A Wisconsin Locovore's Thanksgiving Turkey

For the second year in a row, our turkey is a locally-grown heritage bird, a "trendy"  Bourbon Red, from Jordandal Farm in Argyle, butchered Monday. I know Jordandal's Eric and Carrie Johnson pretty well from their participation in Madison's Westside Community Market - I serve on the Market's board.  Their meats are worshipped by Madison's locovore foodies, who sometimes turn them into the blogosphere's version of food porn.

Today, Eric and Carrie are the lead story in today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: "Truly Homegrown Meal." There is even video of Eric, Carrie, and their turkeys, cattle, sheep and beautiful farm.

The Johnsons start their turkey flock from scratch each year with day-old chicks purchased from a hatchery. The flock includes both common broad-breasted white turkeys and trendy Bourbon Red heritage turkeys, which are descendants of America's original domestic turkeys.

The chicks stay in a brooder house under heat lamps for three to four weeks until they grow feathers. Then they're let out to pasture to roam and forage for grass and insects, a diet supplemented by grain.

The birds have shelter from rain and wind, but the Bourbon Reds, which can fly, mostly use the shelter roof for nighttime roosting. "They could fly away if they wanted to," Carrie said of the heritage birds. "But they have food and water here, so they don't."

All 42 Bourbon Reds were spoken for more than a month before Thanksgiving, though they weren't processed and delivered to customers until two days ago. The couple also raised and sold 84 free-range, broad-breasted white turkeys, which cannot fly because they are bred to be top-heavy with larger breasts to provide more white meat.

...Unfortunately, all the Bourbon Reds were sold at market, so the Johnsons were left with a common broad-breasted white turkey for their own Thanksgiving dinner. They have yet to enjoy one of their heritage turkeys for the holiday.

Whether you're eating a heritage bird, a common broad-breasted white, a regular industrial-grade chemically-enhanced job complete with pop-up thermometer, one of those tofurkies, a Turduken, or Paul's choice, happy Thanksgiving from the Waxing America editorial staff. 

- Barry Orton

Comments

[Alice Schwegman]

Well, it's a start but there must be more than turkey to a Madison Locavore's diet. Please consider including local fruits, nuts, grains and vegetables in your writing and diet.

Thanks & Happy Thanksgiving!

[Barry Orton]

Of course there's more. We'll have local potatoes, local cider, veggies and bakery. I'm a farmers' market activist after all. But only the turkey made p.1 of the JournalSentinel.

[George H.]

My heritage turkey came from Matt and Susan Smith, Blue Valley Gardens, Blue Mounds, the best turkey I have ever tasted, with thanks to the cook (Else Karlsen) and company, our son, Espen.