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This column is for self-study or classroom use and gives guided help with reading the wide variety of writing styles and topics that appear as feature articles in the Bangkok Post. The lessons include background information, skill-building practice and vocabulary explanations. December 23, 2003 Let’s talk turkey INTRODUCTION

The expression 'to talk turkey' usually has an idiomatic meaning – to talk about something seriously. But two days before Christmas, it’s the real turkey that is the topic of today’s readings. For many Western families, turkey dinner is the traditional Christmas Day meal. Just how that became the tradition is part of what you will find out here. There is also some turkey trivia – funny, interesting or unusual facts, in this case, about turkeys. Trivia makes great conversation starters, so get ready to stock up on information to share at this season’s parties. Then for those of you who might like to try cooking your own turkey, other bird or roast meat during the holidays, there are three traditional stuffing recipes from the Bangkok Post’s resident chef, Saow Krungthep. First the trivia Read all the stories, facts and trivia. Then choose three short pieces of trivia and one longer story that you think are the most interesting. Practice telling your chosen information so you can do it without reading. Then share what you know with your classmates or in conversation with friends. You could start your conversation with: "Did you know that ...?" Still curious about Christmas? If you have access to the Internet, you can find all kinds of fun facts simply by typing "Christmas trivia" or "Christmas facts" in a search engine. See if you can find something that no one else knows and have fun at parties this time of year. There is more Christmas trivia on different topics in this week’s instant lessoni on page here in learning post. Stuffing choices When we buy turkeys either frozen or fresh from the supermarket or butcher shop, they are already cleaned, that is, the internal organs have all been removed. That leaves a large cavity and that’s where the stuffing is put — stuffed in. As the bird roasts, the juices from the meat flow into the stuffing mixture adding flavour. Some cooks prefer to cook the stuffing in a separate pan. That’s possible but then the resulting stuffing lacks the flavour of the meat blended with it. One health safety point: To avoid bacteria developing in the stuffing, stuff the bird just before you put it in the oven. Read the three different recipes for stuffing and think about your own taste – which one appeals most to you? Do you like a lot of herbs in your food? What about nuts, does anyone in your family have nut allergies? What kind of nuts do you like? Do you like fruit, too? What kind of liquid would you prefer, milk, cream, water, turkey broth, white wine? Once you’ve made your choice, look at the preparations of each recipe. What are the steps that are common (the same) to all, what are the differences? OUR STORIES FROM THE BANGKOK POST

Turkey stories and trivia What kind of bird? Turkeys have been around for 10 million years — there are fossils to prove it. Turkeys originated from Mexico not Turkey. Wild turkeys are native to northern Mexico and the eastern United States. They were domesticated in Mexico and taken to Europe in the 16th century. Wild turkeys can run and fly; they often roost in trees at night. However, domesticated turkeys have been bred for large breasts where the favourite white meat is. They are so front heavy that the male, “tom turkey” is not able to fertilise the eggs of the female, “hen turkeys” in the natural mating position. Baby turkeys are all the result of eggs fertilised in a hatchery. Tom turkeys have beards. This is black, hair-like feathers on their breast. Hens sometimes have beards, too. The fleshy growth under a turkey’s throat is called a wattle. Turkeys’ heads change colors when they become excited. Turkeys can see movement almost a hundred yards away but do not see well at night. Turkeys have very good hearing even though they don’t have ears like ours. Male turkeys gobble. Hens do not; they make a clicking noise. Christmas turkey Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol is thought to be responsible for making the serving of turkey for Christmas dinner popular in England. In the story, the stingy Mr Scrooge finally had a change of heart after his night time visits from the ghosts of past, present and future. Newly filled with Christmas spirit, he rushed out to buy the prize turkey for the family of his employee, Bob Cratchit. That made Christmas a joyous feast day for Bob’s family and his disabled son, Tiny Tim. The whole story is available for you to read on the Internet at http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/DicChri.html How the turkey got its name There are a number of explanations for the origin of the name. – no one seems to know for sure. Some believe Christopher Columbus thought that the land he discovered was connected to India, and believed the bird he discovered (the wild turkey) was a type of peacock. (He was right about that.) He therefore called it ‘tuka’ which is ‘peacock’ in Tamil, the language of present-day Sri Lanka. The Native American name for turkey is 'firkee'; some say this is how turkeys got their name. When a turkey is scared, it makes a "turk, turk, turk" noise. The English had a bird they called a "turkey" because it arrived by ship from the country of Turkey. When the Spanish found the wild turkey in the Americas they took it back to Europe. The English mistakenly thought it was the same as their turkey and gave the new bird the same name. Other fun facts Turkeys have heart attacks. The United States Air Force was doing test runs and breaking the sound barrier. Turkeys in a field nearby dropped dead with heart attacks from the shock of passing jets. Turkeys can drown if they look up when it is raining. Groups of domesticated turkey have been seen standing in the rain with their beaks pointed straight up toward the sky. Nobody seems to know why. They are extremely curious creatures, so some turkey experts guess that they are curious about raindrops. Or could they be attempting to get a drink of water? Nevertheless, since their nostrils are tiny oval-shaped openings alongside their beaks, they make the prefect holder for the falling rain. Not having enough sense to come in out of the rain the turkeys drown. The turkey and the bald eagle were each considered as the national symbol of America. The bald eagle won. For their first meal on the moon, astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin ate roast turkey in foil packets. A 15 pound turkey usually has about 70 percent white meat and 30 percent dark meat. Eighty-seven per cent of the people in the UK serve a traditional roast turkey on the Christmas dinner table. Twenty-two million turkeys are eaten each Christmas in the United States. Turkey meat is low in fat and high in protein. White meat has fewer calories and less fat than dark meat. These stories and trivia were compiled from the following websites: http://www.hillingdontimes.co.uk/christmas/ http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/Xmas/dinner.html http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/turkey/history.html Holiday stuffings Saow Krungthep Looking for a delicious, easy-to-make stuffing to accompany your holiday turkey, duck, goose, chicken, or roast pork dinner? Here's a selection to choose from. Each recipe makes enough for one 18-20-pound (8-9kg) turkey. BREAD AND WALNUT STUFFING Preparation time: 10 minutes Ingredients 6 slices white or whole wheat bread, cubed 1/2 cup finely diced onion 1/2 cup finely diced celery 1/2 cup broken walnuts, pecans, or hazelnuts milk or water generous pinches dried rosemary, sage, oregano, marjoram and thyme 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper Preparation Place the bread, onion, celery, walnuts, herbs, salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Toss lightly. Add just enough milk to moisten the bread mixture. Mix to moisten the bread evenly and then the stuffing's ready. APPLE AND SAUSAGE STUFFING Preparation time: 10 minutes Ingredients 3 cups bread cubes 6 oz pork sausage, crumbled and cooked through 3/4 cup diced sweet apple, peeled 1/2 cup finely diced onion 1/2 cup broken walnuts generous pinches dried rosemary, sage, oregano, marjoram and thyme 1/4 tsp minced garlic 3/4 cup turkey broth or water 1/3 cup butter Preparation Place the bread, cooked sausage, apple, onion, walnuts, herbs and garlic in a large bowl and mix. Put the broth and butter in a saucepan and heat until the butter has melted. Toss with the bread and then the stuffing's ready. CHESTNUT STUFFING Preparation time: 10 minutes Ingredients 3/4 lb butter 1 1/4 cup finely diced onion 5 cups coarsely chopped celery 1/3 cup finely minced fresh parsley 7 1/2 cups cubed white bread 1 1/4 pound roasted chestnuts, peeled and coarsely diced 1/4 tsp nutmeg 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp ground black pepper 1/3 cup cream or milk 1/4 cup white wine, turkey broth or water Preparation Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Next place the onions, celery and parsley in the pan and fry for about five minutes being careful not to allow the onions to brown. Place the bread, chestnuts, nutmeg, salt and pepper in a large bowl and toss thoroughly to mix. Combine the cream and wine and then pour it over the bread mixture. Add the sauteed onion mix and the drippings from the pan. Toss lightly and then use. • This lesson was prepared by Maureen Paetkau, a professional teacher of English as a second and foreign language and Assistant Manager and Webmaster for Learning Post at the Bangkok Post. Read our other feature focus columns here. Return to our home page. | Comments to Maureen at maureen@bangkokpost.co.th | | © The Post Publishing Public Co., Ltd. All rights reserved 2003 | Last modified: December 22, 2003