Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with turkey

Public hygiene help for Istanbul Gezi Park

procrastinator — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 06:44:09 -0800

How to sustain public hygiene and battle possible health hazards, possibly with strong chemicals, without poisoning the soil or thousands of people? I'm sure many of you have heard about the huge protests over here in Istanbul. It's still going on, and I'm among the many thousands living and working inside the Gezi Park, the center of the events. Obviously, with so many people visiting and living inside a relatively small area, we are starting to have growing public hygiene problems. The most immediately problematic areas are, understandably, the public restrooms—some brick-and-mortar, some portable... and it stinks. It would be straightforward to just take brooms, brushes and whatnot to wash everything away with some chemicals but this is a park, so we'd love to have advice on how to deal with a situtation like this without poisoning the soil and killing the greenery so many people fought to save.

What kind of—preferably cheap or DIY—machinery can we use with what kind of cleaning materials? Something like this, perhaps?

What should we look out for? What are we most probably are not aware of and will come to regret later? What are some ways to organize people and materials in the most efficient and speedy manner for this? Any related advice or how-to is welcome, really.

Thanks!

What is going on in Turkey?

escape from the potato planet — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 06:27:40 -0800

Help me understand what's happening in Turkey. Who are the protesters? What's their beef with Erdogan? How widespread is the anti-Erdogan sentiment among the Turkish people? What kind of social/economic/political/ethnic factions are in play here (for example, I gather that Erdogan's government and its supporters are more conservative/old/religious, and the protesters are more the opposite)? I've seen some video of Turkish police behaving like outright thugs (e.g., clubbing young women who are literally standing around doing nothing)—how much of this is going on? Do the Turkish police typically act with some degree of impunity?

I know very little (okay, nothing) of Turkish politics, and I never feel like I'm getting the full story from commercial news agencies. Basically, any background or anecdata you can provide will be helpful—and I'm sure I'm not the only one wondering. Thanks!

Bus journey from Ankara airport to city center?

Basque13 — Thu, 09 May 2013 13:07:30 -0800

I am travelling for four days to Turkey's capital. My hotel is in downtown Ankara and I have been told I should take bus 442 and get off at Kizilay city center, which is a 5-minute-walk away (hotel at Kültür Mh.Ataç-2 Sokak No:46). Does anyone know the area? Any major landmark(s) I should pay attention to so as not to miss my stop? How viable are EGO buses to get around? (I'll also need to travel daily to the university Cebeci Campus)

Need help choosing Aegean hotels/transportation in Turkey

yellowcandy — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 17:55:23 -0800

My partner and I will be in Turkey later this month and will have three days in and around Izmir. We plan to visit Ephesus, the Dilek park, as well as maybe Samos and/or Chios. We need some help making decisions about how to get around and where in the area to stay for a few nights. We are also very open to taking suggestions of other nearby places to visit, if you have those.

1. We're open to renting a car in Izmir (where we fly in) and driving, if it's safe to do that. We are both good drivers and both drive stick. We are also open to taking buses if that's a better option--neither of us knows enough about the area to be sure which is better. So, what's the best way for us to get around?

2. We need to figure out where to stay. We're not locked in to any place in particular, but we'd prefer to be out near the water as opposed to Izmir (unless there's a really great, compelling reason to stay in Izmir). We're looking at hotels now in Kusadasi, Cesme, Seferihisar...etc. But this is where we really need good suggestions. We would like a boutique hotel if we can find one (it's my partner's 40th, so he wants to stay somewhere nice), even though for me, clean and bedbug-free is about all I must have. So, given the freedom to stay anywhere in the area, what do you recommend?

3. Any other must-see or must-eat things to do in the area?

What ancient Anatolian alphabet is this?

Theiform — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 01:42:09 -0800

I found some stone tablets written in a strange alphabet amongst a bunch of graves from different eras at the city museum of Tire, Turkey. The guy working the desk at the museum didn't know what they were. Pictures in extended. The museum had gravestones from many different eras of the city's history -- Roman, Selçuk, the Beylik period, Byzantine and Ottoman graves, and also some Armenian writing and some Jewish gravestones (seen in the first picture). As far as I can tell, it's none of these. It seems that all the stones there were collected from around the area. 2 of the stones had this strange alphabet; here are some pictures:

The first
Close-up
The second stone

Does anyone have any idea what they might be? I looked up some alphabets of the region on Wikipedia, but couldn't find any matches. Triple bonus points if you're a scholar and can translate!

Honeymoon in Turkey

nakedmolerats — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 10:59:12 -0800

My fiancee and I are considering Turkey for our honeymoon next October. Should we take a pre-arranged tour or book all our own hotels, in-country travel, etc.? Our considerations are money and how much effort it will be to plan a long trip to a new place in addition to a wedding. I think our honeymoon budget will be about $4k, and the flights will probably be $1600-1800 of that. We'd like to get the most time we can out of the remaining $2300 or so. (We're also hoping to do a Honeyfund-type registry and pay some of it that way... but let's say we have $4k to spend out of pocket).

I found a travel tours company that does mostly-inclusive Turkish vacations - 15 days for $2100 each. I've never been a tour-group person, but it's kind of appealing while planning a wedding to book a vacation where you already have the hotels, in-country travel, and most meals arranged for you. I think we could find a tour that has enough alone time available that we wouldn't be honeymooning with a group the whole time. The stuff on their tours all sounds interesting, and they have some optional things you can add on or not.

So what I want to know is, how difficult/time intensive is it to do all the research to book hotels in Turkey and figure out how to get between cities? Istanbul and Troy are on our definites list, and I'd really like to see Antalya and Cappadocia, and do a one-day straits cruise. (We're open to other suggestions, too!)

If the difficulty is worth getting to set your own itinerary, can we actually do a 10-14 day trip on our own for about $2300 plus flights? Or is the tour company giving us a pretty sweet deal?

Safe to eat turkey bacon left unrefrigerated?

marxchivist — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 16:28:49 -0800

We left a Tupperware tub of turkey bacon on top of the refrigerator for about 12 hours. One package still sealed, one already open. Safe to eat or am I making an early morning run to the grocery store tomorrow?

Have I ruined my turkey?

jeatsy — Thu, 22 Nov 2012 04:51:23 -0800

Have I ruined my 7 lb turkey by leaving it uncovered at room temperature for 12 hours? I'll keep this quick: We left a 7 lb turkey in the fridge to defrost for four days (96 hours) and then left it for 12 hours overnight, uncovered, in the kitchen at room temperature (about 65F). Only now does clevercloggs me read online that maybe this was (considerably) too long to leave it in the open. Is it still safe to cook? Will extra time in the oven help?

Overthinking a plate of turkey

brina — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 08:26:59 -0800

We decided to do turkey parts this year, instead of a whole bird, and could only find a boneless skinless turkey breast for the white meat portion of our Thanksgiving meal. How do we cook it? I realize the cut of meat is not ideal, but it was all we could get in the way of white meat.

I've looked at advice on Chowhound on how to cook it, but it's somewhat above my head as I've never cooked a turkey before, though I do roast chicken pieces occasionally.

So in the Chowhound thread, someone suggests cooking the breast "butterflied, stuffed and braised with bacon on top to baste the bird as it cooks to keep it moist." This sounds good! But I don't know how to do it!

For instance, do you put raw stuffing mix in the cavity, and roll it up like it's Chicken Kiev? In which case, do you then dredge it in flour and pin the bacon to it and brown it in the skillet? Or do you just pin the bacon to it and brown it, then pour the fat on top and put it in the oven? Do you use toothpicks to keep the turkey roll closed, or do you dredge it in flour and egg, and then cover it in bacon? And when you cook it, at what temperature? For how long? Do you need to baste it? How often?

Also, my partner and I thought that stuffing tended to dry out white meat, in which case wouldn't it be better to just cover it in bacon? Or are we wrong about that? If it is better to do just the bacon, do we need to dredge it or something to get the bacon to stick to the turkey?

Finally, we are planning to dry brine the turkey legs. Should we also dry brine the (boneless, skinless) breast? Is there any reason we should not dry brine the breast?

Does anybody here have answers to all these panicky questions, or perhaps just a link to a comprehensive, step-by-step recipe for moist (boneless, skinless) breast meat?

Thanks!

Gobble gobble

BlahLaLa — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 10:52:23 -0800

I only have 3 meat eaters coming for Thanksgiving. What can I serve to balance my desire not to have a ton of meat leftover that no one will eat vs. the desire to set a festive table and have a special meal? I don't want to roast even the smallest turkey, first because it's hard to find anything even 10 pounds, and also because we're a mostly meat-free household, so I'm not going to want the carcass for stock.

I know I could just roast a chicken...or do just a turkey breast...but is there anything else I'm not thinking of? Or is there a really great recipe for one of those that will be super pretty and tasty for our holiday meal?

Thanksgiving Turkey, Caribbean style. Safe to eat or death on a plate?

Stewriffic — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 14:26:32 -0800

Two twelve pound frozen turkeys wrapped well in newspaper insulation, placed in a suitcase and put on a plane. One trip from Michigan USA to Sint Maarten, Caribbean. Safe? So my mom is going to bring two frozen turkeys on our Caribbean vacation. Are we going to get food poisoning? Nevermind the legality--I figure she can handle that concern herself.

The whole trip will take about 12 hours max. Obviously if the luggage is delayed for long or lost we won't eat the turkeys.

I love turkey dinner. LOVE it. She's also packing stuffing mix and fresh sage. SHHHH don't tell Customs!

Looking for advice on taking short business trips to far places. (And maybe extending those trips for non-business visiting)

ManInSuit — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 15:10:54 -0800

Looking for advice on taking short business trips to far places. (And maybe extending those trips for non-business visiting) I have a couple of chances to go, if I choose to, on work-related trips to some places that are farther than I've ever traveled. Right now - one to Davao City, Philippines, one to Istanbul.

I live in Toronto and have never traveled anywhere farther than Western Europe, in my forty-some years, so these trips are unfamiliar to me!

Both trips would require me to do less than a day of work at the destinations. (In each case, I'd be getting flown in to give a short talk at a conference.). But my thought is that maybe I can add a couple of days to spend on my own.

These seem like great opportunities to see more of the world that I've already seen. I'd like to see Istanbul. And while, as far as I know, I'm not dying to see Davao City, I thought maybe I could use the find a flight to Davao that goes via somewhere I'd be keen so see, and try to arrange the travel so I spend a couple of days there. (I had thought I could arrange to travel via Hong Kong, which I'd love to see, but I think I may have misunderstood. It looks like most flights to Davao go via Vancouver and Manila).

I'm not 100% sure whether I want to do this, and am trying to get some more information to help me decide. Some questions:

- What's it like flying halfway around the world for a short visit? Is that just an exhausting, crazy thing to do? Are there ways to make it easier? What would you think is a minimum stay to justify a trip like that?

- Do people have suggestions/experiences about extending these sorts of business trips to include some opportunities to see things on your own? Is it possible/impractical to do that in a city that's a stop-over city as opposed to a destination city? (I got sort of stuck on the idea that the trip to the Philippines could be my opportunity to see a really massive Asian city like HK. Is there any way that could be practical?)

- Any specific recommendations about the particular places I am going to? Is Istanbul amazing? Is Davao city great? Manila? I realize these are sort of subjective, but I'm interested in responses.

Thanks!

Thanksgiving II: The Recluckening

showbiz_liz — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 11:16:36 -0800

I need to make the best turkey you've ever tasted this Thanksgiving. My pride is at stake here, people. Help me! So last year I brought one of two turkeys to a large Thanksgiving potluck. Mine was clearly inferior. It wasn't BAD or anything... but the other guy's was better. This year we're both bringing the turkey again and I MUST BE VICTORIOUS.

Give me your tips and suggestions. I don't care how crazy or traditional, it just has to be a whole turkey (no turkey breasts, no turduckens).

And yes, I fully intend on doing a test turkey of my own beforehand... this is serious, people.

Visa

freddymetz — Sat, 01 Sep 2012 08:45:30 -0800

Visa requirements for Turkey: For a 2-Month internship, do I need to get a visa as a German citizen? I only found information on 3+ month internships on the internet..

Where to go in Turkey

jeather — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 07:11:44 -0800

I am going to Turkey for two weeks next spring -- the last week of April and the first week of May. Other than Istanbul, where should I consider going? I like walking. I like museums. I like sitting in pretty locations and reading. I don't care for night life, and I tend not to go to restaurants when I am on vacation. (I am going with people, so I am rather hoping that their lunch and dinner times can be my Yay All Alone time. We do not intend to do everything together, or at least I intend to do what I feel like doing.)

Cappadocia is almost certainly on the list. I don't want to spend too much time travelling internally. Money isn't a huge issue.

Specific suggestions in Istanbul would be nice, too, though I am also checking out earlier threads.

Russkaya popsa? Otlichno.

vkxmai — Sun, 12 Aug 2012 07:27:53 -0800

I use music a lot in my classroom. This year will be no different. Help me put together the best possible back-to-school playlist of school-friendly pop songs…with one caveat: they can’t be in English. I have German covered, but I’m looking for songs in other languages, except for Chinese, French, and Spanish (those language teachers have their own stuff).

I have students from all over the world. Go wild! Bonus points for non-Eurovision stuff from Turkey, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, and Moldova.

The only limiter would be if the lyrics are obviously inappropriate like Die Antwoord’s “Wat kyk jy” or Ansiktet’s “Äckligt”. Den svenska björnstammen is great, though.

Diarrhea, uh-uh. Diarrhea, uh-uh!

mrfuga0 — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 21:41:09 -0800

Managed to get some form of sickness in Istanbul. Am I okay now, or should I still go see a doctor? Went to Istanbul in June. Came back and 72 hours later, I had severe diarrhea, cramping, stomach pains, fever and nausea. This lasted about ten days. I took some Imodium on the fourth day, which stopped some of the diarrhea (I also took a Greek remedy of coffee grounds and lemon juice). That was about a month ago. I felt fine after about day ten and continue to feel fine now.

I contracted whatever this was by either eating ground meat (kofte) or a chicken gyro from a street stall (my friends ate everything else that I ate except those things). I also accidentally brushed my teeth with the tap water.

Should I still go see the doctor, now that I'm back stateside? Is it possible that I have something that needs attention and, if so, any ideas as to what it likely was (so I can tell the doctor)?

refugee work in Istanbul

saraindc — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 22:22:42 -0800

refugee work/volunteering in Istanbul I found this but it wasn't specific enough for me. I've decided to go (back) to Istanbul in a few weeks. I'm thinking about doing some work (volunteer or otherwise) with refugees. Do you know of any opportunities specifically in Istanbul (not in other cities in Turkey)?

I did some refugee volunteer work a long time ago. I speak a decent amount of Turkish and Arabic. My professional skills are general business-related.

I would be grateful for any ideas that you have.

Recommend cheap (or cheapish), high-quality colognes from around the world.

GlassHeart — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 08:08:52 -0800

Recommend cheap (or cheapish), high-quality colognes from around the world. I've recently discovered that high-quality cologne can be bought very cheaply.

I just bought a few 150 ml spray bottles of Eyüp Sabri Tuncer (a highly-regarded Turkish cologne company) lavender cologne from Turkey, for just $3.25 USD per bottle(!). I also recently discovered a cologne from Germany called Tabac that comes in a huge 300 ml bottle that can often be bought for as little as $20 or less.

While I know that cologne is a rather YMMV type of thing, most people consider Tabac and most colognes made by Eyüp Sabri Tuncer to be worthy classics.

So . . . does anyone have great colognes to recommend? I've heard that there are great, cheap colognes to be found in India, but I've no idea where to even begin looking for colognes from there.

If you have anything to recommend, please supply links to sites that sell the products. Not everything can be found on Amazon, ya know?

Thanks.

On the road again ....

mrfuga0 — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 19:49:22 -0800

Help me plan my trip to Europe this summer! Helpful details abound within! I have the good fortune to be going to Greece this summer on a writing fellowship. The dates of the residency are June 9-July 3. I have the option to go early, stay later, or both. For the lowest fare, the travel agent can get me to Madrid on May 27. I need to return by July 26-27.

Where shall I go (before, after, or both)?

The above-promised helpful details:

-- I'm an experienced traveler, and have experience not knowing languages.
-- I'm a single lady (well, see previously).
-- I have a decent budget (I think) of about $4000.
-- My top two places to visit are both sort of not possible right now: Iran and Egypt. I'd love to visit Israel, Morocco, Turkey, etc.
-- I've lived in Spain and speak Spanish.
-- I've never been to much of mainland Europe (only Spain, actually).
-- I research places of long-term conflict, so Bosnia, Croatia, etc. would be of interest.
-- For the second half of the trip (the after), my 62-year-old mother may join me. So maybe first half adventure, second half culture and hotels she pays for?

Turkey Meatloaf Muffins, new and improved?

booksherpa — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 13:43:14 -0800

I need more ideas for how to spice up/flavor my turkey meatloaf muffins. My new favorite thing to make in bulk is meatloaf muffins with ground turkey. They freeze well, reheat well, are filling and healthy. I'll typically buy 4 lbs. of 99% fat free ground turkey at a time and make 4 "flavors" of muffin (1 lb. = 6 muffins). The problem is that fat-free turkey tends to be dry and not flavorful, and I'm running out of ideas for additives.

Base recipe for 6 muffins:
- 1 lb. 99% fat free ground turkey
- egg whites (for binding)
- 1 slice of bread, shredded (for bulk)
- something to add moisture
- spices/flavorings
- something to glaze top of muffin (optional)

So far I've made:

traditional (ketchup, onion soup mix)
spicy (ginger pepper jelly, harissa, garlic)
Italian (tomato paste, Italian spices, garlic)
chili (pepper jelly, chili spices)
barbecue (barbecue sauce, steak spices)
Thanksgiving (butternut squash puree, sage, craisins)

I eat these A LOT, so would appreciate more ideas for flavoring/ingredients. No dietary restrictions, allergies, or strong dislikes, though I'd like to keep the muffins on the healthy/lower calorie end of things. I have Hispanic, Asian, Indian and specialty gourmet stores reasonably nearby. My knowledge of Asian/Indian home cooking is zero, though I like those cuisines, so ideas in that wheelhouse would be especially appreciated.

tl;dr How do I flavor my turkey meatloaf muffins so they are moist, delicious and well-spiced, yet still healthy and reasonably low in calories? Ideas from the Asian/Indian family of spices especially appreciated.

How much of Christmas Dinner can be made the day before?

wwax — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 09:44:49 -0800

How much of Christmas Dinner can I precook? Due to family members working and a need to be in certain places at certain times for family events I am only going to have around 1.5 to 2 hours to cook dinner on Christmas Day. I really enjoy doing it. The main problem is that the meal pretty much has to include Turkey, my husband doesn't ask for much over Christmas and puts up with all my craziness all year all he asks for is a turkey will all the trimmings at Christmas

I have the 24th free and can spend the day cooking my brains out and getting set up and would like to get as much done then as possible.

Coming from Australia, we usually had cold ham and seafood for Christmas so I am still getting used to the whole full cooked Christmas Dinner so if these questions seem obvious I apologize.

Is it possible to precook turkey and reheat it? I have an electric roaster pan and was thinking cutting the turkey into large joints, say thigh & leg and breast and reheating on a rack in the roaster over chicken stock to keep it moist. Would that work? How long roughly do you think it would take. Any other ideas on how to do this?

I am also going to do roast sweet & normal potatoes, I normally part precook these a little and then toss in oil and roast would these be OK part precooked the day before? Alternatively can you peel potatoes for mash the day before and leave them sitting in water or would they get too soggy or even make the mash the day before and reheat?

I make a killer Apple and sausage sage stuffing which is in high demand so need a lot of it, can I make this up the day before and just add the stock just before putting this in the oven, or would the bread get too soggy overnight in the fridge?

My MIL is bringing her lovely glazed ham and some other sides to help out but I am stuck for dessert ideas. I was thinking after all that food just some really nice fancy ice cream but all the Americans in my family think that's not enough and are offering to bring desserts what should I ask them to bring?

Help me like dark meat.

Tooty McTootsalot — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 10:38:05 -0800

I want to like dark meat, really I do. I hate letting food go to waste, but invariably, when we cook a whole bird, we let the back half of it sit in the fridge until one of us throws it out. I'm looking for anything that will help us consume dark meat. Neither my partner nor I especially like the flavor of dark meat. I grew up spoiled, I suppose, so I always just ate white meat, and am not used to the flavor of dark. It's a bit gamey and has a slimier texture.

I am, however, Super Frugal, and it pains me to see giant bags of dark meat in the fridge that we virtuously pulled off and saved, fully intending to eat it, but never actually doing so. I also pride myself on eating just about anything without complaint, so this whole dark meat conundrum goes against my character.

At Christmas, we're roasting a giant turkey, so I want to be prepared. I'm looking for recipes, tips & tricks for learning to like it. I am open to casseroles, but my partner is, ahem, more selective about what she eats, and isn't crazy about them. She especially doesn't like leftovers, although I don't think leftover meat used in something else applies here. So creative uses for any dark meat poultry would be appreciated.

Or, is it a losing battle? Should I just give up and let my cats feast after every roast bird?

i want to eat two turkey legs

sabh — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 08:47:30 -0800

what should i do with two turkey legs? i have two uncooked turkey legs in my freezer and i have no idea what to do with them.
send me your best recipes, please!

First time Roasting Turkey Breast

piratebowling — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 18:48:50 -0800

Question about turkey roasting for a turkey-cooking newbie. I am gonna have some people over for a post-Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving-esque meal. I don't eat meat, but cook it for others. I want to make a tofurkey for the non-meat eaters and myself, and I plan on using this recipe, since I've had great success with it in the past. I was planning on getting turkey breast, and making an extra large batch or the cherry-onion sauce to use on the turkey as well as the tofurkey.

I understand that the Turkey is going to take longer to roast than the tofurkey. Can I use the same method? Can I foil wrap the turkey breast with the sauce and then roast it uncovered for the last ten minutes or so? Any recipe I see for roast turkey breast with sauce calls for roasting the turkey first, then adding sauce later. Is there a reason it shouldn't roast with the sauce?

Any advice on turkey breast roasting is welcome.