From oxtail to pear tarts, Thanksgiving traditions from Charlotte’s culinary experts
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Thanksgiving traditions from Charlotte chefs
Dive into the traditions, wine recommendations and recipes from the kitchens of Charlotte’s culinary all-stars
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Charlotte’s culinary all stars share Thanksgiving traditions — and we’ve got recipes
From oxtail to pear tarts, Thanksgiving traditions from Charlotte’s culinary experts
Riesling or Bordeaux? Thanksgiving wine pairings and recommendations
Just get to the recipes, Lisa: How to cook Thanksgiving like a Charlotte chef.
Six of Charlotte’s culinary favorites have offered us a glimpse into their Thanksgiving traditions. Follow along for some ideas of your own:
(1) Roy Darling, chef at Nuvole Rooftop TwentyTwo
“Being from Jamaica and celebrating Thanksgiving, there are a few staples that are customary in our family,” said Roy Darling, chef at Nuvole Rooftop TwentyTwo. “No meal is a meal without Jamaican style rice and peas. We typically do turkey two ways: traditional turkey and then to represent our roots we do a ‘Brown Stew Turkey,’ oxtail and Jamaican rum punch. Every year, I try and incorporate something different that my Jamaican family has never had, such as braised brisket, duck and so forth.
“My mother is great at making Jamaican food, so I always look forward to indulging in whatever she makes. This year, I’ve decided to go back home to New Hampshire for Thanksgiving so that I can make up for lost time and appease my Jamaican cravings. I might come back 10 pounds heavier this year, but it will be worth it.”
(2) Sam Diminich, chef/owner at Your Farms, Your Table
“For Thanksgiving, my must haves include brined and roasted turkey, as well as a glazed ham and all the southern sides,” said Sam Diminich, the former chef at Upstream who now owns Your Farms, Your Table. “Sweet potatoes, green beans, my grandma’s mashed potatoes recipe … my mom’s stuffing recipe was the one thing she did right. We serve cornbread and yeast rolls, and of course pumpkin pie, pecan pie, a chocolate dessert for Constance (my daughter) and cookies for Allan Grey (my son).”
(3) Shai Fargian, chef of Yafo Kitchen
“My ‘go-to’ side is rice, pomegranate and almond-stuffed delicata squash,” said Shai Fargian, chef of Yafo Kitchen. ”Inspired by squash and pomegranate season, I make this for Thanksgiving and (Rosh Hashanah).”
(4) Tim Groody, artisan chef at Stoke
“I like to make fresh Cranberry Walnut Sauce instead of serving the canned stuff,” said Tim Groody, artisan chef at Stoke. “I have been making that since I worked in New York; it became a requirement for my Aunt Nancy. Otherwise, I keep it pretty traditional with lots of roasted local vegetables and a locally raised turkey and gravy.”
(5) Casey Hickey, owner of Petit Philippe and Twenty Degrees Chocolates
“I’ve nearly always hosted Thanksgiving since I lived in San Francisco in the ‘90s,” said Casey Hickey, owner of Petit Philippe and Twenty Degrees Chocolates. “We would have an ‘orphan’ Thanksgiving, which was a group of friends from all over who were not close enough to go home for the holiday. All our friends, and sometimes their visiting parents, would gather and spend the day eating, playing games and drinking too much wine. Everyone pitched in and made a dish they loved from childhood or just something new they wanted to try out. Those were joyful, loose, wine-fueled celebrations that usually devolved into rousing sing-a-longs; several friends were passionate guitarists and I had a basket of fruit and vegetable shaped maracas that those of us with no musical talent could play. We all thought we were awfully good singers after a few glasses of wine ...
“Now that I’m married and back on the East Coast, I continue to host Thanksgiving. I just really enjoy feeding people, and I love how my house still resonates with the sound of laughter long after everyone has gone home. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday because it’s really just about being together and sharing something truly elemental — food — and the company of people we love.
“As for our menu, I’ve taken to spatchcocking my turkey the last few years, roasting it on a rack above a pan of Hibernian dressing (an Irish recipe made from mashed potatoes, bread and onions) and a separate pan of my mother-in-law’s traditional bread-based stuffing with little smoky sausages.
“I start my gravy days ahead of time, roasting turkey wings to make a dark stock with lots of body and real turkey flavor, to which I add the pan drippings and make a huge batch of gravy. The other sides can vary and are usually brought by family and friends: my sister makes a mean, Southern green bean and corn casserole and a great cranberry compote; my mother-in-law does the traditional dressing and pitches in on various prep duties; my brother is my sous chef and can do anything I ask him with zero direction.
“And of course, my husband (Mark Meissner, co-owner of Petite Philippe) handles the wine. We start with a champagne toast or special champagne cocktail, and then he pours lots of red and white Burgundies and other wines that are tickling his fancy at the time. We serve the kids sparkling juice in wine stems so they can feel fancy too.
“Interestingly, as a pastry chef, I pay less attention to the dessert than I do the rest of the meal. I usually make sure we have at least two kinds of dessert, and one must be pumpkin (for me). We usually have a jar of our sorghum-bourbon caramel sauce on hand, because it goes with almost anything — pumpkin, chocolate, apple or pear tarts, or just vanilla ice cream.“
(6) Stefan Huebner, co-owner and head mixologist at Dot Dot Dot
“I go to my parents’ house for Thanksgiving and cook a traditional German dinner,” said Stefan Huebner, co-owner and head mixologist at Dot Dot Dot. “We start with Brie, charcuterie, bread and pickles. Then for dinner, we make whole roasted pork loin, spaetzle, red cabbage, gravy and toasted buttered breadcrumbs. For dessert, it’s all-American pumpkin pie. I usually drink bourbon and ginger ale, and we’ll finish dinner with a little bit of Underberg or Kirschwasser.”
Editor’s note: This article originally ran Nov. 22, 2019, and has been updated.
This story was originally published November 23, 2019 at 1:34 PM.