Turkey for Tuesday
We ate turkey the other night. In February! We didn’t do the whole roasted bird routine, mind you, just kebobs on the barbecue. For someone who has come from a family that only ate turkey at Christmas and Thanksgiving, it felt strange.
The turkey producers of Canada would love to see us put turkey on our plates more often. They want to make every Tuesday “Turkey Tuesday,” but it has been an uphill struggle in a land where we have been programmed by tradition to think of the big bird as a food of celebration. My mom tried (just once) to do a bird for Easter, but she was beaten down by the cries of “Where’s the ham?” Over the past 20 years, there has been an increase of “non-festive” consumption of turkey in Canada, but we are still missing the boat on the number of possible uses for this low-fat and high protein meat.
Turkey breast meat provides the same healthy eating as does chicken white meat. It is high in protein and iron and low in fats. In fact, turkey white meat has slightly more protein and less fat per gram than chicken white meat. Both meats are versatile and can be substituted for higher fat meats in dishes such as lasagna, shepards pie, chili, stew and stir-fries. For the meal I was preparing the other night, kebobs, turkey breast or “steaks” as they are sometimes called when cut from larger breasts, work better than chicken. Anyone who has tried to prepare skewered chicken and has worked with irregular shaped chicken pieces would enjoy working with the firmer turkey cubes. Please note: I am not talking about cold cuts and other processed turkey foods. You have to read the labels of these products carefully. Ground turkey can have more fat content than ground beef, if it contains skin and dark meat.
I thought that there might be a price difference between chicken and turkey, but I found that they have comparable prices. So why would I want to add turkey to our diet? Variety! Boredom is the undoing of many a great diet and sensible eating plan. It is hard to come up consistently with interesting low-fat meals for the family (or at least ones they will enjoy). Turkey widens the field of possibilities so that you aren’t driven back to eating less healthy options.
It is interesting to note that Israel has the largest per capita consumption of turkey in the world, followed by the US. Canadians eat only a third of the turkey that an Israeli eats. Clearly, Israel is not hampered by the “festive occasion only” rule. So why are we so far behind?
I think there may be a “chicken & egg” dilemma happening here. If my grocer would display more turkey products in the poultry section, I would buy more. And my grocer would probably say that he would display more if....you get the picture.
The number of turkey producers in Canada dropped dramatically between the years of 1950 to 1965. In Ontario, the number of producers went from a high of 1500 to only 450 in 1965. At about that time, the provinces started forming marketing boards. This was in response to the lack of government control over the import of US turkey, which caused Canadian producers to get out of the business. The BC marketing board was formed in 1962, and is the oldest in Canada. The purpose of the combined boards was to pressure the Canadian government into restricting import of US birds. There are currently tariffs placed on these imports, and slowly the number of Canadians producing turkey is increasing. Ontario is the top producer, followed by Quebec, BC and Alberta. The US is still the number one producer and exporter of turkey in the world.
As if this weren’t enough trouble for the plight of the turkey in Canada, the poor old bird has had to overcome the turkey coma syndrome. For years, we have been led to believe that it was the high content of L-tryptophan in turkey that led to diners feeling like taking a nap after a Christmas or Thanksgiving dinner. L-tryptophan is indeed a precursor to serotonin which is formed in the brain and plays a role in sleep production and relaxation. But the amount of serotonin formed is not alone enough to cause a mass grogginess. In fact, chicken and hamburger both contain this chemical. It is more likely the effect of the tremendous amount of calories from carbohydrates and the increased flow of blood to the abdomen to aid in digestion of a huge meal, combined with the serotonin that causes the tiredness. It’s not the birds fault. If we didn’t abstain from eating turkey the rest of the year, we wouldn’t be tempted to over-indulge at the special meals.
There is no significant fat transferred to the meat of chicken or turkey when it is roasted with the skin on. In fact, leaving the skin on will lead to moister and tastier meat. Remove the skin only after cooking. I didn't know that!