Make Your Thanksgiving Turkey Leftovers Work for You!

It's great to enjoy that Thanksgiving Day meal, but how about making that Thanksgiving Day meal work for you! Here's a few suggestions on how to accomplish that.

Know your turkey. A "tom" turkey is a male turkey and is usually on the tough side and a larger bird. Watch your cooking temperatures and if all else fails, if you cut this tougher meat into bite size pieces and pour some delicious gravey over it, the toughness isn't so bad! A "hen" turkey is a female turkey and smaller in size and more tender.

When you are making up meal-sized portions of meat to freeze for meals later, think about how much each of your family members eat and consider this when you are portioning your meal-sized servings.How much will each person eat? In your family of four - will the men/boys eat 1/2 lb. each and the women/girls 1/4 lb. each? Then make your serving size 1,1/2 lbs of turkey meat.

Most cookbooks suggest you thaw your turkey in the fridge, instead of out on the counter at room temperature. Being poultry, you have to be careful it doesn't get warm. So take your turkey out of the freezer a day or two (depending on how many pounds it is) before you are going to cook it and let it thaw in the fridge.

When you are cooking the bird, make sure you line the pan with heavy aluminum foil and cover the bird. You want all the juices and moisture to stay inside the foil, so as not to let the turkey get dry.

Some say stuff it, some say don't. But if you do, just make sure you tie the legs closed so that the stuffing stays inside, and doesn't dry out or spill out in all the juices. But don't forget to take the ties off for presentation!

In a way, you could say, that the bird will cook itself. So set the temperature, cover it properly and let it alone! Don't keep opening the oven door or pulling the foil cover back to "check" on the bird. It isn't going anywhere and every time you open that oven door, you let the heat out, and that lowers the temperature inside the oven, which means you aren't cooking your bird at the same temperature. It might take longer to cook or not get done properly because of major changes in the cooking temperature. If you choose to baste the turkey, then just open it at certain time intervals and open the foil as little as possible so the heat and moisture doesn't escape.

Peel ALL the meat off those bones! The tiny little bits are great to add to canned chicken stock to enhance the flavor or make soup. Small pieces are great for making a turkey salad for sandwiches next week. The dark meat is hardly noticable if it is covered in delicious gravey! Or course that white meat is great by itself or on a sandwich. As you are slicing, seperate the "pieces" by size and then just fill them freezer bags!

Since you are already cooking, why not cook 2 birds! One for the holiday meal and one for next week! Making a side dish? Make 2 and freeze one for next week! Just think, next week, no cooking, no mess, no bother - just great food!

Also, in a favorite magazine of mine, Family Fun Magazinethey have these sepcifics to offer:

Defrosting Do's

Remember that you have to allow 24 hours for every 5 pounds if you're going to defrost a turkey in the refrigerator. That means a 15-pound turkey will take three full days, so get started on Monday. If you miss this deadline, you can defrost the bird faster in a sinkful of cold water, allowing about half an hour for each pound of turkey and changing the water occasionally. (It will still take 7 1/2 hours for that 15-pounder, so do it after work on Wednesday, then refrigerate it.)

Roasting Times For a Fully Defrosted Turkey

10 to 18 lbs. - 3 to 3 1/2 hours (unstuffed) or 3 3/4 to 4 1/2 hours (stuffed)
18 to 22 lbs. - 3 1/2 to 4 hours (unstuffed) or 4 1/2 to 5 hours (stuffed)
22 to 24 lbs. - 4 to 4 1/2 hours (unstuffed) or 5 to 5 1/2 hours (stuffed)
24 to 30 lbs. - 4 1/2 to 5 hours (unstuffed) or 5 1/2 to 6 1/4 (stuffed)

Happy Cooking!