Cooking Corner - Infusing Asian Cooking with a Traditional Thanksgiving Meal
Thanksgiving with a Twist!
The first Thanksgiving was celebrated in 1621 when the pilgrims and indians celebrated for three days giving thanks for the crops they had grown. Not much is truly know about that first feast, however, history and cookbooks belonging to the pilgrims tells us that deer and duck were served at the meal, along with squash, cabbage, seafood, berries and corn. Turkey isn’t mentioned and mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce hadn’t been invented yet. Imagine a Thanksgiving table without turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy? No way!
Traditional Thanksgiving Foods
Thanksgiving throughout America sure looks a lot different than the first meal in Massachusetts. Today, more than 90% of the households in the U.S. serve turkey. Mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, corn, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, rolls, butter, stuffing and of course pumpkin pie adorn the majority of tables as well.
Adding an Asian Flair
Read below for ideas on how to infuse an asian flavor to your table this Thanksgiving. Who knows, perhaps this will become a tradition to carry on through generations of family.
- Add Sriracha and wasabi mayonnaise to deviled eggs.
- Why not try glazed carrots with red miso paste?
- Serve jasmine rice in a butternut squash bowl. Add a little coconut for extra flavor.
- Glaze turkey wings with a cranberry plum sauce.
- Fry up turkey and sweet potato dumplings.
- Create a hoisin green bean salad.
- How about mashed potatoes with a scallion garlic oil?
- Stir fry corn in butter.
- For dessert, pumpkin egg rolls will pair nicely with pumpkin pie and a dollop of whip cream. Or, try a rice krispie bar infused with pecan and ginger.
Don’t forget to ask your host student for ideas. Their participation in the meal will make them feel at home and may even lessen some of the homesick feelings they may be having during the holidays.
Citation:
- Scholastic: http://www.scholastic.com/scholastic_thanksgiving
- Food and Wine: http://www.foodandwine.com
- The Daily Meal: https://www.thedailymeal.com
