Freshly made Thanksgiving dinners to go
Friday - October 31, 2008
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If it’s Halloween, it must be time to start thinking about turkey. As a food writer, I’ve always had one small problem with Thanksgiving - dinner is always over when I remember I should have taken food photos, and restaurants never prepare a turkey dinner in advance of the holiday, so no chance to take photos to meet our deadlines. That’s why you see so many stock photos of artificial-looking birds in newspapers around this time of year. So I decided to do something different Saturday and announced we were having “Thanksgiving” for dinner.
“Great,” said my husband. “Make sure there’s stuffing.” There was, but not quite the kind he was expecting.
At Panya Restaurant, sisters Annie and Alice Yeung have been making their Thanksgiving dinners-to-go with a local twist for five years. “We started out making about 50 dinners the first year,” says Annie, “and each year it has grown.”
Last year the restaurant’s large Queen Street kitchen was home to more than 150 birds and their accompanying side dishes.
By happy coincidence, last Saturday Annie and Alice were up early to film with a Japanese TV crew, and that meant there was an entire dinner-to-go waiting to be eaten right after filming; they were more than happy to let me try the first turkey of the year.
What’s different about Panya’s Thanksgiving dinner - and why it’s becoming so popular - has much to do with a fusion of local and traditional flavors. “We like to add different touches to our dinner,” says Alice, “and people seem to like the homemade style of our sauces and dressings.”
What You Get.
* Panya Appetizer Platter (spring rolls, salt-and-pepper shrimp, deep fried chicken wings and Panya gyoza).
* Large salad of mesclun and romaine mix with house dressing
* One 8- to 10-pound honey glazed roasted turkey
* Mochi rice stuffing
* Giblet gravy
* Cranberry ginger sauce
* Pumpkin pie, pumpkin custard pie or pumpkin crunch
* Dinner rolls You may substitute a 6- to 8-pound honey mustard-glazed ham with two pounds of mochi rice, if you prefer.
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How It Comes.
The turkey comes sealed in a foil pan covered with a molded plastic “shield” that fits securely on top, ensuring there are no leaks on your drive home. The packaging was the first thing that impressed me. The pickup was easy and the hot dinner was ready to go. “We’ll do staggered pickup times throughout the morning and early afternoon on Thanksgiving,” says Alice, “and we’re happy to cook dinner on the night before Thanksgiving if that’s what customers would prefer.”
Special note: Some hotels and restaurants offering dinner-togo actually precook the meal and serve it cold. You then have to reheat at home, a process that takes several hours. Panya’s dinners are freshly made and ready to eat. No extra prep is necessary.
“Our meals are ready to take right to the table,” says Annie. “There’s no waiting to reheat the turkey or the ham.”
The Yeungs are guessing that this Thanksgiving there may be more customers than usual interested in their to-go option. “With the price of electricity and gas, we figure some people won’t want to have their ovens on for five or six hours on the day of the holiday,” Annie says. “People can save time on shopping and preparing ingredients, and even on fuel by ordering our dinner.”
How It Tastes.
The pupu platter disappeared in minutes from our kitchen counter. The boys loved the gyoza (there were six), and the spring rolls were an instant hit - light, not greasy and cut into bite-sized pieces. Shrimp (there’s six to eight large salt-and-pepper shrimp) were fabulous and I could easily have eaten more. The platter is completed by dozens of tiny chicken wings. It’s a great time- and money-saver, and all the pupu items were enjoyable.
Salad.
The salad is fabulous and will easily feed six people with generous portions. We were still using the mesclun mix three days later, and the greens stayed fresh. The accompanying house salad dressing is excellent.
The Turkey.
The turkey has a beautifully brown, crisp skin. The meat is moist (it’s basted with chicken broth during cooking), and when I saved leftovers to heat the next day, the meat (reheated with a little chicken stock) was equally moist. The bird is stuffed with a mochi rice stuffing made Chinese-style with shiitake mushrooms, dried shrimp and lap cheong. It adds lots of texture to the plate and is a nice local touch.
Sides.
There’s a large container of cranberry orange sauce, which is well-made with a lovely jammy consistency and subtle citrus and ginger flavors. Giblet gravy is one of Alice’s passions, and she hand-makes every batch using turkey drippings and some secret touches. Dessert.
We had slices of pumpkin pie, which were light and airy typical of Panya’s delicate baking style. A whole pie is enough for six people, but you’ll probably want to pick up an extra one as it’s so good.
The Verdict.
If you don’t want to cook, or if you want to make sure that everything on the table turns out really well, this is a great option that’s well-priced and offers excellent food with a truly home-cooked appeal.
Panya Complete Thanksgiving Meal-to-Go
Price $198 for six people.
Limited number available. A la carte items are also available.
Pick up from Nov. 26 at 711
Queen St.
597-8880
http://www.panyagroup.com
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