What you need to know
Thanksgiving is just around the corner and Jason Kelce is getting ready for turkey time with his family.
The 37-year-old retired NFL star spoke to PEOPLE about his plans for his next vacation and family time while promoting Kingsford’s new fragrance Slow Burn, and admitted who does most of the labor in the kitchen.
“At Thanksgiving, Kylie and her mom do most of the cooking.[My]mom comes over and makes the dinner rolls, which she’s been making since she was a kid. And for the past few years, I’ve been frying the turkey,” he says.
Kylie Kelsey/Instagram
But Kelce is the first to admit that the traditional turkey isn’t the first choice when it comes to what’s served at the Thanksgiving dinner table.
“I don’t really like turkey. The only time I ever really liked it was when I saw it being fried. Probably because of the moisture in it,” he said. “I’ve never baked a turkey. I’ve smoked a turkey. I’ve even fried a turkey when it came out of the oven. Smoking isn’t bad, especially if it’s something like a spatchcocked turkey.”
He continued, “I definitely like fried turkey. Birds do better that way.”
The New Heights co-host, who is married to wife Kylie Kelsey, 33, said he and his daughters Wyatt, 6, Elliott, 4, Bennett, 2, and Finn, 6 months, are looking forward to creating new family traditions during the holiday season.
Donna Kelce/Instagram
However, the remaining members of the Kelce family may not be fully on board yet.
“One of the traditions that we started was my mom passing on a new (Christmas) ornament, which is like going outside, cutting down the Christmas tree, putting it up, and putting the ornaments on the tree. I’m trying to turn that into a tradition that we do as close to Thanksgiving as possible,” Kelce explained. “We’re not there yet. We’d love to cut down the tree and have a Thanksgiving and the next day it’s going to be up and decorated. That’s what I want to do. We’re not there yet.”
Lisa Lake/Getty
Last year, a source told PEOPLE that Kelsey, along with her brother Travis Kelsey and now fiancé Taylor Swift, were celebrating Thanksgiving with Swift’s family in Nashville.
“Taylor and her family were excited to host Kelsey’s this year,” a source said at the time. “Jason also came with his family and kids. It was a very festive and special time.”
