At Fire Station 7, tomorrow will be just another working day for the six firefighters who will be responding to calls. But their stationhouse chef will put together a meal for which plenty will be thankful.

Firefighter Jerry Lueras began his induction into the kitchen at an early age. His grandmother introduced him to science and the intricacies of baking, and his parents taught him how to cook. While he doesn't hunt often, he does take time to fish his favorite walleye fishing spots at Angostura, Belle Fourche or Pierre.

"In my family, we were taught to be pretty self-sufficient. I was taught to cook at 9 or 10 years old," he said.

Those lessons have led his fellow firemen to ask him to cook a large portion of the meals, while they clean up after cooking chores are finished. Generally, everyone decides on the menu and contributes to groceries. Then, as a unit, they will go grocery shopping at their nearest market. It's something Lueras said he is all too willing to do.

"I like a lot of Cajun food and Italian, too," he said.

A fan of Wolfgang Puck, the chef-restaurateur of Spago Hollywood, as well as Emeril Lagasse, the "bam-o-riffic" chef with Cajun style, Lueras left behind five-ingredient recipe cards to develop his own style of cooking.

He has even created his own homemade seasoning mix that combines the savory flavors of herbs, garlic and spices, but without the salt. How much and what is in the mix is, of course, top secret stuff.

"It's spicy. There's no salt because I want to control the salt when cooking," Lueras said.

He is also a big believer in taste over spoon measurements of flavorings.

"You don't have to measure for anything except baking. Baking is a science," Lueras said.

"We're guys. We don't measure and we don't ask for directions," said Shawn Barrows, a Station 7 fireman. He helped Lueras bone and skin the chicken for a recent supper of homemade gumbo.

On Thanksgiving Day, the firemen will begin their 24-hour shift at 7 a.m. In the past, they have gathered with the other men and women at Station 1 for a large potluck. But this year, they're probably going to eat at the firehouse on North Maple Avenue.

Lueras has a recipe for a Brined Roast Turkey with pan gravy. It takes two days to prepare, but the effort is rewarding, with a melt-in-your mouth slice of turkey that nearly falls off the bone.

"Normally, I'd just buy a turkey breast. For Thanksgiving, I'll look for a 10- to 12-pound turkey," he said of his shopping trip.

"Sometimes our families come and eat dinner here," Barrows said. "We seem to have a lot of pies and snacks that day, which guarantees us to have a good call."

A good call is an emergency call.

"Chances are good we're going to have to stop in the middle of whatever we're doing to answer a call," Lueras said.

Last Tuesday, Lueras demonstrated patience and optimism as he prepared his Chicken Gumbo. Starting his roux at about 4 p.m., he carefully brought it to its delicate peak of taste and texture by constantly stirring over a medium heat, but didn't get to serve the meal until 7 p.m.

In between, Lueras shut down the fire on his roux to help his buddies with two medical emergencies and to knock down a small grassfire near Cabela's on Interstate 90.

"It can be a challenge," he said of the interruptions. "We tend to do a lot of Crock-Pot cooking that doesn't need attending."

The last time Lueras left anything cooking on the stove to go on call, it was a spaghetti sauce. He left it on low to go to a fire call, then answered a medical call and made a run to the hospital.

When he returned to the kitchen, the sauce had cooked out all of its liquid- and it was on the verge of burning, he said.

With nothing else to eat, he added liquid to the remnants, stirred it up and served it over spaghetti.

"They never knew difference," he said.

Fireman Jerry Lueras, a fan of chef Wolfgang Puck and Emeril Lagasse, has contributed these recipes that family, friends and neighbors will give plenty of thanks to share.

Brine-Roasted Turkey with Pan Gravy

Brine:

1 gallon water

1 pound kosher salt

4 ounces cracked black peppercorns

1/2 ounce ground cloves

1/2 ounce ground ginger

12 bay leaves

24 ounces honey

24 ounces maple syrup

The day before you plan to roast the turkey, make the brine. In a stockpot, bring the water, salt, black peppercorns, cloves, ginger and bay leaves to a boil. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer and stir in the honey and maple syrup until well blended.

Turn off the heat and leave the brine to cool to room temperature. The honey and maple syrup in the brine contribute to a beautifully browned skin for the roast.

Rinse the turkey inside and out with cold tap water. Immerse the turkey completely in the brine, either in the stockpot or a clean basin large enough to hold the turkey and submerge it completely.

Place a weight on top of the turkey to hold it down securely beneath the brine's surface. Refrigerate and leave the turkey in the brine for at least 4 hours or as long as overnight.

Roast Turkey

1 (10-pound) whole, fresh turkey, giblets and neck removed and reserved for stock

1 stick butter, at room temperature

2 teaspoons chopped garlic

2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage leaves

1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves

2 apples, quartered and cored

1 onion, peeled and quartered

3 sprigs sage

2 rosemary sprigs

Olive oil, for drizzling

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a shallow roasting pan, place the carrots, celery and onions. Remove turkey from brine and set on large workspace.

In a mixing bowl, mash butter together with garlic, chopped sage and chopped rosemary. Inserting your hands through the bird's neck opening, gently loosen the skin from the flesh above the breast. Rub the butter mixture evenly under the skin. Insert the apples, onions, whole sage and rosemary sprigs into the cavity of the turkey.

Place the turkey on top of the vegetables in the roasting pan, breast side up. Tuck the wings back and under the turkey. Using kitchen twine, tie the ends of the drumsticks together to make a compact shape for a more attractive presentation. Drizzle the turkey with olive oil and rub it into the skin.

Transfer the turkey to the preheated oven and roast it until the breast meat registers 165 degrees on an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part not touching bone, about 2-1/2 hours. If the skin appears to be browning too quickly, tent the bird with a sheet of aluminum foil.

When turkey is done, transfer it to a platter and let it rest for 15 to 20 minutes before carving, tenting it with foil.

Turkey Stock

Giblets and neck

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup port wine

1 cup roughly chopped onions

1/2 cup roughly chopped carrots

1/2 cup roughly chopped celery

2 sprigs rosemary

5 peppercorns

Water, to cover

Heat a saucepan over high heat. When the pan is hot, add the olive oil and heat. Add the neck and giblets and saute until evenly browned, about 7 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, add the port and stir and scrape with a wooden spoon to deglaze the pan. Return the pan to the heat and cook until the port is almost completely evaporated, about 10 minutes. Add the carrots, onions, celery, rosemary and peppercorns. Cover with 4 inches of cold water.

Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and simmer for 2 hours, adding a little more water if necessary to keep the ingredients covered. Skim any scum that rises to the surface of the stock and discard. Strain the stock.

Use immediately or cook and refrigerate for up to 4 days. You can prepare the turkey stock for use in the gravy a day ahead. Keep it in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Pan Gravy

1/2 cup white wine

1/2 cup Madeira wine

4 cups turkey stock, recipe above

1 sprig thyme

2 sprigs parsley

Beurre manie (2 ounces room temperature butter mashed together with 2 ounces flour to form a smooth paste)

Salt, to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

After cooking turkey, tilt the roasting pan and with a large basting spoon, skim as much fat as possible off the juices. Place the roasting pan on 2 burners on top of the stove, set to medium heat. Add the white wine and Madeira to the pan and stir and scrape with a wooden spoon to deglaze the pan deposits. Continue boiling until the liquid has reduced by three quarters, 7 to 10 minutes. Add the turkey stock, thyme and parsley.

Bring to a boil and strain into a saucepan. Bring back to a boil; skim and reduce the heat to a simmer. Whisk in the beurre manie until well incorporated and continue to cook until the gravy thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Chicken Gumbo

1 cup oil

1 cup flour

1 cup onion, chopped

1 cup green pepper, chopped

1 cup celery, chopped

2 cups rice

1 (3 to 4 pounds) whole chicken, giblets and neck removed

1 ring smoked sausage, 1-inch cubes (andouille, chorizo or kielbasa sausage optional)

1 pound lobster meat or shrimp, shelled and deveined

Italian seasoning

Garlic powder

Salt

Pepper

Emeril's Original Essence

One gallon of water

In a large stockpot, pour water over chicken, adding Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt, pepper and Essence to taste. Bring water to a boil and simmer for about 1 hour or until meat falls off the bone.

Take chicken out of stockpot; place in shallow pan. Remove meat and break or cut into bite-sized chunks, discarding bones and skin. Ladle 4 cups of stock into saucepan, add rice and heat over high heat to boiling.

Turn down to medium, cover saucepan and let rice simmer for 20 minutes. Remove rice from heat and set aside.

In a 12-inch cast iron skillet, heat oil over medium heat, adding flour to create a roux. Cook oil and flour, stirring constantly, until the roux turns the color of chocolate. (Do not hurry; if flour burns, the roux is ruined.)

Add onions, green peppers and celery; cook until vegetables soften, then add vegetables and roux to stockpot.

Rinse out skillet and then use to lightly brown sausage pieces over medium high heat. Stir several times to evenly brown sausage.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer sausage into stock pot. Taste stock and adjust seasonings. Add chicken and lobster meat to stockpot. Heat until meat is thoroughly cooked. Fill individual serving bowl with rice, topping with gumbo.

Serves 10 or 5 firefighters.

Contact Jomay Steen at 3943-8418 or jomay.

steen@

rapidcityjournal.com.