"And, of course, the funniest food of all, kumquats." ~George Carlin

November 18, 2014 8:10 PM

Find Your State in the United States of Thanksgiving [The New York Times] "We’ve scoured the nation for recipes that evoke each of the 50 states (and D.C. and Puerto Rico). Tell us your favorites."

Some random highlights:

Arkansas: Roast Heritage Turkey and Gravy

"Heritage birds can be tricky to roast; the flesh is firmer than a supermarket bird. He suggests a day in a brine sweetened with apple cider and then roasting the bird on a bed of rosemary. Roasted giblets and a chopped hard-boiled egg add texture and depth to his country-style gravy. “That’s from my mother’s side of the family,” he said. “The eggs and giblets make it a little more rustic and a little more interesting. It’s the gravy that saves that dry turkey.”

District of Columbia: Garam Masala Pumpkin Tart

“I flavored what I consider a very American pumpkin pie with a staple of Indian cuisine: garam masala,” Mr. Samuelsson wrote in his new cookbook, “Marcus Off Duty: The Recipes I Cook At Home,” where he gives the recipe, but as a large tart, not an individual tartlet. It adds a worldly touch to an American tradition, ideally suited to Washington.

Michigan: Baked German Potato Salad

While all sorts of products, like oysters, were coming by boat from the East to Michigan and the rest of the Midwest during the pioneer period, the European families who settled there generally liked to stick to their ethnic traditions. “In the Upper Peninsula, there were the Finlanders, and they had Cornish hens,” said Priscilla Massie, a co-author of the cookbook “Walnut Pickles and Watermelon Cake: A Century of Michigan Cooking.” Then there were the Germans families, who, Ms. Massie said, tended to adopt Thanksgiving first. Their tangy baked potato salad can be found on many tables around the state to this day, made easy by a crop that’s available statewide.

Puerto Rico: Mofongo Stuffing

What does mofongo mean to Puerto Rico? Well, what do biscuits mean to the South, or green chiles to the people of New Mexico? Mofongo, which in its most traditional form is a fried-and-mashed fusion of plantains, pork rinds, garlic and peppers, symbolizes the island’s soul food. It is beloved, even if sometimes misunderstood; it can be vexingly heavy, but when it’s executed properly there’s a righteous balance of crispness and fluff. For this recipe we went to Jose Enrique, the Puerto Rican chef who’s gaining attention for giving Caribbean cuisine an extra layer of refinement. We asked him for a mofongo for the Thanksgiving table, standing at the ready to soak up gravy and meet your turkey on the tip of a fork.

Texas: Turkey Tamales

Tamales are a holiday staple for Mexican-American families from the Rio Grande Valley up to North Texas, and not just at Christmas. “We have a big market for Thanksgiving tamales,” said Cyndi Hall of Tamale Place of Texas, in Leander, near Austin. Although Ms. Hall said she’s seen more families buy tamales than ever before, many still keep the tradition of coming together to make them. You can cook up a turkey breast or extra legs for tamales to have with the Thanksgiving meal, or make the tamales with leftover turkey for the long weekend. They aren’t difficult, but they do take time, so the more hands you have for your assembly line, the quicker it goes. Corn husks and masa mix for tamales can be found in markets that sell Mexican ingredients; make sure you get the masa for tamales (Maseca is the most widely available brand), not the finer, drier tortilla masa harina.

There is a 'Jump to State' button located on the left, if you're hunting for a particular part of the country. Enjoy.

posted by Fizz (73 comments total)

Good lord, my state got Pecan Pie Bites With Gravy, which is an unholy combination of random foods from other parts of the country that might appeal to stoners.

I'm actually all for it -- the "what the hell, why not?" spirit of the recipe more or less reflects the ethos that led Coloradans to legalize marijuana in the first place.
posted by heurtebise at 8:20 PM on November 18, 2014 [6 favorites]

"a Chinese take on Western-style sage stuffing"

IT'S FRIED RICE, NYT. OH MY GOD. IT'S LITERALLY A RECIPE FOR FRIED RICE.

also ti leaves aren't used in laulau what are you doing
posted by kagredon at 8:20 PM on November 18, 2014 [3 favorites]

I'm looking forward to the matzoh ball turkey soup we always have at my grandma's!
posted by ChuraChura at 8:20 PM on November 18, 2014

I mean, not that fried rice would be out of place at a Thanksgiving potluck in Hawaii, but "mochi rice stuffing"?
posted by kagredon at 8:22 PM on November 18, 2014

The one from DC makes me mad because it has nothing to do with DC so I vote this article STINKS. But then you already knew my vote dont count right? Why are you still reading this comment?
posted by Potomac Avenue at 8:23 PM on November 18, 2014 [9 favorites]

Kumquats are great!

Rumquats are even better!

Take kumquats.
Put in rum.
Let sit for a week.
Imbibe.
Oh, bliss.
posted by spinifex23 at 8:27 PM on November 18, 2014 [3 favorites]

I was going to call bullshit if Utah's dish didn't include jello, but it's pudding and Chex cereal, so I'm letting it slide on a technicality.
posted by Sophie1 at 8:27 PM on November 18, 2014 [5 favorites]

What a great idea and and an even greater presentation.

I dare somebody to make ALL the recipes next week. And EAT them.

Come on. I dare ya.

Which heritage turkey does Arkansas have in mind, exactly?
posted by notyou at 8:30 PM on November 18, 2014

Such a contrast with what the kids at BuzzFeed are doing on the card table in the den, a coupla FPPs below.
posted by notyou at 8:34 PM on November 18, 2014 [8 favorites]

I'll admit, though, there's something poignant about the NYT collecting a group of related entities, who (especially post-election) feel anything from vague resentment to outright contempt for one another and giving us all a third party at which to direct our rage and confusion at their utter wrongness, like a terrible ref at the Lions game.
posted by kagredon at 8:41 PM on November 18, 2014 [6 favorites]

I knew they were going to go with something NYC-related for New York State (they are, after all, the NYTimes, and nothing north of Albany exists for them) but seriously, apple pie? The most boring and famously-all-American dish on the planet? I was seriously hoping for Syracuse salt potatoes. A dish much less likely to already be on the menu for Thanksgiving dinners around the entire country. (This Syracusean lends salt potatoes her wholehearted endorsement, in case you were worried your sodium intake would be too low that day.)
posted by none of these will bring disaster at 8:47 PM on November 18, 2014 [2 favorites]

We're always apples, and I can't even argue with it. It's a fair cop.

Would it have killed them to serve the apple pie with a side of some of our great New York State Cheddar cheese?
posted by The Underpants Monster at 8:51 PM on November 18, 2014 [1 favorite]

As a Canadian, I am both smug that we had thanksgiving already and jealous that I don't have it to look forward to.
posted by sevenyearlurk at 8:51 PM on November 18, 2014 [2 favorites]

In the Bay Area, it's dungeness crab, which struck me odd, since I grew up in Orange County. My parents grew up in upstate New York, so when they moved to California they took with them the holiday tradition of some sort of yam-carrot mash which I thought was disgusting but everyone else raved about.

Mr. psho doesn't care for turkey, so we have chicken roasted draped in bacon.
posted by potsmokinghippieoverlord at 8:58 PM on November 18, 2014

I might try making that California Kale stuffing just to watch my family riot. Not like grandma's!
posted by betweenthebars at 8:58 PM on November 18, 2014

Mofongo and stuffing are two of my favorite foods on the planet, so I actually really wanna try that one. Too bad making mofongo is such a long, labor-intensive process.
posted by Itaxpica at 9:01 PM on November 18, 2014

Finally, one of these lists got Maryland right.
posted by Ice Cream Socialist at 9:02 PM on November 18, 2014 [1 favorite]

"Sourdough Stuffing With Kale, Dates and Turkey Sausage" It's... so... totally... Californian... well, "New York Times Version of Californian". The whole infinite-page-formatted article says more about the culture of New York City than any of the other places it tries to archetype.
posted by oneswellfoop at 9:03 PM on November 18, 2014

Indian Pudding. Yes. This is good. Available canned at the Stop and Shop. The original Thanksgiving involved the Puritains and the Massasoit showing off how tough they were to each other, so they could ally together against the Naragansett - who had much better food, but fewer firearms. Frozen Indian Pudding at small ice-cream stands hereabouts is, as you may well imagine, transcendent. You'll have to wait until March if you want to actually taste it.
posted by Slap*Happy at 9:07 PM on November 18, 2014 [3 favorites]

I'm calling BS on New Hampshire's "New England Roast Turkey". Nobody there is "brining for at least 12 hours". Ain't nobody got time for that. You roast the turkey that Shop 'n' Save is selling for 19 cents a pound, which conveniently already contains 22 percent added water and/or broth. And it's delicious.
posted by Daily Alice at 9:20 PM on November 18, 2014 [4 favorites]

"And, of course, the funniest food of all, kumquats."

Absolutely.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 9:20 PM on November 18, 2014

“Thanksgiving here is about hunting rather than football,”

oh
posted by sourwookie at 9:23 PM on November 18, 2014

The Turkey French Dip is rather clever.
posted by sourwookie at 9:28 PM on November 18, 2014

jesus, internet. Sometimes a state just wants to be a state, you know? It doesn't always have to do things thematically.
posted by boo_radley at 9:44 PM on November 18, 2014 [2 favorites]

Collections of recipes on various dishes are great; even better when a serious effort has been made in curating them.

That being said, I'll roll my eyes and wander away when I read lines like this: "If you have a lefse grill, heat it to 400 degrees." (a quick google tells me their under 100$ at target; and maybe if I had a bag of holding in my kitchen I'd consider it, but still...)
posted by el io at 9:55 PM on November 18, 2014 [1 favorite]

Ha! Is it a coincidence that my FPP about regional foods, "Somewhere in-between Chop Suey and Pork Roll, the truth lies." from yesterday also used a Carlin reference in the title?!

For California, the sourdough bread is spot on, but the kale seems like a tired concession. Why not just suggest we take the raw, organic ingredients for a traditional dinner and juice it?

The Turkey French Dip is rather clever.

For Nevada?! Did California lose the French Dip playing Pai Gow?
posted by Room 641-A at 9:57 PM on November 18, 2014 [3 favorites]

update: "What makes Thanksgiving in Colorado? "

Not fucking pecan bites with gravy, assholes. Despite what the melancholic googling and cynical meal wheedling NYT will suggest to you, there's a shitload of worthwhile food from Colorado that's good for Thanksgiving. Like wild turkeys.

Here's one for you: replace your vaguely respectable New York "Double Apple Pie" with the Maureen Pandowdie. It's a pie that serves twelve, but you eat it all at once, visit the emergency room with an irrational fear you're going to die, get your stomach pumped and then you try to get apple pies banned everywhere. Geddit? Because you can't handle your marijuana. Fuck you, NYT.
posted by boo_radley at 9:57 PM on November 18, 2014 [9 favorites]

NOOO i was gonna post this tomorrow morning to enjoy all the delightful regional-based outrage and brawling while at work

now i might have to do actual work tomorrow

everything is terrible
posted by poffin boffin at 10:06 PM on November 18, 2014 [8 favorites]

I'm sure I'll still be crabby about our pot punchline of a recipe tomorrow, peebofs.
posted by boo_radley at 10:10 PM on November 18, 2014 [1 favorite]

Anyone know why the recipe for [Idaho] Hasselback Potatoes With Garlic-Paprika Oil would say not to refrigerate the potatoes?

1. Place whole unpeeled potatoes in a pot. Cover with cold water by at least 2 inches. Bring to a boil over high heat. As soon as water boils, set a timer and cook potatoes for 10 minutes. Drain, cover with cold water, and let cool to room temperature. (This can be done up to 1 day ahead. Do not refrigerate.)
posted by Beti at 10:35 PM on November 18, 2014

NYT fact-checking: Oh, just skip the food section, I'm sure it's fine.

The "ancestral home" of the du Pont family would be the Winterthur in Switzerland, for which the estate in Delaware is named. And the land on which Winterthur sits in DE was acquired early on by the patriarch of our American du Ponts, sure, but the house really belongs to the great-great-grandson.

That Minnesota dish is waaaay off-base and seems kind of LOLmidwesterner to me. Seriously, represented by an heiress discussing her dinner buffet, what on earth?! But Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl, a fantastic Twin Cities food writer, does this better than I can: "J'accuse! This is not from a Minnesota heiress. Pecans = the south, grapes = California, even sour cream is more likely from Wisconsin than Minnesota. I'm going to guess this is from an heiress from the fabled land of Mindianapolis, who rides through the land on a silver chariot pulled by golden weasels."

DC gets a "global" entry based on diplomatic guests to the White House, ignoring the actual residents of DC, the ones who live there all year 'round, who are from there, who celebrate Thanksgiving in their homes...I know, NYTimes, you're wondering what language I'm speaking when I talk of actual communities in DC. Basically, what Potomac Avenue said: "The one from DC makes me mad because it has nothing to do with DC so I vote this article STINKS. But then you already knew my vote dont count right? Why are you still reading this comment?"

I'm actually from Maryland and must admit that they actually nailed that, pretty spot on. Everyone thinks "crab crab crab," but we eat a lot of Eastern European and German food all over Maryland.

California's recipe is pretty hilarious. Once you're trying to pay homage to the entire length of the state, you're no longer focusing on "local agricultural blessings." It's a big fucking state, yo.

West Virginia: Yes, pawpaw. But it's also native to PA. Just sayin'.
posted by desuetude at 11:20 PM on November 18, 2014 [5 favorites]

Wow, I have never ever EVER known anyone down here to make a Mojo Turkey for Thanksgiving, but I am just so gosh darn tickled pink they didn't make Florida's dish that nastyass neon green Key Lime Pie, I might just Mojo up a meal myself to celebrate.
posted by misha at 11:43 PM on November 18, 2014 [1 favorite]

There is NO SUCH THING as sweet potato cornbread, nor should there be.
posted by trip and a half at 11:57 PM on November 18, 2014 [1 favorite]

Wait, what?

There's a list of supposedly regional holiday dishes for Thanksgiving, and the one they select for New Mexico involves RED CHILE?????

This is either a practical joke or shows someone truly has zero grok about what makes New Mexico chile-based cuisine unique.

IT'S ABOUT THE GREEN CHILE DAMMIT.
posted by hippybear at 1:05 AM on November 19, 2014 [10 favorites]

While I was kind of thrilled to see German Potato Salad get some love, I can't ever recall eating it at Thanksgiving, what with the mashed potatoes and the disgusting sweet potato casserole holding down the tuber roles quite adequately, plus bread stuffing for extra starch.
posted by skybluepink at 1:48 AM on November 19, 2014 [1 favorite]

We've got pawpaws in MD, I saw them on the Appalachian Trail before planting them as native plants at home. But Suffering Succotash, I'm heading to DC to enjoy the pie.
posted by childofTethys at 2:27 AM on November 19, 2014

This struck me as some sort of satirical - I'm a Gothamite and this is what I think of your state - thing.
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 3:55 AM on November 19, 2014 [1 favorite]

Damn right sauerkraut belongs at Thanksgiving.
posted by Faint of Butt at 4:11 AM on November 19, 2014

I've lived in Indiana all my life, and have never, ever, even once seen, let alone been offered a slice of, Persimmon Pie. I guess I should be glad, though, that they didn't go with that horror of a pie often associated with the Hoosier state...sugar cream.

I'm more of a gooseberry or rhubarb pie guy, myself. Both of which grow quite well here.
posted by Thorzdad at 4:50 AM on November 19, 2014 [1 favorite]

Kumquats are great!

Rumquats are even better!

Take kumquats.
Put in rum.
Let sit for a week.
Imbibe.
Oh, bliss.

Hi, excuse me. Is this real, please?
posted by MsDaniB at 5:11 AM on November 19, 2014 [2 favorites]

I learned that salt potatoes are a summer dish.
posted by brujita at 5:51 AM on November 19, 2014 [1 favorite]

I'm ok with the Massachusetts selection, especially since it gives a nod to our large Portuguese-descended population. Also it sounds delicious, but we're not cooking for Thanksgiving so I may have to try it for Christmas. Or some random Tuesday.

If you are cooking a whole turkey, one neat little thing I learned is about preparing the skin with butter before cooking. Pull the turkey out of the fridge and pat dry the skin. Melt a few tablespoons of unsalted butter in the microwave, and then stir into it some minced fresh herbs (I like thyme and rosemary, but go nuts) and spices (smoked paprika works well, and don't forget the salt and pepper). Brush the butter mixture on to the skin - since the bird is still cold, the butter will resolidify and stick there. When you're ready to cook, crank up the oven to about 450, put the turkey in, and then immediately drop the temperature to the usual cooking temperature. This will give you a flavorful, crispy, brown skin and not overcook the rest of the bird.
posted by backseatpilot at 6:03 AM on November 19, 2014 [1 favorite]

Salt potatoes were Grandpa's one naughty indulgence after he was forbidden salt. I remember Mom making me promise not to tell Grandma we'd seen him eating them at the county fair.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 6:06 AM on November 19, 2014

Christ. I love me some gooey butter cake, but 1) no one, ever, has made it for Thanksgiving; 2) it's only a St. Louis thing, so conflating it to Missouri is kinda dumb.

Oh wait, this whole thing is kinda dumb.
posted by notsnot at 6:10 AM on November 19, 2014

If there was any justice in the world, New York would have repped the garbage plate.
posted by quadbonus at 6:59 AM on November 19, 2014 [2 favorites]

I have fond memories of growing up in my white/Polish/Lithunanian Chicago neighborhood, waking up late on Thanksgiving morning, and having Rick Bayless arrive just in time to sit down with us and share his latest mexican-inspired soup.
posted by JoeZydeco at 7:11 AM on November 19, 2014 [3 favorites]

I've lived in Indiana all my life, and have never, ever, even once seen, let alone been offered a slice of, Persimmon Pie.

Huh. Well, it's persimmon pudding, I've never had persimmon pie either. But I was actually about to comment that persimmon pudding and Indiana was spot on. Persimmon pudding is a big deal in my experience of Indiana (lived there pretty much birth through college.)
posted by geegollygosh at 7:24 AM on November 19, 2014

I love me some gooey butter cake, but 1) no one, ever, has made it for Thanksgiving; 2) it's only a St. Louis thing, so conflating it to Missouri is kinda dumb.

I feel like they were reaching for a Missourian specialty--anything, anything that's not found in multiple Midwestern or Southern states--and settled on the Gooey Butter Cake as a last resort.

Which is really the problem with lists like this. Food cultures aren't really delineated by state borders, really.
posted by Kutsuwamushi at 7:27 AM on November 19, 2014

That Minnesota dish is waaaay off-base and seems kind of LOLmidwesterner to me.

That's being kind. I have never heard of "grape salad" before, and I have eaten a LOT of food. Plus in real Minnesota it would be covered in a layer of tater tots (potato chips also acceptable) and like maybe gravy.
posted by wenestvedt at 8:04 AM on November 19, 2014

2) it's only a St. Louis thing, so conflating it to Missouri is kinda dumb.

We see it down here in the SW corner of the state. Almost exclusively in coffee shops and cafeterias though.
posted by sourwookie at 8:23 AM on November 19, 2014

Yeah, the "pumpkin soup with Ancho and apple" for Illinois looks very nice - (of course it does, it's from Rick Bayless) - but I'm pretty sure anyone from Illinois outside of Chicago just went "WTF?"

That's ok. More for me, I guess!
posted by dnash at 8:54 AM on November 19, 2014

The Minnesota one should be a hotdish made from leftovers the next day.
posted by ckape at 9:03 AM on November 19, 2014 [1 favorite]

Vermont is not apple pie served with cheddar cheese, this is wrong.
posted by maryr at 9:10 AM on November 19, 2014 [1 favorite]

(srsly, no one up here would put cheese in the mashed potatoes. doesn't go with gravy.)
posted by maryr at 9:11 AM on November 19, 2014 [1 favorite]

This entire conceit is weird. We're going to list the dish from your state most emblematic of a home cooked thanksgiving side dish from your state when in fact the non-standard side dishes are largely derived from family traditions, not geographical location, so it's guaranteed to aggravate everyone.
posted by edbles at 11:20 AM on November 19, 2014

> This struck me as some sort of satirical - I'm a Gothamite and this is what I think of your state - thing.

Hmm. Maybe all of their food writing focusing on non-NYC locations is intended to be satire.
posted by desuetude at 11:46 AM on November 19, 2014

"Grape salad" for Minnesota? The quintessential Minnesota food appropriate for a Thanksgiving dinner is "hot dish," thank you very much.
posted by jonp72 at 11:52 AM on November 19, 2014

Romenesko's journalism blog hears you: Minnesotans to New York Times: Take your Thanksgiving grape salad and shove it!
posted by oneswellfoop at 11:56 AM on November 19, 2014 [1 favorite]

Um. Is anyone else confused by Connecticut's entry, or have I just been doing Thanksgiving wrong my whole life?

I was just going to make a bunch of pies.
posted by pemberkins at 11:58 AM on November 19, 2014

True, desuetude, but I guess there are also some areas where family traditions, native folk traditions, and geographical residence coincide to make the state dish thing not quite so outrageous.

For instance, a lot of people originally from Norway, of all places, tended to end up on the Bortheest Coast after immigrating here, so there is a Sizeable Norwegian contingent in Washington (hence Seattle's famous troll).

Similarly, you will find a sizeable Asian population surrounding the Bay Area of California and Cuban immigrants settling in South and Central Florida. Then there's the Cajun and Creole influences on Louisiana, and of course New York is the original melting pot, with Chinatown and Little Italy and the rest being a result of immigrants coming in through Ellis Island.
posted by misha at 12:00 PM on November 19, 2014

Here ya go, Minnesota.
posted by misha at 12:06 PM on November 19, 2014

For instance, a lot of people originally from Norway, of all places, tended to end up on the Bortheest Coast after immigrating here, so there is a Sizeable Norwegian contingent in Washington (hence Seattle's famous troll).

Sure, but even though there may be a prevalent immigrant food culture in the state, that one culture doesn't define the food culture in the state. New Jersey isn't just made up of Italian Americans making Crepe Manicotti , there's a lot of different cultures making up New Jersey's food culture. ( Crepe? Manicotti? If you're going to use this broad generalizations at least go for the Pizelle which is delicious. Also, NYT, knock it off with the lame, lazy Italian-American Jokes).

I dunno this sort of looks like the intentionally picked things that were guaranteed to get more rage shares, because people will more strongly identify with their particular families traditions than a sort of vague idea of a regional dish.
posted by edbles at 12:53 PM on November 19, 2014

The quintessential Minnesota food appropriate for a Thanksgiving dinner is "hot dish," thank you very much..

Not Eggs Gafloofen?
posted by Room 641-A at 1:57 PM on November 19, 2014

(MetaFilter's Own) Linda Holmes critiques the list, especially Minnesota's grape salad.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 2:16 PM on November 19, 2014 [2 favorites]

Sure, hotdish is Minnesotan, but I've never had a general kind of hotdish for Thanksgiving (or Christmas or Easter). You might have a green bean casserole (maybe the focus on a single ingredient turns it into a casserole?), baked sweet potatoes, or even french toast casserole (if your family eats early--we have it for Easter).

But tater-tot hotdish? That's for regular Thursdays!

Hotdish is like a meal with all the sides baked together: meat, potatoes/noodles, and vegetables. On Thanksgiving, everyone comes together, you get to have all your sides separately (really separately, if your grandma uses cafeteria trays, too!), and everyone only has to wash one or two dishes.

As ckape said, and much like tamales, hotdish could be made with the leftovers. In my family, we make turkey commercials the next day, though.


Now I'm gonna have to go track down some cream of mushroom soup.
posted by MsDaniB at 4:04 PM on November 19, 2014 [1 favorite]

As I noted to a Minnesotan about Washington's entry: "Glazed Shiitake Mushrooms with Bok Choy - "it may not immediately conjure images of Thanksgiving." Indeed."
posted by epersonae at 4:46 PM on November 19, 2014

In my family, we make turkey commercials the next day, though.

I had to Google what this would mean (other than filming an ad for Butterball), and already it sounds more delicious and more Minnesotan than "grape salad" (I know that sets the bar pretty low, BUT.)

The Washington one was kind of half-assed and generic in much the way the California one was, but I give them a pass on that for thinking beyond "apples".
posted by kagredon at 4:58 PM on November 19, 2014 [1 favorite]

Massachusetts should have eel pie. Eel pie! That's what the Pilgrims ate. Why it isn't a Thanksgiving staple is beyond me.
posted by Biblio at 5:03 PM on November 19, 2014

#Grapegate is about ethics in side-dish journalism
posted by Area Man at 5:53 PM on November 19, 2014 [1 favorite]

Speaking as a Minnesota transplant, I would eat eel pie. Mmm, eels. But grape salad? Ugh.

Not that it might not taste OK, eventually. My wife's family makes "banana salad" which is mayo and lettuce and sugar and bananas all mixed together and it is fucking weird but oddly good, after you've had it seven or eight times, but you have to fight through a lot of "WTF am I eating and why am I even" before you start thinking "hey, this is a thing that is edible" let alone actually liking it. Having said that, I am not trying grape salad.
posted by caution live frogs at 5:19 AM on November 20, 2014

part of me wants to write our local mags and rags to see what their take on this would really be.
posted by boo_radley at 9:00 AM on November 20, 2014

True, desuetude, but I guess there are also some areas where family traditions, native folk traditions, and geographical residence coincide to make the state dish thing not quite so outrageous.

Oh, I agree with that certainly...what I meant was that the NYT food section has a long history of being arrogant and shallow about US regional cuisines.
posted by desuetude at 11:45 AM on November 20, 2014

hippybear: There's a list of supposedly regional holiday dishes for Thanksgiving, and the one they select for New Mexico involves RED CHILE?????

Yet under Puerto Rico, they include this verbage:

What does mofongo mean to Puerto Rico? Well, what do biscuits mean to the South, or green chiles to the people of New Mexico?

So someone there recognized that green chile is important here in the Land of Enchantment. Then again, we're the first state with our own State Question (that being "Red or Green?", regarding to your choice of chile colors).

With all this stewing together, I can support the red chile turkey legs. Perhaps to be paired with a green chile and turkey enchilada, or modify these Blue-Corn Green-Chile Chicken Tamales and replace the chicken with turkey.
posted by filthy light thief at 1:13 PM on November 25, 2014