Westinghouse Roaster question / Thanksgiving

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DAY BEFORE POTATOES

I make my potatoes with cream cheese, butter, sour cream, the day before. put them into a casserole dish, and heat them Thanksgiving day, in either an electric roaster, or the oven. they turn out wonderfully rich, and simplifies the mad prep before dinner. Everybody rants and raves about them, and it leaves you a lot more time to enjoy the day. I also prep my fresh veggies beforehand, then stick them in the fridge until the day of the holiday to cook them. I like being able to enjoy my company, and meal, without being a basket case when you sit down to eat.
 
> one 15 amp circuit for ALL the kitchen, hall and one bedroom doesent do much!!!

Yikes! I can imagine it's limiting at times!

I thought it was bad enough having one circuit for the outlets in my current kitchen. That's pretty limiting in its own right, and one of the things I looked at both times I've bought a microwave is the how much power it pulls.

I grew up in a house with limited power in the kitchen. We didn't have a roaster, but I do seem to recall my mother sometimes running her electric skillet off an outlet in the dining room.
 
>I like being able to enjoy my company, and meal, without being a basket case when you sit down to eat.

I think preparation beforehand makes sense.

I have seldom really done Thanksgiving, but I have horrible memories of helping with it at my grandmother's house towards the end of her life. Her health was poor enough that she no longer cooked the dinner, but she still wanted the way it always had been...which meant lots of last minute prep items. Making matters worse, I could cook by that point, but the cooking wasn't what I was used to. So by dinner, I was worn down...but at least had chance to sit long enough to catch my breath to prepare for a mountain of dishes.

It was during that period my mother told me her big secret when entertaining (in general) was to try and get as much done as early as possible. Then, the kitchen could be cleaned, the cook have a chance to recover before guests appear.
 
Do as much as possible before guests appear

That's why I love low-temp cooking. Just put it (usually some steaks, loin cuts or such, duck/chicken breasts work too) in the oven on about 65C (about 150-160F, depending on how done you want it) and just bump the temp up sfor a few minutes jst before you need it.

In the mean time, make all the other stuff. Vegs work nice (just prepare them the day before, cook them short of serving texture and then throw them in a pan with a little butter), mashed potatos as well, and some cake or choclate cream as dessert.

That's basicly our christmas routine.
 
I think Westinghouse looked at it this way

It takes a certain amount of power to produce the required even heat over such a large surface. So, instead of compromising, they aimed their products at people who would either have electric stoves (most of which had outlets) or the money to have adequate power in the kitchen.

 

Lots of 40's/50's appliances drew heavy current. It's part of why they worked so well and it's one reason Europeans are constantly puzzled that Americans put up with their anemic 110v/15 Amp limitations. (And, before the usual suspects start howling about 20amp circuits, look at the plug on the appliance and look at the configuration of the wall outlet. I meant it when I said I use the 20amp GFCIs, not the 15 amps.)

 

Of course, every decent microwave I had in Germany wanted it's own circuit, too. Still, the US system is pitifully underdimensioned and was in the vintage era.
 
I miss using the Westy roasters.  I think I still have two stashed in the attic.  The cords are shot and I just haven't gotten around to replacing them.  You can't beat a turkey out of one of these roasters.

 

As for taters for that many people, I'd definitely make them ahead of time and reheat when needed.  No one should realize the difference.  It'll just reduce your stress and make the day somewhat more enjoyable. 

 

This year, there will only be 4 of us (YAY!) so I won't need to go overboard on the amount I need to prepare. 

 

I bought a turkey from a local hobby farmer this year and am awaiting it to be delivered.  It'll be fresh, not frozen.  I had one from him before and it was fantastic.  He had stopped selling them for a few years, but is back doing it again.  The bad thing is I think the bird will be over 20lbs for just the 4 of us.  Looks like there will be a lot of leftovers.

 

I haven't smoked a bird for Thanksgiving in a few years, so this year it's going on the wood-fired Traeger grill.  I plan on brining it for upwards of 24 hours if possible.  To me, brining makes a huge difference it moisture and flavor.

 

Above all, ENJOY your friends and family regardless of political leanings, job status, opinions, etc.   When they're gone, they're gone.  You can't get this time back.  I still miss having my grandparents at our Thanksgiving dinners.
 
>Above all, ENJOY your friends and family regardless of political leanings, job status, opinions, etc.

Ah, yes...the political leanings can be so fun. Every year, I've seen articles of points one can use when arguing with someone in the family who subscribes to the opposite political view point.

And I bet after this highly divisive election year, it will really jolly at many family gatherings.

I'll be totally alone, as is the case most years. Not much fun, but at least I'll miss the "fun" of seeing Cousin Hortense and Aunt Ethel strangle each other because they actively supported different candidates in the election...

>When they're gone, they're gone. You can't get this time back.

Very, very true.
 
Panthera, do you think vintage Westinghouse roasters are better than the Hamilton Beach roasters of today? I think the HB ones don't use as much electricity.
 
> I don't eat meat, but will cook it.

Call me cranky, but my view these days is that the cook will cook what he's willing to eat...

The days of doing something because its expected are OVER.

At the moment, I, too, am not eating meat. I'm not sure how rigid I am, and this is something I've flip flopped back and forth on over the years. (Hmmm...maybe this gives me the qualification to enter politics! LOL) Although if I did flip back to any sort of meat eating, it would be a local, more humane, sustainable meat model, not the factory farm, climate killing, cheap grocery store offerings.

Certainly it appears I'll be on vegetarian phase for Thanksgiving this year, and if I were actually cooking a dinner, I can guarantee there would be zero meat on the table. Don't like it? Feel free to accept a different invitation!

Actually, I have half thought that someday, when I live someplace better, I could perhaps do Thanksgiving for people like me who otherwise have zero plans, and I could even make it vegetarian, which is something that probably doesn't happen too often when people aggressively open their homes on Thanksgiving for people who otherwise won't have Thanksgiving. (Even if I went back to any sort of meat eating, I'd be happy to do vegetarian Thanksgiving...I haven't really liked turkey since I was a teenager.)
 
>Panthera, do you think vintage Westinghouse roasters are better than the Hamilton Beach roasters of today?

How can this question come up? Don't we all know Vintage Is Better? LOL

No experience...but I guess I'd be more inclined to gamble on the Westinghouse. I won't go as far as saying modern appliances are unusable junk. But I have noted that there was a real difference in older appliances, partly due, perhaps, to the era they were made being one when people actually regularly cooked at home.
 
New roasters such as Hamilton Beach seem to offer less capacity than vintage ones.  Maybe the use of modern insulating material makes the exterior less bulky, as the whole thing looks smaller than its vintage cousins, and as a result I'm skeptical about cavity volume.

 

Since making my last post above, it has been confirmed that I'll be doing a turkey next week.  We've discussed potatoes above, but what about the bird?  Are there different procedures, roasting times or temperature settings than those followed with a conventional oven?  What about energy consumption compared to a conventional oven?
 
Instructions Translation Needed

I found some instructions on line for turkey in a roaster oven and then checked the original instruction and recipe book that came with my vintage GE.  I'm not clear on what they recommended with regard to roasting various types of meats and poultry.  Here's the verbiage:

 

Place all roasts in a preheated roaster.  Roasting may be done 1) Directly on the bottom of the roaster in the cooking well (aka insert) without a rack, 2) On the bottom in a pan, 3) On the bottom rack in a pan.

 

In the roasting chart their "recommended utensils" vary:  Open pan, open shallow pan, roaster cooking well, and bottom of cooking well.  For turkey, the "open pan" is recommended.

 

What does this mean?  Everything I've seen on line advises the sensible use of the rack for ease in lowering and raising the bird, and makes no mention of a pan, shallow or otherwise.  I was planning to place the bird on the rack and into the cooking well/insert, which strikes me as the equivalent of "open pan," but since the instructions make specific mention of "roaster cooking well" for other things besides a turkey, I presume the "open pan" means something different, like maybe a pan in the bottom of the insert, and the rack & turkey in the pan.  IMO, this just gives me another pan to wash.  Why not ditch the pan and just use the insert?

 

Any ideas on what the people from GE Kitchens may have meant?

 

P.S.

 

It's my understanding that the vents in the cover are used as follows:

Preheat:  Closed

Bake:  1/2 Open

Roast:  Full Open

Steam/Boil:  Closed

 

Is this correct?
 
Hey Ralph, our church has 2 Westinghouse roasters from the 50's, and a Hamilton Beach that is about 5 years old. The insert pans are interchangable; the width and length of the roaster is the same, but the HB is shorter. The HB also has a permanently connected cord, while the Westinghouse models have cords that detach.

I do know that Hamilton Beach Proctor-Silex has recently restyled some of their roasters, at least the ones with the stainless steel exterior. They now look like most of the other brands - more oval shaped. The White ones shown appear to be the standard style.
 
Ralph,

I'm guessing here, extrapolating from Westinghouse.

You can use the bottom well or a full size insert (we usually put water in between when we want to keep things at a lower temperature).

You can use separate racks, pans, pots, casseroles - try thinking of this as an oven which is not too high or deep but rather long.

Maybe that helps?

We roast in the insert, by the way, with a rack.
 

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