Take John Madden's Lead: Have a Turducken This Thanksgiving

John Madden made the Turducken famous. When working for CBS and FOX, Madden would have a Turducken in the booth for the yearly Thanksgiving game (in Detroit or Dallas).

A Turducken is a turkey, stuffed with a duck, stuffed with a chicken. Madden's version had up to 8 turkey legs sewn on to the massive bird, known as the "nuclear turkey," to present to their players of the game. Often the offensive line was rewarded (they can definitely pound down the turkey) and the quarterback and/or running back.

The Turducken story would be told by John Madden each Thanksgiving even though most viewers had heard it all before the year prior. Even though Turkduckens have been around since 1985, most Americans had not heard of the poultry dish until Thanksgiving football and John Madden.

Turducken is generally a "do-it-yourself" dish, but Herbert's Specialty Meats in Maurice, Louisiana produces over 3,300 Turduckens a year. Most of Herbert's Turduckens are sold around the holidays as it is mainly thought of as a poultry treat in November and December.

Making your own Turducken is an involved process. Deboning the poultry and cooking the frankenstein-like creature and take 12-16 hours from start to finish. Turducken is relatively high in fat and cholesterol, but it can be tempered by removing the skin of the duck and chicken before stuffing the turkey.

Herbert's Specialty Meats was featured in a prominent 2005 National Geographic article by Calvin Trillin. A local farmer (whose name hasn't been identified) brought in the birds and asked Herbert's to prepare the dish. Turduckens popularity has spread from Louisiana to the Deep South and beyond. They are available through specialty stores in urban areas and mail order with Herbert's Specialty Meats. Original recipes are readily available on the internet for all the brave Turducken do-it-yourselfers out there.

Other than the Turducken, many combination dishes exist. The largest being comprised of 17 birds and served at a Royal Feast in 19th century France. The bustergophechiduckneaealcockidgeoverwingailusharkolanbler is a bustard stuffed with a turkey, a goose, a pheasant, a chicken, a duck, a guinea fowl, a teal, a woodcock, a partridge, a plover, a lapwing, a quail, a thrush, a lark, an Ortolan Bunting and a Garden Warbler. Many of these birds are now protected in the modern era, so it is unlikely to ever be matched.