental cuisine, so maybe (?) that vinegar-base thing is not exclusively German?
November 26th, 2020 at 10:02 AM ^
The vinegar thing is very Germanic (covering English and German cuisines) in general, I have found - take it from someone who will only eat fries (I slip and call them "chips" on occasion because I grew up that way) with vinegar.
Actually, my father's recipe is in part inspired by a Latin American recipe that he found many years ago. Once in a while, he would do chile-infused vinegar sauce with a more Spanish array of herbs and it was VERY good.
November 25th, 2020 at 9:45 PM ^
I'm going to be putting the bird on the smoker tomorrow at 6am. So whenever it's done, it's dinner time.
November 25th, 2020 at 10:00 PM ^
I set my Big Green Egg at 325 and cook like its an oven.
November 26th, 2020 at 6:21 AM ^
I cook mine on the Egg at 280. I also rub a whole stick of butter on it before I put it on which provides for some great basting. The Turkey on the Egg is so much better than in the oven. Cheers!
November 26th, 2020 at 7:30 AM ^
Nice! I actually make a compound butter with garlic and fresh thyme and then separate the skin from the meat and stuff the butter between skin and the meat. Rub the outside with SnP, paprika, garlic powder, massage it in. Then start roasting. Usually start the oven a bit higher and then drop the temp and let the bird go til it temps out. 3-4 hours depending on size
November 25th, 2020 at 9:48 PM ^
Family shows up around noon and dinner is served 1:30. Then turkey sandwiches and chips for a dinner/snack.
November 25th, 2020 at 9:48 PM ^
You can't take an afternoon tryptophan nap if the meal is after the afternoon.
You can't pick at the leftovers for the rest of the day if the meal isn't ready until the end of the day.
November 25th, 2020 at 9:55 PM ^
3pm every year, and it pisses me off because that’s right about the time the Lions score that one touchdown that makes you say “well, maybe they’ve got a shot...”
November 25th, 2020 at 9:56 PM ^
Eat after the lions game, miss the first part of the Cowboys game- which usually ends up being the only good football on all day- see the last part of cowboys game that is boring
November 25th, 2020 at 9:58 PM ^
Dinner. I always cook, so I prefer not getting up at 0-dark:30.
Our older kids are doing lunch at their in-laws and dinner here with the younger kids.
Also, I have the bird in a brine for the first time. Hope it works out; I heard it makes for a juicy dinner.
Happy Thanksgiving ?
November 25th, 2020 at 11:26 PM ^
buttermilk? It'll change your life.
November 26th, 2020 at 7:33 AM ^
Brined last year and got great reviews. Did a simple brinethat was basically equal parts water and brown sugar. Pay attention to your temps; overcooked the breast meat cuz I was roasting on a timeline for an unbrined Turkey. People still enjoyed it quite a bit
November 26th, 2020 at 8:57 AM ^
+1 for the proper use of the short form of the word 'because'. Too many people, who have no self-respect or sense of pride, just use the entire word 'cause' - which means something completely different! I hate that...
I am thankful that you used a proper short form - thank you for that small item...
November 25th, 2020 at 10:00 PM ^
Lunch.
Then laugh ourselves to sleep as the Lions blow the game.
November 25th, 2020 at 10:01 PM ^
Clearly you have to eat after the Lions game, not before or during. You can’t let those suckers make you sick on all that food you just ate. No! You let them kill part of your appetite. Portion control + more leftovers FTW.
November 25th, 2020 at 10:02 PM ^
Funny. We were just debating this exact thing about 20 minutes ago. We settled for a 3pm start for eating. Mostly so we can watch a family Xmas movie around 5:30, get kids ready for bed a little after, and have time for a nightcap with the grown ups.
November 25th, 2020 at 10:02 PM ^
Always dinner growing up. Then started going to my future in-laws and they did it at 12-1pm and it never made sense to me (plus the food sucked). So when we left the city and moved to the ‘burbs, we took over thanksgiving and I cook everything.
Now everyone (ex-COVID) comes over at 4pm, eat a ton of hors d’oeuvres which her family never did, sit down to turkey around 530. Then they leave, I’m half drunk and watching the late NFL game and eat my first stuffing waffle of the season.
November 26th, 2020 at 6:36 AM ^
Never had a stuffing waffle but it sounds great.
November 26th, 2020 at 8:59 AM ^
What is this 'stuffing waffle'? Please explain, it sounds like something I would enjoy...
November 26th, 2020 at 10:58 AM ^
1) preheat waffle iron
2) add a scoop of leftover stuffing, preferably sausage stuffing, to each quadrant and close the waffle iron as much as you can
3) Wait til it gets nice and crispy
4) ????
5) Profit
My favorite part of Thanksgiving, I make sure to have extra stuffing just to make sure I have a few days of stuffing waffles. I've eaten it out of hand, on a plate with turkey and extra gravy or as a waffle sandwich. Gotten a lot of people hooked on this
November 26th, 2020 at 12:25 PM ^
This is genius! It will be my breakfast/lunch tomorrow!
November 25th, 2020 at 10:12 PM ^
Thanksgiving is for dinner, BUT...this year depending on weather, an outdoor lunch may be better with all the craziness going on.
November 25th, 2020 at 10:22 PM ^
You pick away at stuff that's finished early and get yelled at by your Grandma/Mom/Wife/Aunt/whoever ... until the damn bird is done and then you make the big plate at half-time of the Lions game. After the Lions game you toss the football around, come inside, and microwave the heaping pile of prison mash plate. Watch as much of the Cowboys as you can stomach, doze off, wake up and catch the end. Drink the whole time.
November 25th, 2020 at 10:30 PM ^
We eat at noon. Pies are already made. Turkey in the smoker. Eat all day.
November 25th, 2020 at 10:33 PM ^
Eating around 1pm tomorrow. We usually eat around that time. Just me and my Mother this year. I've been taking care of her and visiting her every weekend since my POS sister doesn't do anything.
November 25th, 2020 at 10:38 PM ^
My family got tired of being too full too truly enjoy the desserts after the meal.
In response we shifted about 10 years ago to have desserts for lunch around 12. Around 5:30 or so we eat the main meal and don’t have to worry about leaving room for dessert. We enjoy it even if it is pretty untraditional.
November 26th, 2020 at 10:23 AM ^
Noon pie? That sounds terrific!
November 25th, 2020 at 10:49 PM ^
3-4pm kickoff for dinner. Split the baby!
November 25th, 2020 at 10:55 PM ^
We eat @ 1ish and then leftovers for dinner time. That's the way my family always did it, and it continued when my wife and I started hosting the family Thanksgiving.
Back in the day, that timeline allowed us to go to Black Friday deals that started on Thursday evening.
Have a great Thanksgiving, everyone!
November 25th, 2020 at 10:58 PM ^
It will just be my wife and me. My regular rising time is around 5. I will make a blueberry-rhubarb pie and cinnamon rolls early-then some deviled eggs. I will put the turkey in the oven at around 9. It is going to be a nice, mid 50s day here in South Central Kansas and we hope to be on the golf course by 10-we walk. We need to be home by 1:30 for a zoom gathering on my wife's side-Oregon, Kansas, Missouri, Indiana, Ohio and Virginia. I think we can get at least 15 holes in-maybe the whole 18 if I can hit it straight enough :) The turkey will be done by the time we get home-we will eat sometime.
November 25th, 2020 at 11:03 PM ^
We schedule dinner to be done about the time the lions game is over.
November 26th, 2020 at 6:23 AM ^
So about 1:30pm?
November 25th, 2020 at 11:03 PM ^
OP, have you thought about taking some pressure off your marriage and having Thanksgiving giving at 2:30?