Well, it’s that time of year again. It’s time to throw on some layers of clothing, grab the rifle, and head into the woods for a chilly day of tracking and hunting for your holiday party. Oh wait a minute. That’s not how it’s done these days. You’re looking for turkey cooking tips, or turkey cooking tips, right?
Okay, time to put down the remote, get off the couch, and head to the grocery store for your holiday turkey. For those who have never roasted one of the giant birds, the task may seem daunting. Don’t worry, it’s actually easy.
Of course, the first step is to buy the bird. I guess you already figured that out. Well, now it becomes easier than you expected. If the turkey has been frozen, it will take 24 hours to thaw in the refrigerator for every five pounds of weight. The refrigerator is the safest way to defrost.
Use a shallow roasting pan. A dark pan is better than a bright one, because the dark pan will cook the turkey faster. Cover that bad boy in butter. Don’t be shy, because this is the holiday season. If you want to stuff it, then stuff it, but do it right before you put the bad boy in the oven, because you don’t want the bacteria. Place a triple layer of aluminum foil under the bird in the roasting pan.
Well here are some options for you. Don’t be scared, please! You can cover the bird or not cover the bird. You can cover it with a lid to the pan. You can bag it in a roasting bag. It is not recommended that you use a paper shopping bag, because most of it is recycled these days. That’s good for the environment overall, but we don’t know what will happen to our bad boy bird. You can make a tent out of aluminum foil, but that will add more cooking time. Or, you can just let the whole thing hang out and put the naked bird in the oven. You have to decide, because this is your crisis, not mine.
Insert a thermometer into the bird before putting it in the oven. That’s the best way to tell if he or she is fully cooked. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees and cook the bird to that temperature or higher. You can find all kinds of different advice on how long to cook a turkey. The equation is usually so many hours per pound. But it varies, so ask your butcher. She or he knows everything. The last step is to take the delicious, perfectly cooked holiday turkey out of the oven and enjoy it.
I told you this would be easy. You now have turkey cooking tips and turkey cooking tips. So relax, you did it!