Turkey & Hmong

Hi Eyes,

I know, I know, I have not been on here for a while, or posting as I should, but I will try to commit to this. How? I will try to blog once or twice a week--or more, if I have the time. But I will commit to Mondays DEFINITELY! Any who, moving on.... I hope you all had a great thanksgiving. I had a BLAST! I had TONS of turkey, yummy turkey.

How yummy? Very! This turkey recipe was influenced by many factors of the Hmong way of cooking and keeping some of its American originalities.  By American originalities, we kept the celery, potatoes, carrots, butter and the bread stuffing. The twist to this turkey’s faith are the basic Asian herbs, chicken gizzards and chicken livers and as always with every Asian dishes, Soy Sauce (Panda Brand), and Oyster soy sauce. I use both of these soy sauces; because I believe that the Panda Brand oyster soy sauce gives a pinch of sweetness to the dishes. It’s not as overwhelming as the Hoisin Soy Sauce (I don’t recommend using), the Panda Brand complements the flavors. The other Oyster Soy Sauce is savorier, and a bit salty in which I think balances the dish as a whole. This is what makes this turkey super unique, and delicious "Qhab Heev"!  When all of these ingredients come together, and marries in, it’s an explosion of flavors. Kind of like "Foie Gras" but better. Again, this is for the taste buds of the inquisitive. Trust me, the flavors are way over the top, you won’t even question it.

 Personally I don’t eat it with mash-potatoes or gravy, because of the flavors that the turkey brings, it wouldn’t be a good marriage between the two—three.  Preferably, I prefer this Hmong influence turkey to be served with a side of white rice and peppers..... And we prefer it buffet style. We don't do the whole turkey set up thingy, we usually shred the whole turkey, and mix it with the stuff and the droppings...YUMMMMmmmmm.  (The pepper, containing a mix of: Minced Thai chili, cilantro, green onion, garlic, fish sauce, and fresh squeezed lime juice) Talking about this makes me hungry….

We baked two turkeys, and everybody finished it all! And by everybody i meant the whole village..... I’m going to go off subject here for a bit, but a little background info for the unknown; In the Hmong culture, we are and value our collectivist culture, as with any other culture outside of the United States. Not only do we value our community, but more so our immediate clan members. Within every Hmong, is a Last name, (18 last names to be exact) and within every Last Name, is the dialect of the language, (So far the very common ones here in the U.S, Hmong white, Hmong green/leng), and within every dialect is its own clan with a clan leader. Now to clarify this, in every last name, there can be numerous clans, and clan leaders, however, no Hmong member is without a clan or a clan leader unless... Anyways, If you are Hmong, you belong to a clan, and are led by a clan leader. And it is in the best interest of the clan leader to invite his whole village to any of his feast, big or small. By village, I meant clan members--family member... :)

Overall, this holiday was very cheery, and I'm very thankful for everything, and everybody in my life. Again I said that I'd be random, and random I am... Cheers... :)

Pictures of The Twist to my mothers Delicious Turkey..... enjoy 

Culantro

Asian Coriander

Ginger

Garlic

Kaffir Lime Leaf

Lemon Grass

Green Onion

Cilantro

Chicken Gizzards

Chicken Liver

Panda Brand Soy Sauce

Oyster Soy Sauce

Last but DEFINITELY not Least,

Hmong Pepper....

Sorry I didn't take any pictures of our feast, it would have been a great picture.... :( Next Year.... :)