Turkey Stuffing question...

[scrapquitler]

Am I the only one whose family stuffs the turkey the night before cooking it?

For as long as I can remember (at least 50 years), we've always stuffed our turkey the night before. Never have had anyone get sick because of T-Day dinner and always have had a moist bird. What gives?

My Mom always does it this way and we never got sick. Of course she still defrosts meat overnight on the counter and used to send us tuna sandwhiches for lunch with no ice packs, we are all still alive and never got sick from it.. But you're not 'supposed' to that for food safety reasons.

 

[scrapquitler]

I use cooked sausage, milk, broth made from veggies and the turkey innards, apples, cooked onion and celery, pepper, salt, and poultry seasoning.

That's exactly how my stuffing is too.

 

[Kathi OD]

My Mom always does it this way and we never got sick. Of course she still defrosts meat overnight on the counter and used to send us tuna sandwhiches for lunch with no ice packs, we are all still alive and never got sick from it.. But you're not 'supposed' to that for food safety reasons.

us too. maybe we're just from "sturdy stock."

That's exactly how my stuffing is too.

that's a double

 

[Kathi OD]

Well another year of "stuff the bird the night before" has passed, and I'm pleased to announce the streak is still intact! There were 12 people here for dinner and not one of them got sick. Mr. Tom was a juicy as can be and the stuffing was super-delish!

I don't care what the food safety police say...I say if it ain't broke, I ain't gonna fix it.

Hope everyone enjoyed their day and feast, wherever you were!

 

[marcyinPA]

My mom always stuffed the turkey in the morning and put it right into the oven. I've eaten it that way since I started eating solid food...about 41 years! Never once got sick!

Now the food police are saying you shouldn't stuff the bird AT ALL. Stuffing just doesn't taste the same baked in a casserole dish!

 

[Nette]

My family has always stuffed the night before as well... Going on over 60 years now. No one has ever gotten sick.

Stuffing has to be in the bird, otherwise it's just dressing. And I'm not crazy about "dressing" unless it's swimming in gravy.

 

[minniecarousel]

This was the first year that I didn't stuff the bird at all. We eat at 1PM, so I always got up early to saute the onions & celery, then stuffed the bird, placed it in the cookin' bag. This year, I slept in, got up and put it in the cookin' bag and 4 hours later, that 22-pounder was done!

 

[PaulaSue]

OP, I wont eat it if it was stuffed early.

 

[karensi]

Im going to have turkey, stuffing, etc for Christmas dinner. Im trying to think of what I might be able to prepare earlier in the week , and freeze, in order to safe time and cut down on stress.
Do you think I could make the stuffing earlier in the week, freeze it, then defrost Christmas morning and stuff the turkey with it?

Thanks,

Karen

 

[Kathi OD]

Im going to have turkey, stuffing, etc for Christmas dinner. Im trying to think of what I might be able to prepare earlier in the week , and freeze, in order to safe time and cut down on stress.
Do you think I could make the stuffing earlier in the week, freeze it, then defrost Christmas morning and stuff the turkey with it?

Thanks,

Karen

I don't see why not. I'm assuming that everything is cooked before you assemble and freeze it.

 

[Kathi OD]

OP, I wont eat it if it was stuffed early.

That is certainly your prerogative, and based upon the "expert advice," wouldn't blame you in the least. However, I'm betting there are a lot of people who say they "won't eat it if it was stuffed early" who have done exactly that and never had a clue, mostly because we tend to think people prepare things the same way we do.

For example, since it's always been done that way in my family, that's how I do it. My MIL, may or may not have prepared her stuffing the same way. I do know that she's never asked me if I stuff the night before, but she always eats it when she is here for the holiday.

 

[karensi]

I don't see why not. I'm assuming that everything is cooked before you assemble and freeze it.

Yes, I would cook everything as if I was going to stuff the turkey right then and there...except I would freeze it till Christmas morning.

Kathi OD,
Thanks for your response, when it comes to cooking I truely am challenged, so I feel better that someone says its an OK thing to do

Karen

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I had never heard of that. But then again, my mom was always the queen of procrastinating cooking styles while growing up. She never go the bird ready the night before. And if she did, it was a blessed miracle.

she fries her turkeys now and has a recipe to make a dressing in the oven that tastes like it came out of the bird.

Hubby and I made our family dinner (just us) for the first time in years. We didn't stuff the turkey. We couldn't agree on a stuffing style...so we had stovetop.

 

[Kathi OD]

I had never heard of that. But then again, my mom was always the queen of procrastinating cooking styles while growing up. She never go the bird ready the night before. And if she did, it was a blessed miracle.

she fries her turkeys now and has a recipe to make a dressing in the oven that tastes like it came out of the bird.

Hubby and I made our family dinner (just us) for the first time in years. We didn't stuff the turkey. We couldn't agree on a stuffing style...so we had stovetop.

This is why I know DMIL would never think to ask when the bird was stuffed. Let's just say cooking isn't her thing. Until we were married, DH only had stuffing (and a lot of other things) that came out of a box.

 

[marcyinPA]

I heard on TV this morning that you should throw out stuffing and gravy after two days. I froze some of the stuffing that was in the bird, immediately after we de-boned it. Do you think it will be OK to eat at another time?

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I heard on TV this morning that you should throw out stuffing and gravy after two days. I froze some of the stuffing that was in the bird, immediately after we de-boned it. Do you think it will be OK to eat at another time?

They can go fly a kite because I am eating my stuffing until the official day 4.

 

[Kathi OD]

I heard on TV this morning that you should throw out stuffing and gravy after two days. I froze some of the stuffing that was in the bird, immediately after we de-boned it. Do you think it will be OK to eat at another time?

Yes. I definitely think it will be OK, especially since you froze it immediately. Now if you had left it laying around for a week and then decided to freeze, I wouldn't be so sure (and this from the queen of stuffing the bird the night before).

 

[pppiglet]

I had never heard of that. But then again, my mom was always the queen of procrastinating cooking styles while growing up. She never go the bird ready the night before. And if she did, it was a blessed miracle.

she fries her turkeys now and has a recipe to make a dressing in the oven that tastes like it came out of the bird.

Hubby and I made our family dinner (just us) for the first time in years. We didn't stuff the turkey. We couldn't agree on a stuffing style...so we had stovetop.

I love Stovetop!