How to Carve a Turkey With an Electric Knife

Roasted turkey ready for carving

A turkey is usually prepared for some type of special occasion. Whether it is Thanksgiving, Christmas or some other family and friend gathering, it seems that the hostess usually has the goal of displaying the beautifully roasted bird to her guests. While this does make a nice image, the best place to carve the bird is in the kitchen. This gives the carver lots of room to work and then, after it is carved, the hostess can return to the table with a platter of the freshly sliced turkey meat.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Long-handled spoon (optional)
• Oven-safe bowl (optional)
• Aluminum foil (optional)
• Warmed platter
• Napkins or paper towels
• Electric knife
• Carving fork
• Meat carving board with grooves
• Large serving platter

1. Let the turkey rest after it has been removed from the oven. Allow at least 20 minutes. This will let some of the juices be reabsorbed into the meat and the result will be a turkey that is moist and easy to cut.

2. Place the turkey onto the cutting board. Take a napkin or paper towel and hold the end of the leg. Gently pull the leg away from the body of the bird. Take your electric knife and, as the meat between the leg and the thigh is exposed, slice downwards, towards the joint. Slice through the joint. Unless the turkey is particularly large (over 20 pounds), most people leave the leg whole. However, if you want, you can slice the meat off of it by holding the bone vertically and slicing downwards towards the cutting board. Place the legs onto the warm platter.

3. Take your napkin or paper towel and grab the wing. Pull the wing off of the turkey. If necessary, use your electric knife to cut through the joint. Remove the other wing and place both of them on the warm platter.

4. Hold the turkey firmly with your carving fork. Make a slice through the breast, low on the bird, near the wing joint. This slice will be horizontal, parallel with the backbone, and should go all of the way through to the ribcage.

5. Place your knife at the outside edge where the leg was attached and begin carving slices. Carve slowly and carefully until you reach the cut you previously made. The slice will then fall off the bird. Slide the knife under the slice and place it on the warm platter. Working your way toward the breastbone, repeat until you have finished carving that side of the turkey. Repeat with the other side.

6. Pull the remaining wing sections away from the breastbone, cut through the joints and place the sections on the warm plate. Remove the wishbone by positioning the knife tip between the now carved breastbone and the wishbone. Cut carefully down both sides of the wishbone to free it from the turkey.

7. Slice the thigh meat last. Hold the knife so that you can cut down, towards the cutting board. Place the slices on the warm platter.

8. Arrange the turkey meat in an appealing way on the large platter and serve.

Tips & Warnings

• If the turkey has been stuffed, use a long handled serving spoon to remove the stuffing as soon as you take the bird from the oven. Put the stuffing in an oven safe bowl and cover with aluminum foil. Reduce the heat of the oven to 175 and return the stuffing to the oven to be kept warm until it is served.

References

• Cooking Tips: How to Carve a Turkey
• ELLEN'S KITCHEN: How To Carve a Roasted Turkey
• TLC Cooking: How to Carve a Turkey