How to Choose a Turkey

Thanksgiving usually revolves the turkey. I suppose there are some revolutionaries out there that eat ham or tofu, but most of us take the time to purchase the best turkey we can find. At infoplease.com I looked up "turkey trivia" because that's just the type of person I am. And I'm supposing that you might find these facts interesting also. "According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 45 million turkeys are cooked and eaten at Thanksgiving. That is one-sixth of all turkeys sold in the U.S. each year." Did you know that? I didn't--that is why I like to find these things out. Also, "turkeys are the only breed of poultry native to the Western Hemisphere." There now you have two interesting facts that you can use to impress someone.

While you are planning how many people will be gracing your thanksgiving table, you will want to know how big your particular turkey should be. If you want an 8 to 15 pound turkey your best bet is a hen turkey. Hens mature faster and are usually better than toms of the same weight. If you are looking for a larger turkey, it only makes sense to purchase a tom.

When you are buying medium or heavy birds, 12 pounds and over, allow 1/2 to 3/4 pound per serving. When buying turkeys under 12 pounds, allow 3/4 to1 pound per serving. Here are some suggestions when buying your turkey: If the turkey (ready to cook) is 6 to 8 pounds, there will be 6 to 10 servings. If the turkey is 8 to 12 pounds; there will be 10 to 20 servings. If the turkey is 12 to 16 pounds there will be 20 to 32 servings. If the turkey weighs 16 to 20 pounds it will serve 32 to 40 people. If the turkey weighs in at 20 to 24 pounds you may get 40 to 50 servings. And, of course, the actual number of servings will depend on the quality of turkey, correct cooking and carving skill.

Also from infoplease.com: At one time, the turkey and the bald eagle were each considered as the national symbol of America. Benjamin Franklin was one of those who argued passionately on behalf of the turkey. Franklin felt the turkey, although "vain and silly", was a better choice than the bald eagle, whom he felt was "a coward".