Cooking a Turkey in the Oven: A Guide for Years' Worth of Holiday Goodness

Cooking a turkey on Thanksgiving for the first time can be a nerve-wracking experience for the Thanksgiving host. Fears of serving underdone turkey - best described in the book and movie The Accidental Tourist - can put even experienced chefs on edge. In reality, cooking a turkey is not that hard, and once you have done it a couple of times, it actually becomes an easy meal to make.

Things you will need

Turkey (Plan for 1 to 1.5 pounds per person)

Roasting Pan

Roasting Rack

Meat Thermometer

Baster

Butter

Herbs

Stuffing (Optional)

Preparing the Turkey

Pre-heat the oven to 450 Degrees

Make sure the turkey is completely thawed if previously frozen

Remove the giblet bag from inside the turkey cavity and set aside

Completely wash the turkey in the sink, make sure you also wash the inside cavity of the turkey

Pat the turkey dry with a paper towel, inside and out

If you are not stuffing the turkey, season the inside with pepper and your choice of herbs. Rosemary, thyme, oregano or any herbs of your choice will do, be creative.

Soften two tablespoons of butter and rub the outside of the turkey with the butter. You may use olive oil if you prefer.

Grease the roasting rack with olive oil

Cooking and Basting the Turkey

Place the greased roasting rack in the Roasting Pan

If you are stuffing the turkey, pack the stuffing into the cavity immediately before putting in the oven

Tie the turkey legs together with string or use the clamp supplied with the turkey

Place on roasting rack breast side up

Put in the oven uncovered and immediately turn down the heat to 350 degrees. This makes the skin crispy.

After 30 minutes baste the turkey with the pan juices using the baster to suck up the juices and then pour those juices over the entire turkey

Baste every 15 minutes, if there is not enough pan juices you can baste with more melted butter

Cooking time is about 20 minutes per pound. A ten pound turkey will take about 3.5 hours.

Since underdone turkey can make you sick, you must check the turkey with a meat thermometer. Poke the thermometer in to the thickest part of the leg. The internal temperature of the turkey needs to be 180 to 185 degrees. If you have stuffed the turkey, the stuffing temperature should be at least 165 degrees.

Let the turkey stand for 20 minutes before carving

Optional Simple Stuffing

There are many types of stuffing mixtures available in most supermarkets. They all come with their own directions. Add ½ a cup of sautéed chopped onions and ½ cup of sautéed chopped celery. Prepare stuffing mix as per directions on package and add to celery and onion mixture. Let cool before stuffing turkey.