Okay, I am embarrassed to ask...How do I cook a turkey?

[Jen M]

We have always had family to cook/go out for Thanksgiving dinners, but our last relatives moved out of state in May. Now this leaves me and my cooking skills to cook this turkey. :lol: ....I have NEVER cooked one before....let me :lol: :lol: again.... (is that sad?) I am really going crazy about this, and if I ruin it I just might literally throw the whole darn thing out a window. :)

How do I cook a turkey? (I bought and accidentally thawed a 21lb turkey...:lol: ...the insanity begins!) :roflol:

Any and all tips are strongly encouraged. I am only cooking for my dh and dc, but I am really worried about messing up.

TIA!

God Bless all of you out their braving the kitchen to put a wonderful dinner together for your friends and family this holiday! A tough job indeed, and I applaud you! :clap: :clap: :clap:

[Jessica Vega]

I cooked my very first turkey with Martha Stewart's help. :) Her instructions are super easy to follow and foolproof! :D I have used her recipe ever since.... well, until dh bought a turkey fryer. I'm pretty sure the article/recipe is on her website.

ETA: Here's the link for Roast Turkey and Gravy 101 (http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.3a0656639de62ad593598e10d373a0a0/?vgnextoid=722876ecfd22f010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCR D&autonomy_kw=Turkey%20101&rsc=ns2006_pic_m7) . If you do a search for Turkey 101 a lot of articles and recipes pop up.

[Lisa in NE Alabama]

Jen,

when we moved here 4 years ago with NO family around, I was embarrassed too. I had absolutely NO idea how to even buy a turkey. I remember being in the grocery store with 3 grandmotherly type ladies telling me several different ways to cook a turkey and each thought their way was theeee best way. My eyes were :eek1: and my head was :crazy: After I told them thank you, someone caught up with me on the bread aisle and said just get a butterball and follow the cooking directions on the turkey or go to their website and look there.

That was thheee easiest thing I had ever done and was so happy when my first turkey was "out of this world"

So after all of that, my recommendations is to get a Butterball!!!!!! Follow the cooking directions from the website. I, too, the first time bought a 21 lb. turkey because I thought "the bigger, the better" :lol:

http://www.butterball.com/en/main_canvas.jsp?includePage=plannprep_home.jsp&t=Plan%20%27n%20Prep&s0=plan_n_prep&s1=

Blessings!!!!!

[Ronette in CA]

This (http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_84434,00.html) is the most delicious turkey I have ever tasted in my whole life.:yum: (BTW, I did not make my own turkey broth. I just used chicken broth.

I am far, far from an accomplished cook and, although it was a bit time consuming, this bird was easy and came out so gorgeous and moist and juicy and...well...just perfect. Even my hard to please mil went on and on about how it was the best turkey she'd ever had and she cooks mean bird herself.

I've found that turkey really isn't that hard as long as you don't overcook it and dry it out.:)

Happy Thanksgiving, Jen!

[CyndiinOKC]

How Cyndi Bakes a Turkey

By Cyndi

(ahem....) After thawing the bird I put honey all over it (an entire bottle!) then put bacon all over it (a whole pound!), then put it into a brown paper bag that I have buttered.

On second thought, put the turkey in the bag BEFORE you put the honey all over it. I'm just saying..........a honey-slickened bird could be difficult to wrestle into a buttered bag. (Don't ask me how I know that....) :unsure:

Then chop celery (a couple of ribs) two carrots and an onion (I just cut the onion in fourths) and throw it all in there. Bake at whatever temp it says on www.butterball.com for however long it says for how many pounds he is.


It is sooooooo good! That honey bacon is DELICIOUS!! (and we fight over it!)
:yum:

[Linda]

Hey Jen,

Cooking a turkey is not much different than roasting a chicken. It's just bigger and takes longer.

Back when we lived in OH, we never actually bought a whole turkey until Mark's entire family came, and stayed with us, for Thanksgiving. Up until then, we'd just buy a turkey breast, which is HUGE and plenty for a single family especially with all the yummy sides we made. As a result, my first whole turkey baking experience was with my in-laws watching. :eyes: It turned out just fine. :yum: Oh, and did I mention that our power went out in the morning for a few hours! :eek: Talk about stress. :crazy:

Mark's sister did teach me the trick of putting pads of butter under the skin of the bird. It browns the skin nice and crispy and gives a great flavor to the bird. :yum: I do that whenever I roast a chicken now. Even though I don't eat the skin, it makes it look nicer and keeps it moist.

Since moving here, Mark has taken over doing the turkey. We've yet to actually roast one in the oven. Mark now brines our turkeys and cooks them on the grill. They are soooo good. :)

You've gotten some good advice, so I'll just leave you with,

:hop: :hop: You Can Do It!! :hop: :hop:

[Dawn Gilmore]

ooh... Cyndi... that sounds :yum:

Jen, you'll be back here next week trying to figure out how to use up 15 lbs. of leftovers... :lol:

Best wishes on your first endeavor... I won't offer any more advice, so as not to muddy the waters. :D

[Renee in IN]

Just 2 words for you....

oven bags (Reynold's)

ok, 3 words.

It will cook faster, be juicy, and clean up is easier. Be sure to consider how you are going to REMOVE a 21lb turkey from the pan. It will be hot, heavy and slippery. I do soak my bird in the brine solution, but it is hard to even find a container to hold a bird that size, and keep it cool and soaking. Just using the oven bag will be enough.

And you may as well research what to do with the leftovers. I have 25 people coming for T-day, and I have a 20lb turkey. Turkey soup is good;) .

:kiss: :D You will do fine. Thanksgiving food is the easiest to cook, there is just a lot of it.

ETA: Cyndi, that is the most interesting recipe I have ever heard for turkey. Maybe I'll get a more reasonable size bird since they are on sale now and try that out next month.

[Gina in SC]

Well, I have cooked many turkeys & I agree, it seems far more intimidating than it really is:) Here is a link I just found on Food Network for Emeril's turkey www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_29154,00.html
Although I do not cook mine exactly the same as his (as far as seasonings) the reviews are outstanding for the most part & I thought I would experiment this year:clap: The honey & bacon sound very unusual & tempting!! I will also have to pick up another one for later & try this:yum:
Have a Blessed Thanksgiving!

[Tami in IA]

I didn't see this advice in this list of great advice that you have already received.
Don't forget to pull the STUFF out of the inside!!:tongue:
Most turkey's will have the neck and giblets in a bag stuffed inside the turkey.
And believe me you don't want to find them while you are scooping your stuffing out. :eyes:

[Oney]

After thawing the bird I put honey all over it (an entire bottle!) then put bacon all over it (a whole pound!), then put it into a brown paper bag that I have buttered.


Stoopid question alert! Stoopid question alert! Stoopid question alert!

Do you butter the inside (closest to the bird) or the outside (closest to the heat source) of the brown paper bag? And WHY?

It sounds delish...I'm just having a hard time visualizing the process. :D

[Barb Cash]

Stoopid question alert! Stoopid question alert! Stoopid question alert!

Do you butter the inside (closest to the bird) or the outside (closest to the heat source) of the brown paper bag? And WHY?

It sounds delish...I'm just having a hard time visualizing the process. :D

I would imagine you butter the inside so it does not stick to the turkey when you pull it out! I could be wrong, though... ;)

[CyndiinOKC]

Yes, what Barb said. Butter the inside of the bag (turkey side) so it doesn't stick to it. Oh, and staple it closed.

[Jen M]

How Cyndi Bakes a Turkey

By Cyndi

(ahem....) After thawing the bird I put honey all over it (an entire bottle!) then put bacon all over it (a whole pound!), then put it into a brown paper bag that I have buttered.

On second thought, put the turkey in the bag BEFORE you put the honey all over it. I'm just saying..........a honey-slickened bird could be difficult to wrestle into a buttered bag. (Don't ask me how I know that....) :unsure:

Then chop celery (a couple of ribs) two carrots and an onion (I just cut the onion in fourths) and throw it all in there. Bake at whatever temp it says on www.butterball.com for however long it says for how many pounds he is.


It is sooooooo good! That honey bacon is DELICIOUS!! (and we fight over it!)
:yum:

Another silly question, but what kind of paper bag do you use? Would a Reynold's oven bag work?

Knowing me and my stupidity I would grab some paper bag I got from the grocery store and shove it in my oven and wonder why my stove caught fire. :spin:

[Jen M]

These all sound good :yum: Thanks so much ladies! I have been thinking about it and with my ds's sensory issues with chicken (I'm thinking turkey is roughly the same), I should go more sweet to make it more appealing to him. :lol: Especially if we are gonna be eating it for the next three months! :lol:

So, I am thinking Cyndi's looks good, but I am worried it may be more complicated with the whole bag thing. I think my ds would like this flavor as he loves bacon and honey, so maybe those combined flavors would make him more tolerant of the turkey texture.

Oh, :lol: I am just going crazy!

However, I do have another question....

* How do I stuff the turkey and what with? Should it be Stove Top stuffing (or something closely related) or plain bread crumbs?

Thanks again! :)

[Linda]

I've never cooked in a brown paper bag, but I do know they will catch on fire if they touch the heating element, so be wary if you use a brown paper bag. :eek:

I've used roasting bags before, even for turkey, and they make everything turn out juicy. :thumb: If you want a brown skin, you'll want to take it out of the bag and let it brown up a bit. Either way, it's good. :)

I've never stuffed my turkey, just served the stuff on the side. Stove top is good. There's also Marie Calendars, which we really like if you want to go w/ prepared stuffing. If you want to make your own, these ladies have provided good recipes in some of the other threads. I have a stuffing like recipe that I can share w/ you that we've made. It's not traditional in any sense, but it's good. :)

[Jen M]

I've never stuffed my turkey, just served the stuff on the side. Stove top is good. There's also Marie Calendars, which we really like if you want to go w/ prepared stuffing. If you want to make your own, these ladies have provided good recipes in some of the other threads. I have a stuffing like recipe that I can share w/ you that we've made. It's not traditional in any sense, but it's good. :)

So I do not need to stuff the turkey? (:blush: so embarrassed!)

[Oney]

So I do not need to stuff the turkey? (:blush: so embarrassed!)

No, you do not need to stuff the turkey. Some people put the seasoned bread crumb mixture inside the bird ("stuffing") and some (like me) bake the seasoned bread crumb mixture in a casserole dish ("dessing").

I think there are some food safety issues that need to be addressed when making "stuffing"--something about the internal temperature of the bird and stuffing and botulism or salmonella or something.

I always play it safe and just bake the "seasoned bread crumb mixture" in a greased casserole dish.

[Oney]

Yes, what Barb said. Butter the inside of the bag (turkey side) so it doesn't stick to it. Oh, and staple it closed.


:thumb: I'm going to try this. The honey and bacon sounds just too yummy to pass up. I bet it makes a very moist bird.

[Lisa in NE Alabama]

How Cyndi Bakes a Turkey

By Cyndi

(ahem....) After thawing the bird I put honey all over it (an entire bottle!) then put bacon all over it (a whole pound!), then put it into a brown paper bag that I have buttered.
:yum:

Cyndi,

This really sounds good. I have a quesiton...What does the honey and bacon do for the turkey? Does it make it really moist, or just make good honey bacon in the end? Does it affect the tast of the turkey? Just wondering...I would really like to try this.....

Thanks!!!!!

[Linda]

So I do not need to stuff the turkey? (:blush: so embarrassed!)

I've never eaten a turkey where the stuffing was cooked inside. :)

There is a food safety issue cooking the stuffing inside, the stuffing keeps the temperature of the bird lower, I think, increasing the potential for salmonella poisoning. I'm thinking I've heard it can transfer to the stuffing while it's cooking? :unsure: Don't quote me on that one though! :lol:

I have heard of people cooking the bird and stuffing separately, then stuffing the bird after everything is cooked. Personally, I just serve it on the side. :)

[Jen in SC]

Hey Jen. Just so you know...I have never had to do the turkey either! I don't host Thanksgiving and I cheat at Christmas and serve a different meat! ;)

[CyndiinOKC]

I can't remember who asked, but yes, I used a regular brown paper bag that the groceries come in!~And the honey adds a GREAT sweet flavor to the turkey and the bacon bastes it as it bakes. I never had to baste it at all.


Oh, and YES, it WILL catch fire (or is that fiar) if you let the bag touch the heating element. That happened our first Thanksgiving at this new house. I did not realize at the time that the size of our oven is known, unofficially, in home-building circles as "one step up from Easy-Bake". No joke. A jellyroll pan won't even fit in there!


So, be forewarned. Or, have a fiar extinguisher handy!

[LisaM]

I went grocery shopping today for our Thanksgiving meal (being served on Black Friday -- long story . . . :eyes: ) Anyway, dh -- who has very definite ideas of what a Thanksgiving meal is or isn't (which is why I am making a Thanksgiving meal on Black Friday) -- said I could make our turkey with the honey and bacon! Yay! :hop: And yes, it is the simple things that get me excited!

Seriously, though, I haven't had the best success with my turkey not drying out too much (not that I've made so many), so I think this will be perfect! :cool: . . . that smilie is for my ds who is watching me type and said "For Five in a Row, I want that smile with the sunglasses!" :roflol:

[Melissa C]

Jen, I just have to tell you that you are SOOOO not alone in being clueless how to cook a turkey!! I said I'd do it this year if I had to, but had NO idea what to do! And I know Candace said the exact same thing. Thankfully, our MIL volunteered to do it so I don't have to grow up for one more year! :D

[Lisalyn]

I thought I'd bump this old post up to the top since some of us may need a refresher in how to cook a turkey. :eyes: :D

:yum:

[Jen M]

I thought I'd bump this old post up to the top since some of us may need a refresher in how to cook a turkey. :eyes: :D

:yum:

Wow. I remember that poor pitiful bird, it did not know what was coming when I got my hands on it. :lol:

[DD in IL]

2 words "Reynolds Bags"

[Tricia O]

Wow. I remember that poor pitiful bird, it did not know what was coming when I got my hands on it. :lol:

So how did it turn out? :D

I've never cooked a turkey. :blush:

[Jen M]

So how did it turn out? :D

Yup....it was charred.

[CyndiinOKC]

Oh, no! The pork parka got burned!!! :sad:

[carriejoy]

Oh Jen, what a delightful and enlightening thread this has been.

I have not cooked a turkey yet.

I am not sure I ever plan to. I don't like touching raw meat. Grosses me out. Whole chickens are a HUGE gag factor for me. Cannot imagine that ol' epiglotis (sp?) with a TURKEY! - but how was the INSIDE of that bird? Sometimes the outside can be a "bit crispy" but the inside is DELISH!

(cyndi, I emailed your recipe to my husband who is VERY adventurous in the kitchen!)

[Rachel Jane]

Yup....it was charred.

:eek:

Are we laughing at it yet?
I cooked a chicken on the grill that looked just like that! After the first few layers were scraped off, it tasted okay.

[Jen M]

but how was the INSIDE of that bird?


After we chiseled the outer layer off we were able to get some nice tasty meat. I was very thankful there was something salvageable in there because I was sure feeling pretty bad about it.

[Jen M]

Are we laughing at it yet?


Yes, now we can laugh. That poor poor bird... :lol:

[DonnaMarie]

:lol:So what did you do to that poor bird???

And what did he ever do to you?? :lol:

[Heather W]

This (http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_84434,00.html) is the most delicious turkey I have ever tasted in my whole life.:yum: (BTW, I did not make my own turkey broth. I just used chicken broth.

I am far, far from an accomplished cook and, although it was a bit time consuming, this bird was easy and came out so gorgeous and moist and juicy and...well...just perfect. Even my hard to please mil went on and on about how it was the best turkey she'd ever had and she cooks mean bird herself.

I've found that turkey really isn't that hard as long as you don't overcook it and dry it out.:)

Happy Thanksgiving, Jen!
We use the Alton Brown brining version of this recipe. Dan will be making the stock tonight and soaking our turkey overnight.

If you really want to keep things simple...get one of those large oven bags and put your turkey inside it in a roasting pan and wait for the thingy to pop. A moist turkey always comes out of those bags. don't forget to follow the directions on the packaging and poke holes in the bag!

[Heather W]

holy moly! This thread is two years OLD!!:roflol::roflol:

Well there's a refresher for everyone.

Jen M thanks for the laugh at that bird!!!

[CyndiinOKC]

Jen, I guess I shoulda' told you ahead of time that doing the bird this way does NOT make for a pretty poultry! :unsure:

But,....the flava? OMG!! :yum:

[Lisalyn]

Yeah, mine wasn't very pretty that year, but it was the best tastin' ever. It helped that it ended up upside down in the bag due to our honey-covered wrestlin' match. :lol::blush::lol:

I can't believe I just admitted that to the whole world. :eyes:

[RobinP]

Never cooked a turkey either and WHEW after reading your posts, I'm glad dh just deep-fries the thing!! :yum: Out of this world!!!