turkey virgin

[houseelf]

Can we start talking turkey? I'm a T-Day virgin and I'm determined to get this right. This weekend I won a 17 pound turkey at a raffle for a race that I ran. (I'm not saying that I lack running talent BUT this is the first time I've every won an award for any race that I've run!).

Anyway, let's talk Turkey. Advice? Tips?

Kelly

Make sure it is thoroughly defrosted. At least that is what I hear. And you are bigger and smarter than the bird. Seriously, the turkey prep and carving is always a little daunting for me since we do not eat much meat, esp large roasted things.

I have a good run-down of turkey prep in one of my cooking magazines -- want me to mail you a copy?

[houseelf]

Ohhh..That would be fabulous!

I'm also going to browse the internet. For some odd reason, I'm feeling a lot of pressure about this.

Kelly

Oh, another piece of advice from the "just what I have heard" file -- make sure you get ALL the extra bits and pieces they bag and stuff in the cavities.

[Auspicious]

Last year I made the full-on T-givng dinner for the first time for jsut the two of us and you'd have though I'd cured cancer I was so proud.

I used the Alton Brown brine-soak method :@ and it made one fine bird. In my opinion, the keys are the apple and sage and not putting any stuffing inside the bird.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/reci...6_8389,00.html

I had not started the defrosting nearly early enough, though, and it was a bear to get that frozen bag of giblets out of the center of that frozen bird--like my own little OB rotation. This year I will move it to the fridge much earlier.

[Sheherezade]

I like to cover the turkey in butter-soaked cheese cloth when it is roasting. You baste less and the bird stays moist. The cheese cloth is usually out in the grocery stores around this time of year. I melt a stick of butter, soak the cheese cloth in it and then drape it over the top of the trussed bird before I put it in the oven. I probably baste it with pan juices every 30 minutes or so. I know some say that basting is bad, but my turkey is pretty good. Maybe the cheese cloth helps prevent the dryness. Dry turkey = bad turkey. The salt brine is a good idea, too. I'd like to try that, but I don't make turkey often enough to experiment! With roast chicken and smaller birds, it's good to put some marinade or herbs/butter under the skin after you've loosened it up a bit. You can also fill the cavity with fresh herbs or lemon to add a subtle flavor if you aren't stuffing it. Great smells too. I do a sage/apple and chestnut dressing usually out of the bird. The dressing/stuffing is the creative part I think. So many choices. Yummmmmmy. I'm almost glad I'm hosting the Christmas party for the department.

[houseelf]

O.K. a google search has me scared....there seems to be a lot to this. I have never "trussed" before or used cheese cloth. The turkey fryer route is oh-so-yummy, but I can't part with $140 to buy one and then have to store it.

I can do this, I can do this, I can do this.

This turkey thing is taking on a life of its own.

Kelly

[houseelf]

Laura,

The bag method sounds good...do you still have to do the brining and tying up part or does this matter?

Kelly

[Auspicious]

I didn't tie anything--I bent the wings back and tucked them under, and I want to say the legs came with some sort of clip that held them together if I remember right?

Do you get the food channel? Because you'll hardly be able to get through two minutes of it in the next few weeks without seeing a celebrity chef do a demonstration of their own special way to abuse your bird and carve it up afterward.

And you don't have to brine it--I'm pretty sure most people don't. It was just something that was fun to do.

You're totally going to conquer the bird, Kelly.

[houseelf]

At this point, should we all pause and wonder if my lack of self confidence with this stupid bird is indicative of a more pressing global lack of self confidence in my life?

Kelly

[Sheherezade]

It's not as hard as it sounds - seriously. I think the first time I did a turkey, I used a Bon Apetit magazine recipe. They lay out every detail. I think they had a 4 page article on prepping a turkey last year in November. Julie's right. You will be assaulted with *plenty* of turkey prep info if you are looking for it in the months to come. There's even a Butterball hotline on Thanksgiving day. When I "trussed" mine, I just tied the legs together and tucked the wings in so it didn't go all droopy. No big deal. I'd just pick a recipe (or plan) with some detail and follow it. Truly - the "remembering to thaw" bit is the only turkey disaster I've heard regularly.....

[SueC]

I've only made turkey a few times, but I do recall that proper defrosting is key.
I think I poked holes all over the turkey and shoved butter and rosemary in it and it made for quite a tasty turkey! Good luck, and let us know how it turns out!

As far as trussing, all I have ever done is tuck the wings under and tie the legs together (loosely) w/ kitchen twine. I've seen those kits with the little pokey things and just skip that part.

I think Laura has a great suggestion -- the turkey in the bag is straightforward, moist and tastes great. Easy clean up, too. My aunt always does that and the turkey is consistently good and done in the recommended amount of time. That would be a great way to go. Laura -- how do you make the gravy? Use the baster to suction the juice out of the bag?

The best turkey I have ever had was fried. But, not so much better than other methods that I am willing to have a vat of boiling oil in my driveway. Maybe when my kids are older -- a lot older!

This year I will brine or dry brine and use a sage butter rub (rubbed under the skin). That's about it! I love the stuffing that is inside the turkey but it seems to take too long at the expense of the turkey drying out. We'll see.

[Vanquisher]

By far, in my opinion, the easiest way to defrost your turkey is do put it in the sink with cool, but not cold water surrounding it. Put it in the fridge, and then use the sink. Trust me, it works -still in the platic. I always use a Reynolds bag. I put the breast side down, for optimum juiciness as it sits in the turkey juices as it cooks. I use a meat thermometer. the bag makes a great recepticle for catching gravy. I stuff my bird with a celery and bread dressing, that I think is super yummy, but I also grew up on it! I place the neck and other innerds in the bag for flavor, and then toss them. If my father were here, he would likely eat some of them, ewww!

Anyway, good luck with your Thanksgiving. You can get a turkey fryer for much cheaper than $140, by the way. And, you may be able to find someone that isn't using theirs this year, and fry yours, if you so wish. I know a lot of people who do not fry every year.

You can do it Kelly! You ran a marathon - you can cook a silly bird. People make turkey out to be a lot harder than it is (I think it was to get their due for cooking the holiday meal).

Proper defrosting (or buying a fresh bird) is key. It takes WORLDS longer to cook if it's not defrosted.

Make sure you get the bag of icky stuff out (I forgot once - a bit embarrasing). Some people use the giblets for gravy -- not me, they go straight in the trash.

I like the taste of a brined bird, but not the bother. Some kosher places actually sell them brined - you could check that out. Goofy's suggestion of topping w/ butter soaked cheesecloth is a good one.

If you choose to stuff the bird, I like to wrap the stuffing in a cheesecloth before inserting it in the turkey - it makes it worlds easier to retrieve all the stuffing.

Start out cooking it breast-side down so the juices flow that way, and I always cover it w/ a tent of aluminum foil to keep it from drying out. about 2/3rds through the cook time I flip the bird and remove the foil so it can get the pretty golden brown. I baste every 30 min to 1 hour. Make sure to start out with water in the bottom of your pan. If I don't have enough in the way of drippings to start I'll use chicken broth for basting - it makes a good base for the gravy.

Good luck! You'll be fine. Maybe you could roast a chicken as a mini-practice run.