Saturday 29 December 2012

Flamingoes Instead Of Turkey.




When Christmas morning starts with a sky this blue, it would be sacrilege to waste the day getting hot and bothered in a kitchen.  Tradition was thrown to one side and we headed off to Tuzla to walk  the dog and watch the flamingoes. Lunch was fish and salad beside the sea. Not a turkey in sight. 


The first Christmas lunch I cooked in Turkey was in 1983. My parents had arrived a few days before to celebrate with us and we soon twigged that finding a turkey in the butchers was not going to happen.  My soon-to-be husband hadn't met my family before and my folks hadn't ever been to Turkey but my father still remembers the day we went on the "turkey hunt" as a surreal experience and it proved a good ice-breaker.   We heard that a farmer in Turgutreis  had raised a few birds and was willing to sell them.  In those days Turgutreis was a one road town and we had to head inland among the orange grove paths to find the farm. After much meandering we did track down the small holding and the farmer was willing to part with a bird. He lead us through his gardens, showed us where the turkeys were grazing and said we could take our pick. We did and then had to catch it.  I think the farmer should have paid us for the hilarity we obviously caused him but we did eventually get our prize.  I'd only been cooking for a couple of years and plucking and gutting a turkey was not something I'd done before, but between us, we managed it.  It didn't much resemble the traditional roast we were used to. It must have done a lot of running in its short life because apart from two large legs, there wasn't much meat on the carcass and it only just fed the 4 of us.  Since that lunch, I've never been that keen on turkey meat so I am always happy to give tradition a miss on Christmas day.  


17 comments:

  1. The mind boggles at the thought of your two chasing a scrawny bird round a muddy farmyard. How times have changed!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No supermarkets in Bodrum then and Turks hadn't caught on to eating turkey at New Year.

      Delete
  2. I got a chuckle from this...I can only imagine it. To bad you didn't have Jake then he could have caught that Turkey for you in a flash.
    Looks wonderful your photos, I can only dream....I'm sitting here shivering from the cold, it's windy, cold and snowy.
    Wishing you a very Happy and Healthy New Year to you and your Family.
    Erica

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unfortunately the weather didn't last and now its pouring with rain and a bit chilly.

      Delete
  3. B to B, Now THAT was a really funny story! Talk about singing for your supper. This year's choice sounds much more appetizing than turkey. BTW, your photos are smashing. Love the blue, blue sky and water and pink flamingoes. Jake is adorable, of course.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I only had a small camera in my pocket - next time I'll take a zoom lens.

      Delete
  4. . . going to be really smug here and say that J and I ditched Xmas 30 odd years ago and living here in a tinsel-less village is just about perfect for us. Love the turkey hunt though - conjured up some great mental images.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I did cook a ham for Christmas supper so didn't back out completely.

      Delete
  5. That's hilarious, BtoB!! And what a sky! Wow! You were absolutely right to ditch the whole thing and go out for a walk and a fish lunch :)) Just read yr comment above: where on earth did you find a ham??

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've had the ham in the freezer since my last trip back to the UK. Just waiting for the opportunity to cook it.

      Delete
  6. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  7. So lovely! We only get flamingoes in February.
    We saw live Turkeys on the Saturday market and our butcher was offering them with free roasting bag and meat thermometer. So things have definitely moved on since the turkey-chasing days.
    But I do so appreciate not having to 'do Christmas dinner'. We had cold roast chicken on Christmas day as I spent most of it cooking for friends who came over on 26th

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Our flamingoes arrive in late November to early December. We also have a few pelicans but I haven't seen any of these this year.

      Delete
  8. Sounds like it was a brilliant day. I'm not bothered about turkey, and with the prices being charged for them while I was in England, I imagine a lot of families can't afford them these days. My daughter cooked a large free range chicken and it was lovely.

    Jake's looking wonderful.

    Happy New Year xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I must prefer chicken to Turkey. You won't believe how big Jake is now.

      Delete
  9. That's a hilarious, wonderful story. American food writers say Americans have no idea where there food comes from since they buy it in styrofoam and plastic wrap, but it sounds like you have way-too-good-an-idea where your food comes from since you had to take it from field to table yourself and aren't hankering for it again.

    I didn't know there were wild flamingos in Bodrum. Really and truly? Wild flamingos?

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hi Karen - There are fantastic bird-watching opportunities at Tuzla, about 20 mins from Bodrum. The wetlands attract migratory birds fromm all around and you can get really close to watch them.

    Re food sources - I like to know where my food comes from but I'm not keen on the messy bit between catching it and cooking it.

    ReplyDelete