Turkey: Light Meat or Dark?

[Greg Who Cooks]

Most people seem to prefer their turkey meat light. I prefer the dark meat and from what I've seen I'm the exception. To me light meat seems dry and flavorless, dark meat tastes moist, juicy and has more flavor.

Which do you prefer? And why?

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Dark meat, always. Moist and flavorful! Shrek likes the light meat, we have the whole bird covered.

 

[taxlady]

Dark meat, always. Moist and flavorful! Shrek likes the light meat, we have the whole bird covered.

Same here, for all birds, so we don't have duck or goose at my house (phooey). I don't really care for turkey, so we don't cook that here either, but sometimes have it at his mum's house. DH likes turkey a little bit, so once or twice a year is enough for him. Yup, Canadian and the mummy-in-law usually makes turkey for Xmas.

 

[DaveSoMD]

Dark meat here too. I think it has more flavor and is never the slightest bit dry.

 

[Robo410]

dark next to stuffing with gravy. light in a sandwich with mayo lettuce and tomato

 

[Kayelle]

The dark meat answers above are kind of surprising to me. I also prefer dark meat with turkey and chicken. I'll eat a sandwich out of breast because I use enough mayo to make it edible, otherwise I think breast is mostly dry and tasteless.
I think we probably should keep this information under wraps until turkeys start growing thighs as big as hooters.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

The dark meat answers above are kind of surprising to me. I also prefer dark meat with turkey and chicken. I'll eat a sandwich out of breast because I use enough mayo to make it edible, otherwise I think breast is mostly dry and tasteless.

Here's a few more questions to think about: Chicken breasts: bone-in or boneless? Steaks: bone-in or boneless? How do you want that steak cooked? I suspect that many of us on the forum recognize that meat cooked on the bone is more tasty, more tender. I bet those of us on the forum are more likely to order our steaks medium-rare than medium-well or (horrors, horrors!) well done.

I agree that turkey breast is okay on sandwiches as long as there's lots of mayonnaise, but it's not at all unusual for me to load up with nothing but dark meat when roasted turkey is served, preferably thigh meat. It's the juiciest, most tender and flavorful part of the turkey.

I don't even understand why most people go for the white meat, but it's a fact. And I'm not going to try to convince anybody to switch to the dark meat. There's more left for me!

 

[taxlady]

The dark meat answers above are kind of surprising to me. I also prefer dark meat with turkey and chicken. I'll eat a sandwich out of breast because I use enough mayo to make it edible, otherwise I think breast is mostly dry and tasteless.
I think we probably should keep this information under wraps until turkeys start growing thighs as big as hooters.

I nearly lost my breath laughing. Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

There's a Chinese restaurant I go to that has a notice they will prepare chicken dishes with white meat only for a $1 extra charge. I've been tempted to ask them if they'd give me a discount for dark meat only.

 

[bakechef]

I don't care for the stronger taste of dark meat, nor the fat, veins and tendons that you have to eat around. If your breast meat is dry and tasteless, then it isn't cooked right.

 

[Andy M.]

I prefer dark but also enjoy white.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

That's why I like the thighs, not the legs or wings, because of the lack of tendons etc. There's no doubt dark meat has a stronger taste, so I guess it depends on individual preference if they like that taste or not.

 

[Addie]

Hold a gun to my head and I will nibble on the thigh. I don'tlike turkey. And I only eat the thigh of a chicken. A very small thigh.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Hold a gun to my head ...

Why would anybody want to force somebody else to eat some food item? IMO that's why some people develop food dislikes, because they were forced to eat something and they built up a life long aversion to that food. Because they were forced to eat it.

 

[vitauta]

love that dark meat--legs and thighs. duckling and goose--all dark meat--sighs....

for me, white meat needs considerable "doctoring" in order to be palatable.

 

[Timothy]

Why would anybody want to force somebody else to eat some food item? IMO that's why some people develop food dislikes, because they were forced to eat something and they built up a life long aversion to that food. Because they were forced to eat it.

I too only like dark meat. Regardless of how well white meat is cooked, it has this weird "dryness" to it that is unappealing to me. Like others, if I eat it on a sandwich, it is loaded with mayo or anything moist like pickles and the like so I can swallow it. Otherwise, it's like trying to eat sawdust.

Greg, when I was a child, we ate everything on our plates after my Dad served the plates. If we didn't eat it at the supper table and we wern't sick, then it was what we had for breakfast the next day. So I guess you could say we were "forced" to eat every food that was served to us.

We weren't allowed to "dislike" any foods. It's why I grew up liking all types of foods. A picky eater in my Dad's house would starve to death.

 

[vitauta]

tim, i for one would like to see a thread about picky eaters, and how they think they got that way. i don't know how much science there is about this subject. if it exists, i've somehow managed to miss it entirely. care to start that thread, tim?

then again, in a group of mostly avowed foodies, there may not be many picky eaters among us--or are there?

 

[buckytom]

i go for both dark and white meats with equal enthusiasm.

it's true that on a whole bird, it's very difficult to get really moist white meat while ensuring the darker meat is cooked properly. but from a bird divided into parts, it's just a matter of removing the white meat from the oven, skillet, or grill at the right time while letting the dark meat go longer.
even so, white meat has very little room for error. a minute too soon, and it's still pink and undercooked. a minute or so too long, and it's dry and not juicy in any shape or form. but then, that's what gravy is for.

dw have a 20 year running battle about how i cook turkey and chicken breasts. she cooks hers to death - imo, but i tend to undercook it in her eyes. she always cuts into any bird i cook with the precision of a surgeon, trying to find a pink spot to prove i'm undercooking it.

occasionally, i nail it and she's happy. no pink, but nice, juicy, white meat. since she's a health nut, we don't have gravy often to make up for overcooking, so my m.o. is to err on the side of the undercooked.

i was watching a gordon ramsay special about christmas feasts the other day and he mentioned that when he was in culinary school, he was taught to rest the bird after cooking for as long as he'd actually cooked it. 3 hour cooking time = 3 hours resting.

he seemed to scoff a bit at it, but still tried to make the point that if you want juicy meat, rest the bird a good long time, then serve with a hot gravy to make up for the then room temperature meat.

 

[Foodfiend]

If it's a Butterball Turkey I like both the white and dark meat. If it's a different brand turkey it's strictly dark. The Butterball Turkey has a moister white meat than other brands, and I can't stand dry white meat.

 

[Timothy]

tim, i for one would like to see a thread about picky eaters, and how they think they got that way. i don't know how much science there is about this subject. if it exists, i've somehow managed to miss it entirely. care to start that thread, tim?

then again, in a group of mostly avowed foodies, there may not be many picky eaters among us--or are there?

Hey vitauta, I seem to remember a "Picky Eaters" thread just recently. Perhaps one of the Mods or other members will remember it and provide a link. Before starting another, lets see if that develops first.

Here are the threads I found:

http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/f164/help-picky-in-laws-coming-76581.html

http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/f17/fussy-eaters-75363.html

http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/f17/help-with-a-picky-eater-71090.html

http://www.discusscooking.com/forum...-person-youd-ever-have-to-cook-for-64458.html