Osechi-ness of Turkey
English follows
クリスマスは、23日、24日と連続で友達招いてホームパーティーをした。特に24日は多国籍大人数だったので、フェスティブ気分を盛り上げるべく、丸のターキーを焼いた。
アメリカではターキーといえばサンクスギビングだが、イギリスはクリスマスのご馳走。この時期ばかりは、3キロくらいの切り身から10キロ超えの大物まで、どのスーパーでも下処理済のものが買える。
数年前にはじめて切り身を焼いた時はパサパサでチキンのほうがおいしいと思ったが、今回は6キロ超の丸焼きに挑戦。
いろいろ調べるとブライン液の漬け込みが秘訣というので、2日前から砂糖と塩とセロリとワインと香辛料を混ぜた液に漬け込んだ。このサイトを参照。
前夜に内臓でスタッフィングを作り、首の骨から取ったスープでスプラウトも煮込んだ。当日は早起きして6時に冷蔵庫から出し、8時からオーブン180度で3時間半焼いた。
仕上げに1時間休める間に、焼いてでたエキスをバターと小麦で整えたら絶品のグレービーソースになる。別途、クランベリーを砂糖とオレンジと煮ただけのソースも作る。そして無事、綺麗に美味しく焼けたのに、達成感のあまりに出来上がり写真を撮り忘れてしまった。
あとはクラッカーとチーズくらいしか用意しなかったが、ポトラック形式で友達が美味しいラザニア、フォカッチャ、サラダや華やかなフルーツツリーやキャロットケーキを持ってきてくれたので、クリスマスパーティーらしい賑やかな食卓になった。
そして翌25日もターキー。ロンドンのクリスマス当日は日本の元旦めいていて、お店も公共の交通機関も、のきなみ休業でどこにも行けないので、みんな家でのんびり過ごすのだ。
朝はターキーサンドイッチ、夜はターキーのガラから取ったスープと胸肉でポトフ。（今回、ターキーからは大変濃厚な絶品ストックが取れることを発見）。
更に26日もスタッフィングをつまみ、夜は残り肉でサムゲタン…本来オリーブオイルと白ワインで仕込んだのにそのアレンジは邪道っぽいけど、3日目にもなると風味を変えたくて。プルプルの手羽（といってもチキンのももより骨が太い）がとてもいい仕事をして、美味しくできた。
翌日から旅に出てしまうので、なお食べきれない肉を冷凍するためにジップロックに小分けにしながら、この食べても食べてもなくならない特別料理の感じは正月のおせち料理っぽいな、と気づいた。
数日がかりで準備して3日間食いつなぐ。それを英国人は、クリスマスにターキーでやる。
日本の友達にその発見を告げると「実家では年末にマグロを一尾、刺身、漬け、かま焼き、粗煮、お吸い物などにしてた（子供時代の数年だけだけど）」と言うので、出身を聞いたらやはり土佐にルーツがあった。
マグロすごい。羨ましい。子供時代の数年というのが、その料理の大変さを物語る。そうだよね、自分のためにはやらないもん。子供や家族が喜ぶから手間かけてクリスマスツリーを飾るし、友達を呼んで大きなターキーを焼くのである。
連日食べて飽きた子供には「そんなに好きじゃない」と言われてしまい、愛が伝わりにくいのもまたおせちっぽい。
うちは夫婦ともに瀬戸内出身なので、市場で仕入れた新鮮な鯛、鰆、鰤、イイダコとか…あの馳走は親の愛であったなと思い出を見返すと、正月に日本に帰りたくなってきたのでこの辺にしておこう。
どなたさまも、良い年末年始をお過ごしください。
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I hosted home parties on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, inviting a bunch of friends. Especially on the 24th, with a diverse group of guests, I decided to roast a whole turkey to amp up the festive mood.
While turkey is synonymous with Thanksgiving in the US, it's a Christmas cuisine in the UK. During this season you can find pre-prepared turkeys of all sizes, from 3kg cuts to massive 10kg+ birds, in local supermarkets.
A few years ago, when I first tried roasting a turkey cutlet, I thought it's not that good. However, this time I learned that brining is key, so I challenged myself with a 6kg+ whole bird. Compared to my usual 1.2kg chicken, it was 5 times the size and cost £35 at Waitrose. It barely fit in my oven.
22nd December
After some research, I started to soak the turkey in a Brine; mixture of sugar, salt, celery, lemon, white-wine, and spices.
23rd December
The night before, I made a stuffing with the innards and simmered sprouts in the broth from the neck bones.
24th December - Party!
On the day, I got up early and took the turkey out of the fridge at 6 AM, and roasted it at 180°C for 3.5 hours in a roasting bag.
In addition, while resting the baked turkey for an hour, I made a gravy sauce by reducing the pan juices with butter and flour. I also made a simple cranberry sauce with sugar and oranges.,
Regret is that I forgot to take a picture of the beautiful result of my big project in excitement.
Although I only had crackers and cheese on hand, my friends brought along delicious lasagna, focaccia, salads, a stunning fruit tree, and lovely carrot cake, making our Christmas dinner a feast.
25th December - Christmas!!
We had turkey all the day long. London on Christmas Day is like New Year's Day in Japan, with most shops and public transport closed, so everyone stays home. We had turkey sandwiches for breakfast and turkey and vegetable pot-au-feu for dinner, using the broth from the carcass and the breast meat. I discovered that this turkey produced an incredibly rich and delicious stock.
26th December - yet another turkey day
We snacked on the stuffing and had samgyetang (Korean chicken ginseng soup) with the leftover meat for dinner.
I know it's a bit unconventional to use olive oil and white wine for samgyetang, but I wanted a change of flavor after three days of turkey. The tender, thick-boned wings (but it's much bigger than chicken drumsticks) was a great addition to the soup.
Since we were going on a trip from the next day, I started portioning the leftover meat into freezing bags and realized that this endless supply of special food felt a lot like "Osechi" (traditional Japanese New Year dishes).
It takes several days to prepare and can last for three festive days. That's exactly what the British do with turkey at Christmas.
When I shared this discovery with a Japanese friend, she said, "In my family, we used to have a whole tuna for New Year's, and we'd eat it as sashimi, marinated, grilled, simmered, and in miso soup. Although it was only for a few years when I was a child."
Tuna is amazing! I'm so envious. When I asked where she was from, she said her family had a root in Tosa (Kochi prefecture) as I guessed. Yes, Tosa is traditionally famous for the brilliant seafood dish.
The fact that she said "only for a few years when I was a child" speaks volumes about the effort involved in preparing such a feast. I guess they'd do it because they want to give their children wow, just like decorating a Christmas tree or roasting a big turkey. I wouldn't do it just for myself.
It's funny how even the kids who get tired of eating the same thing for days might say, "I don't really like turkey," which is so relatable to osechi.
Since my husband and I are both from the Seto Inland Sea region, we would have fresh sea bream, mackerel, yellowtail, and octopus from the market as the New Year's feast. Thinking back to those makes me starting to miss those Japanese foods.Well, I think I'll stop here before I get too nostalgic.
Wishing everyone a happy lest of the holiday season!