How do you cook your turkey?

[piratesmate]

I roast mine in a covered pan - 425 for 20 min & then 325 until it's good & done. I don't do anything to the skin because we don't eat it anyway.

In fact, I have one in the oven now. I did the version where you rub it inside & out with Kosher salt & then a mixture of lemon pepper, thyme, ground celery seed, lemon & orange zest. I slid slices of orange under the skin & tossed the rest of the lemon (it was LARGE!) into the cavity. Later I'll pull the meat off the bones & then cover them (the bones) with water & cook it down for broth. I don't do gravy, but the broth is great for hot turkey sandwiches.

 

[FOJMO]

Originally posted by grinningghost
I hand it to DH and HE cooks it. In the oven, in the bag.

I agree! I haven't cooked a turkey in the 22 years we've been married. It actually is disgusting to me before it's cooked. I love it afterward, but before - yuck!

Same way with the gas grill outside -- DH always cooks on the grill -- I've never even so much as turned it on!

All other cooking is MINE!

 

[stitch79]

We do ours according to the gospel of Alton Brown of the Food Network. The brine makes the turkey super juicy! YUM

You can find the recipe here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_8389,00.html

 

[mystycalchyk]

Ok so I know this is going to sound crazy but I have to talk to my bird first. I have to get to know her/him.

I name it, and while I'm chatting her up I'm rubbing her all over with olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper and rosemary....some under the skin some over. I massage her really good all over.

I figure I know her well enough at this point to stuff her.

My moms recipe for stuffing. simple but yummy. diced: onions, bell peppers (I use red cause theyre pretty) and celery, sautee'd till translucent (sp?) then mix with bread (I use an electric knife and cut wheat bread into approx one inch squares which i ever so slightly dry out in the oven) and chicken broth.

Stuff her/him.

I use a bag and cook according to the bag weight directions, covered with foil.

Cook to 180º (<----pretty sure thats right, have to check the bag)


Comes out perfect every single time.

 

[jwsqrdplus2]

Originally posted by Kimberle
Mayo would work, it is just an oil. How does it affect the taste? I would think it's just "melt" away...... Does it leave any flavor?

I season it with garlic powder, salt, pepper and a little bit of lemon juice. That is the only flavor left behind. The mayo does just "melt" away!

 

[Pat]

We stuff it and put it in a big roasting pan (big turkey) and baste it. All the old fashioned way.

We also do a turkey on a Weber grill and it is the best tasting turkey ever.

 

[swea_pea1]

Ok so I know this is going to sound crazy but I have to talk to my bird first. I have to get to know her/him.

LMAO!!! Are you sure you're talking about your turkey?!?!?!?!

Not a conventional method, but if it works for you, I say go for it!

 

[MerryPoppins]

We have turkey a lot. It's inexpensive, healthy and we like it. I usually fix it in a roaster without a bag unless I don't want to mess with the cleanup. I never stuff my turkey. I make dressing in a separate pan. I season it and don't baste.

Sometimes we do a trash can turkey. Has anyone else ever made one of them? And before someone asks, we have a special turkey trash can that has never been used for anything else.

You use a new metal 10 gallon trash can with a lid, 10 lb charcoal, a 10 lb turkey, foil, tongs, season salt,a bucket of water and a dowel about the diameter of a broomstick.

Cut the dowel so that you can drive it into the ground and have it be several inches shorter than the trash can. Stick it into the ground. Choose an area without grass and free of dead leaves. Spread foil on the ground all around the dowel. Make a ball of foil and put it on the top of the dowel to hold the turkey steady.

Turn the lid upside down on the ground. Fill it with the charcoal. Light it and let it cook down until the coals are getting white.

Wash the turkey and turn it upside down onto the dowel stake. Make sure it won't be touching the top of the cooker as it cooks. Adjust the height by driving the stake into the ground a little more if needed. We marked ours at ground level, so the guesswork is out of it now. Shake salt all over the turkey - it gives it great color. Use additional seasonings if you wish. Turn the trash can upside down over the turkey. Be careful to center the meat so it won't be too close to the side of the "cooker".

Remove the coals from the lid and put them all around the base of the trash can and on top of it. Use all the coals. Sit back with the bucket and watch to be sure that your grass doesn't catch on fire. Set a timer for 1 1/2 hours. Do not peek! When the timer goes off, remove the coals, remove the trash can and dinner is served!

We've done this on the beach and we've done it on campouts with the Scouts. We've also done it for Thanksgiving.

 

[SusieJane]

I used to use the bag, but for the last few years I have used my Showtime Rotisserie. Ummmm-mmm

 

[binny]

I used to use the bags but now I have a roasting pan and I prefer it that way.

I dont put stuffing in the bird, I cut up an apple and an onion and stuff those in instead. I love the flavour! I also read about peircing a grapefruit with a fork several times and stuffing it with that.



I put butter or olive oil over the bird and cover with aluminum foil until the last half hour then let it get that crispy crust


YUMMM now I want a turkey

 

[Nutsy]

In the oven of course But I put mine in a roasting dish lined with alfoil & then put another layer of alfoil over the top

 

[letfuller]

We barbeque our turkey and it is divine. The only thing I miss is the smell of turkey baking in the oven.

 

[bclydia]

I wash the turkey well and dry it off with papertowels. Then I salt it well inside and stuff it with sausage meat and bread stuffing. It gets set on a rack in the roasting pan. I slather soft butter all over it and salt it some more. Then (this is the best part!) I cover the whole turkey with strips of bacon. If it's a large bird, then I can use up to 2 pounds of bacon. I put aluminum foil over the turkey and roast it in a 325 degree oven for 20 min per pound.
It's wonderful and never turns out dry. Try it! I promise it's great and the family will love the bacon!

 

[Kimberle]

Originally posted by MerryPoppins
We have turkey a lot. It's inexpensive, healthy and we like it. I usually fix it in a roaster without a bag unless I don't want to mess with the cleanup. I never stuff my turkey. I make dressing in a separate pan. I season it and don't baste.

Sometimes we do a trash can turkey. Has anyone else ever made one of them? And before someone asks, we have a special turkey trash can that has never been used for anything else.

You use a new metal 10 gallon trash can with a lid, 10 lb charcoal, a 10 lb turkey, foil, tongs, season salt,a bucket of water and a dowel about the diameter of a broomstick.

Cut the dowel so that you can drive it into the ground and have it be several inches shorter than the trash can. Stick it into the ground. Choose an area without grass and free of dead leaves. Spread foil on the ground all around the dowel. Make a ball of foil and put it on the top of the dowel to hold the turkey steady.

Turn the lid upside down on the ground. Fill it with the charcoal. Light it and let it cook down until the coals are getting white.

Wash the turkey and turn it upside down onto the dowel stake. Make sure it won't be touching the top of the cooker as it cooks. Adjust the height by driving the stake into the ground a little more if needed. We marked ours at ground level, so the guesswork is out of it now. Shake salt all over the turkey - it gives it great color. Use additional seasonings if you wish. Turn the trash can upside down over the turkey. Be careful to center the meat so it won't be too close to the side of the "cooker".

Remove the coals from the lid and put them all around the base of the trash can and on top of it. Use all the coals. Sit back with the bucket and watch to be sure that your grass doesn't catch on fire. Set a timer for 1 1/2 hours. Do not peek! When the timer goes off, remove the coals, remove the trash can and dinner is served!

We've done this on the beach and we've done it on campouts with the Scouts. We've also done it for Thanksgiving.

Yumm!! Sounds devine!!
Reminds me of the pig roasts I had growing up as a kid. (You dig a big hole & roast a whole pig overnight.)

bclydia - The bacon sounds wonderful! Bet it keeps the bird real moist!

 

[FloridaCat]

Pig Roast, that brings back some good, yummy, memories.

 

[DisneyDmbNut]

Originally posted by CEDmom
the turkey in breast side down for all but the last hour. This gets the dark meat cooked without drying out the white meat. My grandmother taught me this and it's worked everytime.

I do this too!!! Soo good, I also cook my chickens this way!
Betsy

 

[binny]

the bacon must be a Canadian thing My MIL slathers her turkeys with bacon grease ( which she keep in the fridge at all times)

 

[FloridaCat]

This is not for Thanksgiving, but is Turkey.

You will need a cake pan that has a lid with holes in it. I don’t know what they call it.

Lay out several sheets of foil, place a thawed Turkey breast on it and drench with your favorite B-B-Q sauce.
Wrap the Turkey tightly, fill the cake pan with water and place on the grill, and place the Turkey on the pan.
I cook it a couple of hours, depending on size. You can’s burn it. Keep water in the pan.
The B-B-Q sauce will absorbed into the meat and you can serve it hot or for cold cuts.
It is very moist and the flavor is to die for.
My late Wife, it was her favorite, always had me outside in a snowstorm fixing it for our neighborhood Christmas party. She would serve it sliced on a party tray with a Mayo and Horseradish mix. LOL
I also do the same thing with a Pork Tenderloin

 

[corky805]

FC....that sounds like and amazing recipe, I thin we would especially like it with pork....but I don't know what kind of cake pan you re talking about??? Maybe someone can clarify??

bclydia.......You are the first I have ever heard outside of my family to put bacon on the bird.....it is our all time favorite!! Keeps it so moist!!

I always use a roasting pan as well.....one year my MIL convinced me to use cheesecloth on top of the bird....what a disaster...never again!!

 

[Megan's Mom]

Have any of you ever deep fried a turkey? I have been wanting to try this they say that they are wonderful. The inside is all juicy and moist and the outside is crispy. Just wondering. I use a bag and cook in the oven most of the time unless I am just doing a breast and then I use my rotisteree (sp). That really does meat great.