How do you prepare your turkey?

[Julia1996]

Hi everyone.  With thanksgiving coming I wanted to share my turkey cooking method and hear other peoples methods. We always went to my grandparents house for thanksgiving. Her turkey was awful! DRYYYYYY!  Then 3 years ago she didn't want to do thanksgiving dinner anymore. So that left me. I had no idea how to cook a turkey so I asked my neighbor. She's cooked a LOT of turkeys over her life. I've used the method she taught me for the last three years and it always comes out awesome.

Let the turkey come to room temperature before you prepare it. I had a problem with that because of salmonella and all but she said just trust her. I've never gotten sick from it. It's almost impossible to get butter to go on evenly if the turkey is cold. Once it's room temperature rinse it inside and out and then pat it dry with paper towels. Of course take out the giblets and all that. Cut one orange and one lemon in half and put them inside the turkey. I don't cook my stuffing in the turkey because it takes longer to cook which dries out the turkey. If your turkey has a pop out thermometer take it out and throw it away.

Mix together some softened (not melted) butter, sage,thyme and rosemary.  Loosen the skin carefully. Gently separate the skin from the meat but don't tear it. Put the butter mixture under the skin over the whole turkey. Cut 2-3 strips of bacon in half and carefully put them under the skin. Then rub the butter mixture all over the outside of the turkey. Cover all of it. Then wrap the whole turkey in bacon. Use as much bacon as you need to cover the whole turkey. Place an oven safe thermometer in the turkey. Use a rack in your roasting pan so the turkey doesn't sit in grease. Tent the turkey with foil and stick it in the oven. After the first hour remove the foil. You don't need to baste it or anything. Turkey is done and safe to eat when it reaches 160 degrees. Keep an eye on it and when it reaches 155 degrees take it out. It's going to keep cooking after you take it out and it will reach 160 out of the oven. Tent it with foil and let it rest for 30 minutes. When everyone is hungry letting it rest is hard but it's important.  If you cut into it before it's rested all the juices pour out on the platter and the turkey will be dry. If you let it rest the juices absorb back into the meat. Also, don't salt the turkey before you wrap it. The bacon is salty enough.

I wasn't too sure about putting bacon on my turkey to be honest but I have never had a recipie she gave me turn out bad so I did it exactly how she told me. And she's a southern lady so naturally a lot of her recipes use bacon. Bacon wrapped turkey is SO good. And the gravy made with the pan drippings is awesome.

[sarah1972]

The most juicy turkeys I have had where all deep fried. In addition to a great taste, it only takes 60 minutes to cook them.

We usually infuse a herb / oils mixture into the meat, rub salt and pepper and that is it. Off it goes into a oil bath.

:-)

[Julia1996]

The most juicy turkeys I have had where all deep fried. In addition to a great taste, it only takes 60 minutes to cook them.

We usually infuse a herb / oils mixture into the meat, rub salt and pepper and that is it. Off it goes into a oil bath.

:-)

I bet a fried turkey is really good. But after seeing a neighbor get burned trying to fry a turkey I don't want anything to do with a turkey fryer. I guess he didn't know better than to put a frozen turkey into hot oil because that's just what he did and POOF! Roman candle. Lucky for him he was doing it in his driveway and not close to his house. Also Lucky for him he only got burned on his hands and face. He could have been set on fire. I'm not stupid enough to put a frozen turkey in hot oil of course. But the combination of huge pot of oil sitting on a naked flame could go wrong in too many ways for my taste.

[Deborah]

I used to get really good results smoking my turkey outside.  But I don't have a smoker anymore.  Your recipe sounds really good so I might try that.  In fact it sounds so good I'm half tempted to try it tonight. :-)


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[Paige]

Hi Julia,

I love the bacon idea.  Being Canadian we've already had our Thanksgiving but I think I'm going to try it on a whole chicken. 

The rest of your recipe sounds very similar to ours, the only thing I would add is to try and get a fresh turkey if possible.  Thawed frozen turkeys just never taste as good. 

By the way what do you do with the bacon when you carve the turkey?

Have a great Thanksgiving,
Paige

[sarah1972]

Unfortunately you are right, there are too many accidents happening while frying turkeys. Ours comes out of the freezer 3 days prior and thaws in the fridge...

Glad he did not get hurt any worse.

I bet a fried turkey is really good. But after seeing a neighbor get burned trying to fry a turkey I don't want anything to do with a turkey fryer. I guess he didn't know better than to put a frozen turkey into hot oil because that's just what he did and POOF! Roman candle. Lucky for him he was doing it in his driveway and not close to his house. Also Lucky for him he only got burned on his hands and face. He could have been set on fire. I'm not stupid enough to put a frozen turkey in hot oil of course. But the combination of huge pot of oil sitting on a naked flame could go wrong in too many ways for my taste.

[Julia1996]

Hi Julia,

I love the bacon idea.  Being Canadian we've already had our Thanksgiving but I think I'm going to try it on a whole chicken. 

The rest of your recipe sounds very similar to ours, the only thing I would add is to try and get a fresh turkey if possible.  Thawed frozen turkeys just never taste as good. 

By the way what do you do with the bacon when you carve the turkey?

Have a great Thanksgiving,
Paige

I take the bacon off before I carve it. I put the bacon on a platter. I've never had to deal with the bacon because it's always gone by the end of the day. My dad, brother and boyfriend can eat some bacon. You're right about fresh turkey tasting better than frozen but frozen tastes good too. I end up with 2 frozen turkeys every year because both my dad and brother are given a turkey from work.

[Julia1996]

I used to get really good results smoking my turkey outside.  But I don't have a smoker anymore.  Your recipe sounds really good so I might try that.  In fact it sounds so good I'm half tempted to try it tonight. :-)


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Smoked turkey sounds delicious.  I use the same method on whole chickens and they come out really good too.

[RachelH]

I am pretty much the same to keep it moist and I also use a smoker. I just bought a 40" Masterbuilt electric smoker and used it this past weekend for brisket, ribs and a whole chicken (seasoned much like you described with the butter).  They came out delicious!  I have a 30" Masterbuilt that I used in the past but just upgraded to the 40.  I know hard core smoker prefer traditional but electric is much more consistent with the heat.  Also, in the next week or so I am going to buy the cold smoke attachment so I can also smoke some cheese.

[Roll]

Stuffed with whole garlic, lemon, a few herbs, with shallots and more garlic around it in the pan along with thyme and rosemary sprigs. Coat liberally with olive oil. Cajun seasoning mix on the skin. Infuse turkey with more seasoning. Continually baste with more seasoning. MORE SEASONING!

[Paige]

I take the bacon off before I carve it. I put the bacon on a platter. I've never had to deal with the bacon because it's always gone by the end of the day. My dad, brother and boyfriend can eat some bacon. You're right about fresh turkey tasting better than frozen but frozen tastes good too. I end up with 2 frozen turkeys every year because both my dad and brother are given a turkey from work.

Yes bacon is one of those foods that goes quick 😊

One of these days I'm going to try butterflying a turkey on the BBQ.  I've done it with chicken and it turns out amazing.

This topic is making me hungry.
Paige

[Julia1996]

Another thing I love is mashed potatoes but mine never came out very good. Once again the lady next door told me how to make them. Now they come out really good. After I had boiled the potatoes I would throw them in the mixer and beat the hell out of them. Turns out you're never supposed to use an electric mixer to mash them. Beating them makes them gluey. So now I use a food mill to mash them. Then I add 2 sticks of soft butter, half a block of cream cheese and some heavy cream. Then I stir it with a spoon. I was skeptical about the cream cheese but it really makes them good.  Recipies are fine but if you want to know how to make something really good ask an older southern lady. Lol

[Julia1996]

Yes bacon is one of those foods that goes quick 😊

One of these days I'm going to try butterflying a turkey on the BBQ.  I've done it with chicken and it turns out amazing.

This topic is making me hungry.
Paige

That sounds good. I've seen people butterfly chickens and turkey but I'm afraid that's beyond my skills. Lol. If I tried it I'm sure my turkey would end up looking like road kill.

[Paige]

That sounds good. I've seen people butterfly chickens and turkey but I'm afraid that's beyond my skills. Lol. If I tried it I'm sure my turkey would end up looking like road kill.

Actually it's not that hard at all, for chicken anyway.   Turkey might be trickier because it's bigger.  The only hard part is cutting the backbone out.  Cooking on the BBQ is pretty standard, just don't put it directly on the flames and check the temperature.

You sound like you got quite a knack for cooking I don't think you would have any problems at all.  There's a lot of stuff on internet too.

The cream cheese in the mashed potatoes sounds like another great idea.
Paige

[Devlyn]

I'll take my turkey brined and deep fried anytime. Best I ever had, we did it ourselves with no casualties. The rules of deep frying a turkey are no dogs, drunks, or children within twenty feet of the cooking.

[DawnOday]

Another thing I love is mashed potatoes but mine never came out very good. Once again the lady next door told me how to make them. Now they come out really good. After I had boiled the potatoes I would throw them in the mixer and beat the hell out of them. Turns out you're never supposed to use an electric mixer to mash them. Beating them makes them gluey. So now I use a food mill to mash them. Then I add 2 sticks of soft butter, half a block of cream cheese and some heavy cream. Then I stir it with a spoon. I was skeptical about the cream cheese but it really makes them good.  Recipies are fine but if you want to know how to make something really good ask an older southern lady. Lol

My SIL taught me that adding mayonnaise to the taters makes them yummy. As to the turkey, Roast upside down to keep the breast meat moist. I like mine smoked in the Green Egg.

[Roll]

Another thing I love is mashed potatoes but mine never came out very good. Once again the lady next door told me how to make them. Now they come out really good. After I had boiled the potatoes I would throw them in the mixer and beat the hell out of them. Turns out you're never supposed to use an electric mixer to mash them. Beating them makes them gluey. So now I use a food mill to mash them. Then I add 2 sticks of soft butter, half a block of cream cheese and some heavy cream. Then I stir it with a spoon. I was skeptical about the cream cheese but it really makes them good.  Recipies are fine but if you want to know how to make something really good ask an older southern lady. Lol

Yeah, I had the gluey potatoes happen once. That was fun.

Anyway, I highly recommend giving creme fraiche a try in them. It is easy to make at home, and adds a wonderful flavor that the basic creams dont have. (It is essentially a heavy sour cream.)

[Laurie]

I try to soothe it and make it feel at ease while lowering it's head down across the block before my hatchet comes down. Once it stops running and flopping around it's time to pluck and clean it.

Laurie

[Roll]

I try to soothe it and make it feel at ease while lowering it's head down across the block before my hatchet comes down. Once it stops running and flopping around it's time to pluck and clean it.

Laurie

I prefer to shower with the turkey before the beheading. That way it is nice and clean already. What we do in the shower is our business.

[Julia1996]

I prefer to shower with the turkey before the beheading. That way it is nice and clean already. What we do in the shower is our business.

You 2 are messed up. Lol. Killing a turkey. Ewwwww.