Mrs. Cubbison's Thanksgiving Tips

A: A good general rule of thumb is, one pound of turkey for each adult guest, a half pound for each child, and if you want leftovers or are a family of big eaters, add 50% to the weight of the turkey. So, a meal for 6 adults and 4 children, wishing to have a good amount of leftovers, would call for a turkey of about 12 pounds. (8 lbs x 1.5 for total of 12 lbs.)

A: Either is fine. Modern freezing methods mean there is little or no difference in quality between a fresh and a frozen turkey.

Fresh turkey doesn't need to be thawed (a big time-saver), but must be purchased no more than a few days before Thanksgiving. (Check the "use by" date on the packaging for your bird.) Ideally you should purchase a fresh turkey no more than two days before roasting it. If you buy a fresh turkey at the store, don't get one that has been piled on top of a stack such that it's sitting above the top of the store's refrigerated display.

Frozen turkeys can be purchased ahead of time -- even by months -- but you need to plan to thaw it for several days in your refrigerator right before Thanksgiving.

A: The safest and easiest way to thaw a turkey is to thaw it in your refrigerator. Allow at least 6 hours for every pound of your turkey's weight. Thus, a 12 pound turkey needs 72 hours (3 full days) to completely thaw.

Using this method, place the unopened turkey breast-side up on a tray in the refrigerator. The purpose of the tray is to capture any juices that leak out of the frozen turkey when it thaws.

If you don't have this much time or you don't have room in your refrigerator, the best alternate method is to submerge the (still-wrapped) turkey in cold water. Place the turkey breast-down in the water, and completely change the water every 30 minutes until the turkey is done thawing. Expect the process to take 30 minutes for each pound of turkey, so a 12-pound turkey would take 6 hours to thaw in water.

• Follow the thawing directions above. Don't thaw the turkey at room temperature unless submerging it in water.
• Keep the turkey refrigerated at all times once it is thawed, except for the brief time you are dressing or stuffing it. Never leave the turkey sitting out on the counter at room temperature. If you thawed it under cold water, once thawed, season and/or stuff the turkey immediately, and then go straight into the oven with it.
• Make sure to thaw your turkey on a tray that will catch any dripping juices and prevent them from falling onto other foods in the refrigerator.
• Keep a thawed or fresh turkey no more than 4 days in the refrigerator before roasting.
• Never roast a fresh turkey after its "use by" date has expired.
• Use a separate cutting board for raw meats. A cutting board with a non-porous surface is best for raw meats as it is easier to clean. Before re-using this cutting board, wash it well in hot, soapy water and allow it to dry thoroughly before using it again. Chop vegetables and slice breads on a separate cutting board.
• Wash everything (hands, work surfaces, utensils and trays) touched by the raw turkey or its juices with hot soapy water.
• Use paper towels to dry off the turkey, not a dishcloth. Discard the paper towels immediately after use.
• Stuff your turkey at the last possible moment before putting it in the oven. Never stuff the turkey in advance. Do not buy fresh pre-stuffed turkeys.
• Don't use low roasting temperatures. At least 325˚ F is recommended. Make sure your oven's thermostat is accurate. A separate oven thermometer to gauge the actual temperature in the oven is recommended, for both safety and quality of results.
• Store your leftovers (including gravy and stuffing) in the refrigerator within two hours after coming out of the oven.

• remove the original wrapping
• remove the neck and giblets from the turkey's cavities.
• rinse the turkey (including cavities) with cold running water
• pat the turkey dry with paper towels
• your turkey is now ready to season, stuff and roast.

• Pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees F (160˚ C).
• Place the thawed, washed, patted-dry turkey, breast-side up, on a rack in a shallow (2- to 3-inches deep) pan. The rack will allow hot air to circulate under the turkey, helping it to roast evenly.
• Brush the skin with a light coating of oil to help is brown nicely during roasting while retaining moisture.
• If you wish to season or stuff the turkey, do so now, as the final step before placing it in the oven. (See How Do I Stuff a Turkey below).
• For more even cooking, tuck the wing tips under the shoulders of the bird.
• If using an oven-safe meat thermometer, insert it into the deepest part of the thigh. Make sure it is positioned so that you can read the face of it without removing the turkey from the oven.
• Place the turkey in the pre-heated (325˚ F) oven.
• When the turkey is about 2/3 done (the skin will be a light golden color), cover the breast with a foil tent to prevent overcooking the breast. With approximately 45 minutes to go, you may remove the foil tent in order to finish browning the skin.
• Start checking (with a meat thermometer) to see if the turkey is done 30 minutes before the recommended roasting time.
• The turkey is done when the meat thermometer gives the following readings:
• 170˚ to 175˚ F (75˚ to 80˚ C) in the thickest part of the thigh.
• 160˚ to 165˚ F ( 70 - 75 C) in the center of the stuffing.
• Make sure to leave the thermometer in place for at least 15 seconds to get a good reading, wherever you are reading the temperature.
• Let the turkey stand for about 20 minutes before carving to allow the juices to settle. If you carve into the bird immediately, you will lose a lot of natural juices and the meat will turn out dry.

A: You may use the giblets in a gravy, if you like. Look for a gravy recipe for detailed instructions on cooking the giblets separately. Some cooks like to put the giblets in the bottom of the roasting pan in order to add more flavor to a pan gravy.

A: You can make great stuffing either cooked inside the turkey or in a casserole dish, separate from the bird.

A: If you wish. Turkeys are bland. It's best to use your favorite seasoning. The best place for seasoning is inside the cavity. Coating the inside of the cavity with a small amount of kosher salt will help retain moisture during the cooking process, making for juicier meat.

A: If you choose to stuff your turkey, you should follow this procedure to ensure the highest safety standards in your kitchen:

• only use fully cooked meats (including seafood, like oysters) and vegetables in your stuffing
• Never stuff the turkey in advance. A stuffed turkey should never sit overnight in the fridge, or even for a short period on your counter at room temperature. Once the turkey is stuffed it is very important that it go directly into the oven. A stuffed turkey left standing promotes the rapid growth of unhealthy bacteria inside the bird.
• If you wish to salt the inside of the bird's cavities, do that before stuffing the turkey. (See above, Should I salt the inside of the bird?).
• Stuff both the neck and body cavities of the completely thawed turkey loosely. The stuffing will expand as it cooks, so you shouldn't pack the turkey tightly with stuffing. Doing so will prevent the stuffing from cooking properly.
• The temperature of the stuffing should be at least 160˚ F when the turkey is done. Make sure to check the temperature of the stuffing as well as the temperature of the meat with a stuffed bird. Leave the meat thermometer in place at least 15 seconds to make sure you are getting a good reading.
• If you are using an untraditional method to cook your turkey (such as on an outdoor grill, or some fast-cook method), cook the stuffing separately, not inside the bird's cavities.

A: No. The primary effect of basting is to create a brown, crispy skin. Coating the skin with oil before roasting is an easier and more effective way to accomplish this. Basting the turkey periodically in the oven has little, if any, effect on the juiciness of the meat, and constantly opening and closing the oven door to apply the baste can cool the oven and substantially increase the time it takes to properly cook your turkey.

A: With a meat thermometer, check the temperature of the turkey. If checking the thigh, the temperature should read 180˚ F to 185˚ F. If checking the center of the stuffing, 160˚ F.

A: Some turkeys, especially younger ones, will have pink-tinged meat. This can occur for several natural reasons: the interaction of heated, everyday atmospheric gases in the oven with the hemoglobin in the bird's meat; the natural presence of nitrites in either your water supply or at the plant where the turkey was processed; and the thinner skin of young birds, which allow more oven gases to get through to the meat. Due to these factors, a turkey which is fully cooked and safe to eat will sometimes have pinkish meat.

The only way to truly judge if a turkey is fully cooked is with a reliable meat thermometer. Make sure you check the internal temperature of the cooked bird carefully when you remove it from the oven.

A: If your turkey is stuffed, you should check the temperature in the stuffed cavity of the turkey. If the turkey isn't stuffed, check the temperature of the meat in the thickest part of the thigh, inserting the meat thermometer until its tip is in the center of the meat.

If you are using an oven-safe thermometer, place it in the turkey before putting the turkey in the oven, and make sure that it is positioned to be readable throughout the roasting process.

A: It is a good idea to calibrate your meat thermometer, especially if you haven't used it in awhile, or have dropped it since you last used it. There are two ways to calibrate a meat thermometer: at freezing point and at boiling point. To calibrate it at freezing point, completely fill a glass or pot with ice, and then add cold water. Let the glass stand for a few minutes (to thoroughly chill the water to 32 degrees), then use your meat thermometer to measure the temperature of the ice water. If it doesn't read 32 degrees, your thermometer needs to be calibrated.

To calibrate at the boiling point, fill a sauce pan with water, then bring it to a boil on your stovetop. Insert the thermometer into the center of the water (in every direction, so it's neither near the surfaces of the pot nor the top of the water). At sea level, water boils at 212˚ F, and that's what your thermometer should read. If you are above sea level, water boils at a lower temperature. For example, at 8000 feet, water boils closer to 196˚ F. If you are calibrating your thermometer using the boiling point method at a high altitude, use a reliable source to calculate the boiling point of water in your locale before performing the test.

When calibrating using the boiling point method, be very careful not to burn yourself, especially on the steam rising from the pot.

If your calibration test reveals your thermometer to be out of alignment, adjust the nut on the backside of the thermometer, then test it again. For an electronic thermometer, see the manufacturer's instructions on resetting the thermometer. Usually there will be a button you can push while it is at freezing or boiling temperature to perform the calibration.

A: No more than two hours after cooking (one hour if the temperature in your home is over 90˚ F), remove all stuffing the from the turkey, and carve all of the meat from the bones, then store separately in the refrigerator or freezer. Dividing the leftovers into smaller portions and refrigerating or freezing in shallow containers is recommended in order to cool the food more quickly.

Q: How long will my turkey keep?