The Thanksgiving Turkey

Thanksgiving is a great time of year when family and friends gather for a feast and give thanks for their blessings. This year, don’t restrict yourself to having to oven roast a turkey. Sure they are great and probably about 95% of the turkeys will be cooked this way, but if you want to try something new, we will provide you with the information you need on how to cook a delicious bird using a different cooking method such as smoking, or deep frying.

First off, cooking a great turkey starts at the store. If you are buying a frozen turkey as most will, make sure it is stored at 0 degrees. Choose a nice plump bird, buy 1 pound of turkey for each person being served. This will be enough for the dinner and some leftovers for turkey sandwiches. Make sure the bag the turkey is stored in has no rips or tears. Buy from a store that is having a Holliday sale so you can get a good deal. Take the turkey home and put it in the freezer. When thawing, thaw in the refrigerator and allow about 24 hours per 4-5 pounds. You can also thaw it in cold water, allow 30 minutes per pound and change the water every 30 minutes. Never use warm water or thaw at room temperature. When thawing in the refrigerator, put a pan under the bird to catch any juices that may leak out and cause cross contamination. Wash your hands often and wash any and all utensils that come in contact with raw turkey.

Roasting
If you will be cooking your turkey in the oven as most will, have a roasting pan ready. Remove the giblets from the cavity of the bird and rinse thoroughly. Pat dry inside and out with paper towels. You may season your turkey any way you like, but a standard way is to cover the skin with butter or oil, and liberally season all over with salt an pepper, inside and out. Place the turkey in the roasting pan and tent it with aluminum foil. The foil should be removed for the last hour or so of cooking to crisp the crust. Below is a chart to get a general idea of how long to cook your turkey. Use this as a basic indicator of time, but use a thermometer for precision. Since no ovens are the same, cooking times will differ. It is important to use a meat thermometer to get an accurate temperature reading.

Internal temperature should be 180 degrees in the thigh and 170 in the breast.

Remove the turkey 5-8 degrees before this temperature is reached and let it rest for 20 minutes before carving. This will allow the juices to recirculate through the meat giving a much more moist and flavorful final product. During the resting period, the temperature will rise these few extra degrees to the desired doneness. If the bird is removed at the “target temperature” the heat will rise above the correct temperature thus yielding a slightly overcooked turkey. See, how to carve a turkey.

Deep Frying
Deep frying turkeys started in the South but are now becoming more popular nationwide. Frying a turkey is a quick way to achieve a succulent juicy bird that is surprisingly not greasy. This technique will yield an extremely moist turkey that everyone will love.

You will need a 40-60 quart stockpot with a basket, a large outdoor burner with propane tank, a meat thermometer, candy thermometer and a fire extinguisher just in case. Choose a safe location to set up your fry station. Level grass or dirt are the safest places. Never cook indoors or in a garage. Be careful cooking on a wood deck as it could catch on fire, and on concrete which the oil can stain.

Small to midsize turkeys (8-10 pounds) are the best to use for deep frying. You will need about 5 gallons of oil. Choose oil with a high smoke point such as peanut, sunflower, or canola. Peanut oil is very flavorful and is the most commonly used oil for deep frying. Canola and peanut oils can be combined to lower the cholesterol. Canola is low in saturated fat, so the combination gives you the flavor of peanut oil and the lower cholesterol of canola. To determine how much oil to use, put the turkey in the basket and place it in the pot being used. Pour water into the pot to cover the turkey by about 2 inches. Remove the turkey and measure with a ruler from the top of the pot to where the water begins and make a note of it. Make sure you do this before seasoning or marinating the bird. Dry the pot of water and then fill it with oil. Make sure there is plenty of space between the oil and the top to allow for bubbling. If it’s too full, serious burns can occur.

Heat the oil. It should take about 45 minutes to 1 hour to reach 370 degrees F. (the correct frying temperature.) Use a candy thermometer to measure this. A meat thermometer will explode under such extreme heat. While the oil is coming up to temperature, prepare the turkey using a spice rub or injectable marinade. Do not stuff a bird that is being deep fried.

Now that the oil is heated and the turkey is prepped, it’s time to start cooking.

Place the turkey in the basket and slowly lower it into the oil, be careful as the oil will bubble up when the turkey is first lowered. It should take about 3 minutes per pound. Remove the turkey and measure the temperature with a meat thermometer. It is done when the breast is 170 degrees and the thigh is 180 degrees. After the bird has finished cooking, let it rest for 20 minutes before carving.

Do not leave the hot oil unattended and don’t let children or pets near the area.

Let the oil cool completely before storing or disposing of it. If disposing, put it in the original container and take it to a restaurant and ask if you can put it in their grease trap. Don’t pour it down the sink or into the environment. If saving the oil, when it has cooled completely, strain it through a fine mesh strainer and filter it through cheese cloth. Store it in the refrigerator, or tightly covered in a dark cupboard. Wash hands and all utensils that have touched raw turkey. See, how to carve a turkey.

Follow these steps and you should end up with a delicious juicy turkey.

Smoking
Slow smoking a turkey gives it a wonderful flavor. Although it takes a long time and requires a lot of attention, you will be greatly rewarded with the delicious product.

First, choose a bird that is about 10-12 pounds, this is the safest size turkey to smoke. A larger bird will stay in the danger zone for too long. The danger zone is between 40-140 degrees, this is a breeding ground for bacteria. Do not stuff the turkey that is being smoked.

Thaw and prepare the turkey as you wood if you were roasting it in the oven.

Have plenty of charcoal and soaked wood chips, you will need to add more charcoal and wood every 1-1 ½ hours. Heat the smoker to 200-250 degrees. This is the temperature that should be maintained during the entire cooking process. Control the heat with the vents. Place a pan of liquid under where the turkey will sit to cook. This will mix with the smoke to make steam which in turn will cook the bird. You can use water or apple juice, or whatever liquid you prefer. Do not place the turkey over direct heat, or the outside will burn before the inside is cooked. Smoke the turkey about 30 minutes per pound. Don’t open the lid during cooking, if you do, add 10 minutes to the cooking time every time you do. The turkey will be done when it reaches 170 degrees in the breast, and 180 in the thigh. The turkey must reach 140 degrees in 4 hours or less for bacterial safety reasons. It this doesn’t happen. Finish it in the oven. See, how to carve a turkey.

We hope these tips have helped you and that you and your family have a great Thanksgiving.

You can also take a look here for some new ideas for Side Dishes and Dressings.