Things You'll Need:
- Roasting Pan, preferrably with a metal rack to hold the turkey up from the bottom of the pan
- Meat thermometer
- Tin foil
- Fresh or dried rosemary & thyme
- Salt & pepper
- 2-4 sticks of butter depending on turkey size
- One medium sized chopped onion
- 3 chopped carrots
- 3 chopped celery stalks
- 1-2 cups chicken broth
- 1 turkey 8 - 24 lbs
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Step 1
Buy your turkey. It is recommended to figure 1 - 1 1/2 lbs per person. Purchase your turkey ahead of time leaving plenty of time for thawing your frozen bird. Turkeys can be stored in your freezer up to one year.
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Step 2
The safest way is to thaw it in the refrigerator. Thawing in water or the microwave is not recommended because of possible bacteria growth. Next are guidelines for thawing your turkey.
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Step 3
To thaw in the refrigerator, keep the turkey in its original wrapper and place it on a tray or in a pan to catch any juices that may leak. A completely thawed turkey can remain in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 days. Recommended thawing times are: * 8 - 12 lbs thaw 2 - 3 days, *13 - 16 lbs thaw 3 - 4 days, * 17 - 20 lbs thaw 4 - 5 days, * 21 - 24 lbs thaw 5 - 6 days.
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Step 4
If you must thaw your turkey in cold water, wrap your turkey securely in plastic, making sure the water is not able to leak through the wrapping. Submerge your wrapped turkey completely in cold water. Change the water every 30 minutes to make sure the water remains cold. Cook the turkey immediately after it is thawed. Thawing this way can take anywhere from 3 - 12 hours depending on the size of your turkey.
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Step 5
Heat your oven to 325 degrees farenheight. While oven is heating, remove wrapping from the turkey and take out any giblets and neck from inside the turkey.
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Step 6
Put chicken broth, rosemary, thyme, onion, celery and carrot into bottom of roasting pan. Put in the metal rack if available then place turkey on top of this breast side up.
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Step 7
Melt butter. Try to lift the skin from the breast meat of the turkey. Do not remove the skin, just lift it up so you can get your hand between the skin and the meat. Rub with butter and lightly salt and pepper. Repeat on the outside of skin. (If you cannot lift the skin it is okay just to do the outside of the skin, but if you can lift the skin the turkey will be more flavorful.)
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Step 8
Do not place stuffing in your turkey while cooking. This will give you unreliable cooking temperatures and times and can be unsafe. It is best to cook your stuffing separately.
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Step 9
Cover turkey loosely with foil and place in the oven. Cook for 45 minutes, then remove from oven and baste or spoon the liquid in the bottom of the pan over the turkey. Put back in oven and repeat every 45 minutes or so. If you need more liquid, you can add water to the bottom of the pan as needed. Remove foil about halfway through the cooking time, or 1 1/2 - 2 hours depending on size of the turkey.
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Step 10
Approximate cooking times for your turkey will be from 2 to 5 hours depending on the size of your turkey.
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Step 11
Cook turkey until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees farenheight in the breast and 170 - 180 degrees in the thigh. Use a food thermometer. Check the internal temperature in the innermost part of the thigh and the thickest part of the breast. Juices should be clear, not reddish or pink.
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Step 12
When finished cooking, remove from oven and let turkey rest before carving. This will allow juices to settle in the turkey.
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Step 13
See the resources section below for links to more great recipes.
Comments
starr4all said
on 12/18/2008 Great recipe! I may try this out for my Christmas dinner!
IcyCucky said
on 11/9/2008 So timely for Thanksgiving..Great tips, and recipe!