It’s much easier to make a turkey today than when your mom and grandmother had to watch and baste their birds for what seemed like half the day. Learning how to make your first turkey is easy – follow these few helpful tips to help make sure your first holiday Tom is terrific.
Choose Your Turkey
The easiest way to cook a turkey is to buy one with a pop-up thermometer. Once the internal temperature reaches the correct temp, a plastic button will pop up, letting you know your turkey is done. Choose a self-basting bird with clear directions on the packaging, and one that doesn’t require you to keep taking the bird out of the oven or bending over while you ladle juices onto the turkey.
Another option for smaller gatherings is to buy a pre-cooked turkey breast. Choosing a pre-cooked breast lets you heat and serve juicy slices of white meat turkey in a matter of minutes. You can pre-slice and heat individual servings, or heat the entire breast. Make sure you are familiar with your microwave’s re-heat setting so you don’t cook the turkey and dry it out.
Buy and Defrost Early
A frozen turkey can take a full day or more to defrost. Start the defrosting process in the refrigerator and finish it in the kitchen sink in cold water. Don’t defrost it on the counter or in the microwave. Depending on the size of your bird, it can take a full day to defrost.
Plan on 24 hours of defrost time for every 4 lbs. of turkey if you defrost in your fridge. Keep the bird in its original wrapping while you defrost it. If you defrost it in the sink (which his quicker), place it breast-side down in cold water and change the water every 30 minutes, defrosting for 30 minutes per pound.
Basting Tips
If you’re not using a self-basting turkey and want to ensure a crisp, dark-brown skin on your bird, follow a few basting tips as you learn how to make your first turkey. Rub the bird in a mixture of butter and seasonings. Rub the mixture under the skin, as well as on the skin, and then cover the bird with cheesecloth or tin foil to keep the breast moist.
Brush the bird with the melted butter every 30 minutes to start, and every 15 minutes toward the end of the process, depending on how long you are cooking your turkey and how brown you want it.
Breast Side Up or Down?
Some experts recommend cooking a turkey breast-side down so the juices continually melt into that part of the bird. You’ll need to lift the bird out of the pan several times during the cooking process to prevent the breast from sticking to the bottom of the pan and tearing when you try to lift it.
Another option is to cook the turkey right-side up, place a piece of tin foil over the breast to keep moisture in, and then finish the bird upside down the last 30 minutes. This method lets you baste the top of the bird to get your desired skin color.
Should you Stuff the Bird?
Cooking a bird with stuffing inside takes longer and can create harmful bacteria if the inside flesh of the bird doesn’t cook thoroughly. On the other hand, cooking the stuffing in the bird correctly makes the dressing taste wonderful because of the drippings it absorbs.
If you’re going to stuff your bird, don’t cram the cavity full – leave enough room for heat to circulate all throughout the area. Sautee sausage or oysters you plan to add to your stuffing to give them a head start, as well.
If you want crispy, juicy stuffing without cooking it in the bird, remember that you will need to let your bird rest for 30 minutes or more after you take it out of the oven. During this time, you can add drippings to your dressing and then bake it in the oven.
When is the Turkey Done?
If you are stuffing your bird, cook it until the breast temperature is 180 degrees and the inside of the cavity (where the stuffing is), reaches at least 165 degrees. Use a meat thermometer and avoid poking holes in multiple places, which will let juice run out and possibly dry parts of the turkey.
Let the Turkey Rest
Don’t slice into your turkey until the juices that have bubbled to the surface have a chance to settle back into the meat. This can take 30 minutes or longer, depending on the size of the turkey.
Ride the Gravy Train
Gravy made from turkey drippings tastes better if you include the juice from vegetables that have been roasted with the turkey. Add onions, carrots, celery and/or other root vegetables to the bottom of your roasting pan, place your turkey on top, and let the veggies caramelize and absorb some of the drippings.
After you remove the turkey from the pan, pour the vegetables into a sieve and collect the drippings. Serve the vegetables with the turkey on the same platter for a delicious, eye-catching presentation.
Making Great Gravy
To make gravy, put the turkey drippings into a pan (remove all or some of the fat, if you prefer a healthier gravy). Add 2 tablespoons of flour or corn starch to ¼-cup of cold water and stir or whisk to remove lumps. Cornstarch gives you a clear gravy, like the kind you find on Chinese dishes.
As the gravy begins to boil, slowly add your water and flour or starch mixture a little at a time to see how it thickens. This is the time to season the gravy to your taste, and add more delicate vegetables like mushrooms. Adding butter gives you a smoother, richer gravy.
If you want to make your gravy ahead (and have a few hours), try Alton Brown’s technique.
Proper Turkey Presentation is a Must
Serve your turkey on a large platter with your roasted vegetables arranged around the bird. Pre-slice breast and dark meat and place the legs and wings toward the outside. Slice the breast starting at the outside and working your way inward to the bone. Arrange the meat on the plate, separating the dark and white meat for easy selection.
Check out our tips for making healthy holiday dishes!
