Is it too soon to start talking about turkey?

I'd like to find one that's a little bit better this year. Last year we had one that my son raised. It was not quite free range as he raised them on his hobby farm in a turkey tractor. But they were pretty darn good. Unfortunately he did not raise any fowl this summer so I'm wondering where to get something similar this year. Something convenient to the far western suburbs is preferred. And if I have to drive, then heading further west would be preferable.

Thanks!

-hank

I've been happy with - http://www.hokaturkeys.com/

Thanks Dave,
I did search and that name came up in some older threads as well. Looks like it's still a good place to go. Their location is a pleasant drive from here as well so it sounds like a win on all accounts.

thanks,
hank

You can order fresh hola turkeys at Casey's market in Naperville. Call or stop by the meat counter.

Josef's Meats in Geneva and Ream's Market in Elburn take orders for HoKa turkeys

How about places in Chicago, especially the north side?

The HoKa turkey locator......

http://www.hokaturkeys.com/where%20to%20buy.htm

Been a family tradition to head up to Ho-ka for thanksgiving turkey. Might go this route again, or might try a free range bird from the cats @ Wallace Farms out of Iowa, $3.00/lb.

10-20 lb. Range. Bird's frozen, the only thing that might hold me back. I posted about Wallace farms somewhere On here before, they have drop off locations around the area.

Last bird I got was from Aldi's...and it was fresh (as in not frozen). I thought it was good! Sometimes you don't have to stray to far to find something good.

Gilt City is offering a coupon for Big Hatt turkeys.
http://www.giltcity.com/chicago/bighatt ... y&ECA=view

Best source is John's Live Poultry on Fullerton. Call now for reservation and get your number and date. Bring cooler, cash and ice because it may or may not be chilled depending on volume and what you want. I have been using them for years and the birds are excellent.
This year my farmer friend is back in business so no John's but I will miss the place!-Dick
BTW you pay by the # live weight.
But at least your turkey has not been sitting in cold storage for a month or more.

For the last few years I've had really good luck with turkeys from Mint Creek Farms:

http://mintcreekfarm.com/products-page/ ... ng-turkey/

Hi- I know some people only want free range turkey, but for those people that are willing to eat a frozen conventionally raised turkey, a lot of stores have deals on turkeys st Thanksgiving. If you spend a certain amount at that particular grocery store, you can get the turkey either really cheap, or in some cases free. Dominick's has a deal going on in their J4U program, where you can get a free Jenny-O turkey, if you purchase $150 worth of groceries. That is more than I spend in a month at Dominick's, but I thought somebody with a large family would not have any problems spending $150 at Dominick's. I think it is $150 in cumulative purchases. You do not have to spend $150 in one shot. If somebody gets their prescriptions at Dominick's, they might be able to qualify that way. Hope this helps, Nancy

I was at Piatto Pronto for lunch today and they're taking orders for Ho-ka turkeys. Not sure of what the pick up schedule is.

Piatto Pronto‎
5624 North Clark Street
Chicago, IL 60660-4109
(773) 334-5688

NFriday wrote:Hi- I know some people only want free range turkey, but for those people that are willing to eat a frozen conventionally raised turkey, a lot of stores have deals on turkeys st Thanksgiving. If you spend a certain amount at that particular grocery store, you can get the turkey either really cheap, or in some cases free. Dominick's has a deal going on in their J4U program, where you can get a free Jenny-O turkey, if you purchase $150 worth of groceries. That is more than I spend in a month at Dominick's, but I thought somebody with a large family would not have any problems spending $150 at Dominick's. I think it is $150 in cumulative purchases. You do not have to spend $150 in one shot. If somebody gets their prescriptions at Dominick's, they might be able to qualify that way. Hope this helps, Nancy

The definition of 'free range' is open to just about anything a seller would like.
There are really three types of turkeys available.
The first and i believe the best Turkey is one that has no 'basting solution' added. These 'basting solutions' are salt, chemicals and water. Be aware that even turkeys of this category labeled 'fresh' have probably been in cold storage for a month or more. I purchase fresh just processed turkeys.
Next is a 'kosher' turkey which by virtue of its name has been prepared with salt, usually sold frozen and many like them for the taste because of the salt.
The last 'turkey' and i use the word turkey advisably is one that been chemically adulterated and usually sold frozen although they are also being sold fresh labeled 'All Natural' because the chemicals used are supposedly 'Natural', go figure? These are the turkeys discounted or given away free. I avoid them at all costs. These turkeys were developed to counter the effects of freezing and not to provide a better bird.-Dick

I just ordered an organic fresh turkey from whole foods for pickup on 11/22. They're $3.49/lb and as much as I wanted to do the mint creek thing, they're $7.99/lb, way too expensive for me. I got a 10-12lb, should be more than enough for 3-4 of us.

Not too soon for me to start talking turkey; I am roasting one tonight. I bought a frozen one - just under 8.5 lbs, the smallest one the store had - a few days ago. (I am just the kind of shopper that the owner of Garden Fresh - who's recently jacked up prices noticeably - must hate; I spent more than an hour in the store and spent only $21, of which $10 was on a small cheap frozen turkey, $1.29/lb.)

When I got it home I said it was a practice turkey, but I'm really not nervous at all about roasting a turkey; I just don't want turkey to be something we only have once or twice a year (Thanksgiving and Christmas). So while the sales are on, I plan to do a few more turkeys than that over the next few months.

Right now today's turkey is brining. My only doubt about it is how long to cook it. The guidelines in a few books I looked at start at 2 to 2.5 hours for 12 to 14 pounds and so on up from there, in half-hour increments for 2-lb increments. It can't be a linear relationship in both directions, or I'd be able to roast this 8.5-lb turkey whole in about an hour. It's not critical, just a Sunday dinner, but I do need to be able to tell people when dinner will be.

I found good advice on the range of cooking times for chickens and turkeys, whole and butterflied, in Julia's Kitchen Wisdom. I decided to butterfly it (the smaller the turkey the easier it is to wrangle), and cook it for about 1.5 hours. Or, come to think of it, maybe I'll grill it. Or, half on the grill and half in the oven, for comparison. Why not? It's a practice turkey.

Hi folks,
Thanks for all the tips. I decided to go out to the farm and get a Hoka turkey. We picked up a 14 pound bird yesterday. It went into a brine as soon as I got home and this morning it was in the smoker shortly before 7:00 AM. I was very happy with the results.

Just one more comment on free range turkeys.... A producer can put a door to a yard on the building in which they raise the birds and call it free range. There is no requirement for how much space each bird gets. You are pretty much depending on either trusting the producer or inspecting yourself to make sure you are getting what you want. I'm probably naive but Hoka seemed like the kind of business I could trust.

best,
hank

This was our third year with a Ho-Ka, and we have found them to be excellent. I roasted a 22.8-pounder, no brine, covered in bacon the first 2 1/2 hours, and the bird came out moist and delicious. Still looking forward to a few more meals from that bird!

Hi- I was in Dominick's today, and noticed that they had some frozen organic turkeys for $2.99 a pound. Did anybody try one of those O Organic turkeys at Dominick's? Thanks, Nancy

When I asked Mr. Pie what he wanted for Thanksgiving II this year, he mentioned ham. Since I can't imagine not having an abundance of turkey (and leftover sandwiches) and I was toying with the idea of buying a separate breast and legs this year anyway, I thought I'd splurge a bit and order the good stuff. I believe someone mentioned in a post last year that you can buy parts separate, but can you order fresh ones ahead? If so, any recommendations for places that I can order a breast, 4 legs, and a nice ham that won't break the bank?

I called Schmeisser's and they quoted $5.89/$5.99 per pound of fresh HoKa (bone-in/boneless respectively). Apparently you can order legs. Ham is $4.99 per pound. Do these prices sound average?

The Ho-Ka turkeys are something like $4.75/lb at Fresh Farms Niles. I don't know if they sell boneless turkeys, though.

I also called Joseph's on Addison and their breasts were going for $3.59. I didn't ask about ham. I'd really love to give my money to Schmeisser's but that's a really great price.

Just a data point: I ordered my Hoka turkey yesterday at Hyde Park Treasure Island and it was under $3/lb. I'm seeing a lot of much higher prices listed in the thread, and I don't think of TI as bargain village by any means.

Hoka turkeys are $2.79/lb at Valli Produce (on North Ave., Glendale Heights)

Jacques Pépin's Steamed and Roasted Turkey recipe in the NYT. It looks very tempting, but I am sticking to my mother's tried and true method (first part of roasting, drape the turkey with bacon to cover).

Pie Lady wrote:I can't imagine not having an abundance of turkey (and leftover sandwiches) and I was toying with the idea of buying a separate breast and legs this year anyway

Why not buy a whole turkey or two and cut them up? Cook the parts you want and freeze the rest. You can always use the wings and other extra parts for stock.

Popped up to Ho-Ka in WAterman, Il., Yesterday(plus n.aurora, and dekalb gathering t-day ingredients)

WHole bird was $2.79/lb., bone in breast was $2.89/lb.

Gonna get the breast boned out and into the brine later today. Gnna make a fine turkey "pastrami".

stevez wrote:The Ho-Ka turkeys are something like $4.75/lb at Fresh Farms Niles. I don't know if they sell boneless turkeys, though.

Not sure where you saw that number. I just picked up my Ho-Ka turkey at Niles Fresh Farms for $2.79/lb (about 16.5lbs for a little over $45).