Talking Turkey with Sean Brock

Charleston cooking king Sean Brock sits down with Food Republic to plead the cause of heritage birds talk turkey. Though some restaurants shy away from the bird around Thanksgiving, he thinks it's a serious mistake:

If you eat a real turkey – a heritage breed turkey raised by someone in a sustainable manner with care and love – it is the most delicious thing. It's going to taste amazing if you cook a heritage breed turkey, even if you don't know how to cook a turkey.

He promises to serve the signature fowl at both Husk and McCrady's, but that doesn't translate to the traditional stuff. "We'll do turkey pastrami and we'll smoke it and do turkey barbecue," he says about Husk. And for the rest of the bird, "we'll take the leftovers and cold smoke it." His personal uses for leftovers drift even farther from the norm of sandwiches and turkey hash:

What I'll do – because I'm addicted to it – is take really good ramen noodles and the turkey stock, and add kelp and katsuobushi to it and make like a turkey dashi. You shred the turkey, crisp up the skin and put it on the top with poached egg and fresh vegetables.

Brock says the warm and cozy feelings of Thanksgiving don't have to end on November 22. His Southern roots teach him to extend the meal for as long as possible:

There's a communal aspect of being at a table with your loved ones and we blow it out in the South. There's 30 or 40 components and you eat for days, like three times in one day. It's when you bring your best dishes and show off.

[Photo: Facebook]