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My first time roasting a turkey.
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Sally, Bun Wat is right; people like me will give you all sorts of strange advice, but start simple and work up--good advice. Now, to the tricks for great turkey:
I've deep-fried and smoked a lot of turkeys and they're really good. BUT, here is how I've come to cook turkey and why....
Brine it as you thaw it. Brining for 24 hrs. in high salt content water makes it juicier and more flavorful. It also is a great way to thaw the bird with no chance of any spoilage. I never use fresh birds, any more.
Now, to cooking--shape doubled, heavy duty aluminum foil to the shape of the breast, remove and save for later. Preheat overn to 450 degrees, put the bird in the oven with the rear of the bird in the rear of the oven (explanation to follow) for an hour to allow it to sear and seal in the juices. Place the foil on the breast and turn the oven down to 275 degrees, using the recommended time as a guide.
Bun Wat is right, you want the dark meat to reach 170 plus degrees, but not the white meat. The white meat needs to reach 155 is all. White meat has less fat and gets dry at any higher temperature than 155, or 160 max after resting. The pop-out is set to go off at 160 so don't trust it, it's in the white meat and will guarantee dry white meat. I pull it out before cooking.
Placing the rear of the bird toward the back of the oven where it is hotter, and covering the breast with foil will allow the two different types of meat to reach their proper serving temps.
There are all sorts of seasoning tricks and rubbing the bird with oil, etc., that I'm sure others will share. Don't let us scare you away, please. The truth is, if you clean it and cook it until it's done, it's really hard to ruin. If it's dry, just ladel on more gravy and enjoy giving thanks with friends and family. How bad can that be?
Oh, and I never stuff the bird any more, either. I do place some aromatics inside the cavity and then throw them away, but I like for the heat to reach the inside and the outside of the bird, evenly. If anyone says you have to stuff it to make it moist, they're wrong; I'll put my turkey up against anyone's for flavor and moisture. It's much safer, too.
Maybe before T'day we'll share dressing/stuffing recipes. There are so many regional differences for side dishes and dressings, I'm looking forward to it.
Oh, I really must tell one of my favorite stories about cooking a turkey. I have several, by the way; all came out fine.I traveled to my recently-graduated from college daughter's new nome to cook Thanksgiving dinner. Her new gas oven seemed almost identical to mine. I heated the oven to 450 as I wrote and turned it to 225 for six hours. About four hours later, I noticed there didn't seem to be any heat coming from the oven. Her oven required I punch "start" any time I changed the temp, unlike mine, so the oven had been off for four hours.
"Oh, my God!" she exclaimed when I told her. "What will we do? My friends are arriving and...."
"It will be fine," I assured her. What she didn't realize is that it was almost perfect, as it slowly cooled down to just under 225 and I put it up to 350 to finish, it came out great.
We tell the story to new guests each year, and the reaction is always the same, "Oh, my God! What did you do?"
I'm tempted to say, "We ate it raw," but don't; I explain that it's actually almost the perfect way to cook a bird.
Then there was the time I arrived after driving all night and arriving T'day morning, late, and asked, "Where's the turkey?" to be told, "In the freezer."
Or the time....
I roasted my first turkey for everyone in my family and my husband's parents two years ago. Like everyone has said it is really not as hard as it seems. Like Will, I would suggest making a dressing instead of a stuffing for a side. and actually stuffing the bird with onions, sprigs of fresh rosemary, thyme, sage and maybe a little basil.
When I did it I made an herb butter (using herbs I was stuffing with) and slide it up under the skin. you have to carefully separate the skin from the meat without removing it. (stick your hand under and gentle move it around). Otherwise butter salt and pepper the outside, cook at temps and times other suggested. Cover with foil if the skin is getting too brown.
I would also suggest basting every hour or so with the pan juices.
one things i did not see mentioned, put about an inch of chicken stock or water in the bottom of the pan maybe a little less depending on size of bird and pan. this will keep a big bird from drying out and give you more liquid to make gravy.
This is probably heresy, but we switched to using a roasting bag, and the juices stay in it and it doesn't take as long which means you don't have to get up early to get the turkey in the oven.
I used to cook turkey with a roasting bag and they do come out very juicy. This will be the 2nd year in a row that we will be out of the country. It's very odd, I don't feel Thanksgiving at all.
Next year I will brine, every guest cook on NPR pre-Thanksgiving shows talk about this method as the best.
I agree with Bun Wat and Will. BTW, great stories, Will. There are several flavor-injector kits available that "spice it up" a bit; honey-mesquite, Cajun, and others. I usually use a roasting bag with the Cajun flavor. So far, I've had tasty, fully-cooked and moist meat. My sister used Martha Stewart's technique of covering the turkey with cheesecloth until 15 minutes before serving. She basted the turkey until she took the cheesecloth off, browned for 15 minutes and served. It was good but too much work for me. I just have too much other food to get on the table to nurse/baste a turkey every 20 minutes or so. Here's to a grateful, peaceful, and happy Thanksgiving. Peace to you and yours.
I am glad we all disagree on how to best cook turkey; I love it. Over the years, I've used bags and used to baste, but dumped those for searing on high heat at the start to seal in the juices, and don't like cooling and reheating each time you open the oven to baste. Steady heat transistion is essential for proper texture...sorry. And bags tend to steam the meat, especially the outside, which I want crisp and golden. The test is: Is the white breast meat moist and does it taste great? If you're achieving that, you've got the right formula.
Having a wonderful time reading all the posts and 'turkey cooking' issues!I am jut wondering if I am the only person who really doesn't like turkey at all! I got deathly ill after a Thanksgiving at my grandparents home and several days later.came dump with the chicken pox! Over 50 ago....and still have trouble with it:-) If anyone is makiing a standing rib roast..I'll be there in record time..
I grab a wind and then load up on all of the side dishes...then..I am a happy girl :-)
The weird thing is that I absolutely adore turkey sandwiches!! It's got to have Miracle Whip, lettuce, tomato, turkey,cranberry sauce and, last but not least...stuffing!!!
There is a CA restaurant that serves that sandwich year round..and it's where I ot the idea to add the stuffing. Talk about a carb overload!!!!
And, I could certainly make do with a prime rib sandwich, set up the same way- minus the stuffing.
Or...I'm always game for Chinese food......
I'm not a big fan of roasted turkey either, Sandi. I think I mentioned somewhere around here that one year it was just going to be me and my husband for Thanksgiving, and when my mom found out I was making lobsters she was appalled :)I love turkey leftovers, though, and LOVE the sandwich you mentioned (with turkey, cranberry sauce and stuffing). I like it with Tiger Sauce instead of Miracle Whip though.
My favorite thing on Thanksgiving is to stand around after dinner and pull the leftover turkey meat off the bird and pack it for leftovers (well, it's one of my favorite things). That, and getting the wishbone out.
I will be cooking and serving Thanksgiving dinner to friends in Costa Rica this year (leaving tomorrow). Turkeys aren't plentiful, there. We will have smoked fish, ceviche, slow-cooked pork, lots of vegies, fruit salads, along with potatoes, corn, etc. and one turkey, dressing and cranberries. Oh, and desserts. It won't look like a typical Thanksgiving dinner, but it should be really good. My favorite cranberry relish is not cooked. I chop the cranberries, add chopped celery and chopped pecans with orange zest, mandarin oranges, some sugar (half cup) and let it sit overnight. It's tart and sweet.
Cornbread dressing with some sourdough bread chunks, green chiles, celery, onions, garlic, typical herbs (parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme; plus basil) and plenty of turkey juice for moisture, Mmmmmmmmm.....
We will eat beside the pool, near the beach. Not remeniscent of the Pilgrims' celebration? Yeah, well....
We don't do thanksgiving around here but my husband loves roasted turkey for Christmas dinner so I'm very grateful for all the tips. What I usually do in order to make it more flavorful is to fill the cavity with quartered lemons and finocchios.
I find cooking for long periods with lemons is a bit drying, but in the cavity, it's probably a good idea; it does brighten the flavors. Finocchios? That's fennel?
Chickens don't need to cook as long so there's less tendency to dryness, but I think anything that adds some pleasant flavors is probably okay in the cavity...anything except stuffing. Stuffing should never be cooked in the cavity of so large a bird. One of two things will happen: The stuffing will not get done, OR the turkey will be way too overcooked and dry; take your pick. I'm looking for an alternative, additional stuffing/dressing to cornbread...just for variety. I'm playing with long grain and wild rice, roasted chestnuts or water chestnuts, olives...any ideas?
I'm really not arguing, but it may sound like I am; I'm sure your birds turn out wonderfully...BUT [grins:]...it doesn't have so much to do with the texture of the stuffing as it does with the penetration of the heat into the raw bird juices into the stuffing, which must be cooked to done, while the bird is overcooking. Yes, not packing it so tightly helps. Stuffing with any grains in it does not add moisture, it absorbs moisture. Whatever goes into the cavity should be thrown out after cooking...at least in my kitchen. Everyone! Please have a great and thankful holiday, tons of food and love, and great stories to share after it's over. Happy Turkey!
Oh, before I sign off for the holiday; one more turkey story: I was in Saudi Arabia (circa 1973), in the desert, when the cook asked the mechanic what was traditional fare in America on Thanksgiving. The mechanic told him; problem was, the mechanic wasn't a cook.
The cook proudly served a "traditional" Thanksgiving dinner to us: a baked turkey stuffed with dry cornmeal, sweet potatoes swimming in syrup, and mooshed canned cranberry gelatin with chopped celery mixed into it. We ate it and said "thank you."
Yes, Will, finocchio is fennel (I couldn't for the life of me remember the english word for it when I was writing my former post) It gives the bird a nice overtone not unlike ouzo.
From a few comments ago my two cents: The stuffing from inside the bird is my favorite thanksgiving treat.
Sally wondering how it went. with the turkey! what methods did you use (like or dislike)?
Sally: I know that stuffing is a treat for many people. If done properly, it's possible to get the same treat w/o it coming from inside the bird, and the turkey will taste great and be more tender and juicy; that was my point. Ginnie: Great idea; I must try it, soon. thanks.
Stamatia: Ouzo flavored turkey? Interesting.
I'm dying to know how everyone's turkeys and holiday dinners went...c'mon, some stories! I love stories.
I'm afraid I don't have any turkey disaster stories this year. My one boo boo was I made coffee for after dinner and failed to hit the ON button. "Where's that coffee?"
"Hmm, it will be a few more minutes," I said, when I realized what happened. Not a disaster. What's a holiday w/o a disaster story? I was robbed! Please contribute.
My turkey from a week ago (with two boxes of stuffing, celery and onion inside) was fine. Good, not undercooked like I was afraid it would be, crispy skin. Juicy dark meat, I loved it. We didn't have much leftover, as there were 14 people here. Last Thursday we were at the in-laws home. There were two turkeys roasted with nothing but herbs and whatnot inside, and a separate dish of "dressing" which I can not stand. The turkey was moist heavenly deliciousness, so I'm not complaining. Holy cow, that was some great bird. (the oysters were divine)
But I'm just a stuffing girl! I can't get enough. Even if it's cooked on the side, I don't care, I just want some herby bread to go with my roast giant bird.
Thanks for all the hints and advice, people. I combined tons of these tips into my MO. I did put some broth in the pan, I did rub the dude all over with salt and pepper, and olive oil. And I foiled him for the last couple of hours - next time I'll put the lid on for a while too.
Good job, Sally. We obviously have different experiences with dressing vs. stuffing. Oysters in stuffing...no thanks, but to each their own, right? I'm heading home to New Mexico, today. It was a beautiful holiday here in Costa Rica, but I'm ready to get back to work...two weeks...then off to Mexico for Christmas. Life's tough.
Oysters are (I thought) the juicy, tender morsel of turkey found when carving every last bit of meat off a carcass - it resides at the top of the thighs, in the turkey's hip region.
Oh, that oyster. Some people put real oysters in stuffing. I don't care for it. Yes, that part is often called the oysters; they're usually the most tender and flavorful part...my bad. I did something new, partly from what I read here. I found turkeys in Costa Rica, so with all the guests and having more turkey, I cooked each one differently. One, I cut out the back, turned the breast down and stuffed the exposed cavity with cornbread and sourdough bread stuffing. I cooked it on the grill with the lid closed and wood chips for smokey flavors. It turned out great. It was even kind of pretty with the blackened stuffing showing and the legs sticking out around it. Kind of hard to carve, though.
1. Remove innards.
2. Stuff
3. Roast for a few hours at 350.
4. Make gravy with pan juices.
5. Serve
Can this really be all there is to it? I'm so scared that it'll be like that scene in Christmas Vacation, when the bird is cut and gasps open with a rotten, dry, steaming interior.
Any advice, yee cooking gods would be much appreciated.