Roasted Turkey

While turkey is the star of most Thanksgiving tables, it is the piece of the meal that most people find the most intimidating.  And it is no wonder that that it is the case.  First of all, it’s a large piece of meat.  We deal in primals at my catering business, so I am used to buying 10, 20, and 30 lb pieces of meat, but for the average person, that 16 lb bird is extremely intimidating. 

And then there is the whole thawing process.  It takes days.  I read somewhere that it takes 24 hours per 4 pounds of bird.  Since most of us don’t plan ahead, we are probably behind the ball in having our bird ready to be stuffed and dressed.  Now all is not lost.  If you don’t think your bird will thaw in time in the refrigerator, you might consider letting it go for a swim in your sink or a five gallon bucket in COLD water.  That will speed the thawing time greatly, and is a preferred method to the sit out on the counter overnight method.  I usually plan for my turkeys to swim for a few hours on Thursday morning, but I am planning for a dinner, like 5 o’clock, and we use the high heat method, so my turkeys will probably roast for about 3 hours.  Those of you who might be planning a lunch, probably need your turkey thawed before you go to bed Wednesday night.

And then there is the method.  If you read of the internet you can come up with dozens of different “best” ways to cook your turkey.   Do you want to cut up your turkey and cook the white meat and dark meat separately, what I would call the Julie Child-method.  Or you can flip the turkey over so that it roasts breast-side down.  Or then there is the microwave method that is currently all the rage on the internet . . .
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The process that I am going to describe is daddy’s, and the only one I have ever used for cooking a whole bird.  He’s been working on it for fifty years, so I’m not messing with experience.  It’s works for us and if you decide to go our route, I hope it works for you too.  And just in case you have any questions, Butterball will be manning the turkey talk line from 6 am to 6 pm on Thanksgiving day.

Roasted Turkey
Difficulty – Medium
Servers – 8 to 10
 
INGREDIENTS   
1 – 13 lb young turkey, thawed
 
Dr. Scott’s Turkey Schmear
1/3 cup shortening
2 tbsps olive oil
1 tsp onion powder
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp poultry seasoning
¼ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp black pepper
 
Remove the wrapping as well as the bag of innards from your turkey.  Rinse and pat dry.  In a small bowl, mix ingredients for the turkey schmear.  
 
On a large flat service, take two large lengths of wide, heavy-duty foil, about 3 feet long.  Lay them on top of each other, and fold the long edge over twice, about ½ an inch each time, to make a seam.  Then open the two.  You should now have a large square of foil.  Take a third piece of foil, and lay it over the seam.  Place the turkey in the center of the foil.
 
To prep the turkey, we fold the wings back, and then proceed to generously rub the exterior of the bird with the turkey schmear.  If not stuffing the bird, you can remove the large pieces of fat at the rear and front of the bird.  With kitchen twine, we tie the legs together. 
 
Once the turkey is prepped, we carefully pull the foil up around the bird.  It will resemble a foil bowl.  Take a fourth piece of foil, and place it at the top.  We then will carefully crimp the foil together to make a sealed packet, so that the bird can steam in its own juices.
 
Place the foil encased bird in a heavy bottomed roasting pan.  At this point it can be refrigerated, or it is ready for the oven.
 
Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.   A 13-pound bird cooks for right at 2 hours according to our method.  After 1 hour and 40 minutes, remove the bird from the oven and remove the top piece of foil and push the sides back to allow the bird to brown.  Be careful when opening it initially as a plump of steam will be released.  Return the turkey to the oven for another 20 minutes to let it finish cooking and get nicely browned.  A digital thermometer is your friend, and you are looking for 165 degrees in the center of the breast. 
 
Once the bird has reached 165 degrees, remove it from the oven, and let it rest for about 20 minutes before carving.  The beauty of this method is the minimal cleanup and all the wonderful juices which have collected in the bottom of your foil “bowl”, just waiting to make fabulous gravy!
 
Cooking Times – 450 degrees
Unstuffed – 8 to 10 minutes per pound
Stuffed – 10-12 minutes per pound