Let's be honest. Thanksgiving dinner is great, but the real holiday starts Friday morning, when someone in sweatpants opens the fridge and just stands there holding a fork.
In New Jersey, we take leftovers seriously. So before you lock in your turkey size, here's our case for going one size up, and exactly what to do with the extra.
1. The Black Friday Sloppy Joe
Not the ground-beef kind. The Jersey kind: thin rye, sliced turkey, Swiss, coleslaw and Russian dressing, stacked three layers high. Town Hall Deli in South Orange has been making the original since 1927. Yours just happens to start with a farm-fresh bird from Old Bridge.
2. Gobbler Disco Fries
Crispy fries, hot turkey gravy, melted mozzarella, chopped turkey and a spoonful of cranberry sauce. It's 1 a.m. diner food you can eat at noon in your own kitchen. No judgment.
3. The Day-After Pot Pie
Turkey, peas, carrots and leftover gravy under a flaky crust. Already making the Wednesday pie run to Delicious Orchards in Colts Neck? Grab an extra loaf of bread while you're there. Sandwich season starts Friday.
4. Sunday Turkey Soup
Don't toss the carcass. Simmer it a few hours with onion, celery, carrots and a bay leaf, strain, and add egg noodles. That's Sunday dinner handled, plus a few quarts for the freezer.
5. The Take-Home Plate
Hosting in Marlboro, Matawan or East Brunswick? Send everyone home with a container. It's the most Jersey thing you can do, right behind arguing about pork roll vs. Taylor ham.
Fresh Turkey Makes Better Leftovers
Leftovers are only as good as the bird you started with. Our turkeys are raised right here in Old Bridge and processed just days before Thanksgiving, so Saturday's sandwich still tastes like a farm turkey, not a freezer.
Quick safety tip: Refrigerate leftovers within two hours, eat them within three to four days, and freeze the rest.
So How Big Should You Go?
Plan on about 1 lb per person for dinner, or 1½ lbs per person if you want leftovers. Feeding 10 to 12? Size up from a 14–16 lb bird to 16–18 lbs. You'll thank us on Saturday. The full chart is in our turkey size guide.
Reserve Before Your Size Sells Out
Whole fresh turkeys run from 14 to 30+ lbs at $6.80/lb. Reserve online with a small deposit, which comes off your total, then pick up at the farm in Old Bridge Thanksgiving week. Cash only at pickup. Families come from Monroe, Freehold, Sayreville and Staten Island, and the popular sizes go fast.
Reserve Your Fresh Turkey →
Questions? Call (732) 970-5265 or email Turkeys@SpringValleyNJ.com.
Spring Valley Turkey Farm · 402 Spring Valley Road, Old Bridge, NJ 08857