Elk NetworkBACKCOUNTRY THANKSGIVING – A DIY BACKCOUNTRY THANKSGIVING MEAL THAT’S GOOD ENOUGH TO SERVE YOUR INLAWS ON THANKSGIVING DAY!

Carnivore's Kitchen | February 1, 2023

A DIY meal designed to fuel you on the mountain without sacrificing quality ingredients. Approximate nutritional value: 698 calories, 114g carbs, 47g protein.

ESTIMATED TIME:

1 – HOUR PREP. 6 – 10 HOURS OF DEHYDRATION.

ESTIMATED SERVINGS:
1 backcountry meal. During prep you can cook/prepare multiple servings at once.

EQUIPMENT NEEDED:

· Saute pan
· Cooking Pot (for blanching)
· Parchment paper (sheets cut to size of dehydrator trays)
· MEAT! 10-Tray Dehydrator
· MEAT! Vacuum Sealer
· MEAT! Vacuum Sealer Bags
· MEAT! Dry Good Digital Scale
· MEAT! Patty Press and Freezer Paper
· MEAT! Cutting Board

INGREDIENTS
Note: Ingredients listed are per serving or individual meal. We recommend cooking in bulk.
· 2t turkey gravy mix
· 3t ranch dressing mix
· 1 oz dried cranberries
· 5 oz of cooked ground turkey
· dehydrated sage
· dehydrated thyme
· 1 chicken bouillon cube
· garlic salt
· 5 cups classic dressing

Directions:
PREP: All ingredients should be cooked to proper/safe temps prior to dehydrating.
With your MEAT! Scale measure 5 – 6 oz of ground turkey and form into patties with the MEAT! Patty Press. (Pro-tip: Put freezer paper onto scale before weighing, add meat, then add another freezer sheet before pressing it. The freezer paper will keep your scale & press clean. (Video demonstration at 36 second mark.)
In a sauté pan cook turkey patties to proper temps. The patties need to be at safe temps and before dehydrating. Add salt and pepper to liking.
Cook venison on medium heat until brown and crumbly, making sure that no large clumps of meat are present. Add salt and pepper to liking.

DEHYDRATING:
Add each individual ingredient to parchment paper. We recommend doing each individual ingredient on its own dehydrator rack. Vegetables and sauce dehydrate better at lower temps (120 – 130°F) and meat at higher temps (158 – 168°F). To save time you can combine all ingredients with proper portion sizes and dehydrate at 165°F.

TURKEY PATTIES: Place patties onto dehydrator trays. Make sure patties are spread out and can get maximum air flow once placed into the dehydrator. Set dehydrator to 158 – 160°F for 4 – 6 hours. With thick patties this may take up to 10 hours, so check every hour after 4. Turkey is done when patties show no signs of moisture and are hard, not rubbery.

SEALING:
In a 6″ x 10″ MEAT! Vacuum Sealer Bag combine turkey patties and 1 bouillon cube.
In a 6″ x 10″ bag vacuum seal your turkey gravy mix.
Combine dressing, dried cranberries, and dehydrated herbs into a MEAT! 8″ x 12″ Vacuum Sealer Bag. Add first two small bags and vacuum.
(Optional) Add food safe silicon bag; this helps capture any unwanted moisture.
Seal with MEAT! Vacuum Sealer.

REHYDRATION:
Bring 2.5 cups of water to a jet boil. Add bouillon cube and turkey patties to boiling water.
Stir and let simmer for 10 minutes. Cover and stir periodically. Once Patties are re-hydrated, dump 2/3 of the liquid and patties into dressing bag. Mix and let sit periodically.
With the remainder of your liquid add turkey gravy mix and stir. Let simmer for a few minutes.
Add gravy to dressing and turkey patties.