Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends and family back in the states. My Thanksgiving didn't include actual Turkey this year but I didn't let that hold back my enthusiasm for the culinary king of holidays. Thanksgiving ranks the highest on my list because it encourages you to express your gratitude by partaking in a major feast. This is serious business in the Carter family. My dad's family (which holds our Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday so the men can go hunting on Thursday) is so large that we have to eat in shifts. As one group migrates to the living room to slouch on the couch with their belts loosened, the next group sits down behind them. This happens two, or three times, until everyone has gotten their chance to eat. This ritual extends the meal well past an hour which I find to be fitting for a celebration of gratitude and abundance. In honor of this holiday I thought I would post a few random Chinese Thanksgiving facts.
1. My coworkers explained today that the characters for Turkey are Fire and Chicken. Just hearing this made my mouth start to water.
2. Turkey isn't eaten regularly in China but Asian fusion has started to creep into North American Thanksgiving meals. For a interesting read click here for Jing Loh's Food Trotter post about his families Thanksgiving. I also thought I would link a recipe to inspire the creative chefs amongst us. Here is a recipe for Chinese Turkey with Eight Treasure Stuffing.
3. The last tidbit is a quick reminder that Thanksgiving is the gateway drug to all things Christmas. Once you realize you've had too much its way too late to stop. To get you in the holiday mood here is a famous Chinese Turkey from Hollywood.
This scene from "A Christmas Story" actually features a nicely roasted Peking Duck that had to be the stand in for a Turkey that was eaten by the neighbors dogs. This completely describes the "same, same, but different" philosophy that must be embraced when ordering in a Chinese restaurant.
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