Turkey Cooked Perfect Every Time

I remember growing up, that my mother always cooked the Thanksgiving dinner. I remember her turkeys used to be a little on the dry side. As I got older, I can remember, the turkeys became more tender and juicy. It does not matter the brand of the turkey, it is all about, how you go about cooking it.The most important thing to do is, to store the turkey and thaw it properly in order to prevent food born illness. To thaw your turkey in the refrigerator, it is recommend 24 hours for each 4 to 5 pounds. I usually place the bird in a large garbage bag to prevent any spills from the turkey going on the shelve or other foods, I have stored in there. According to the Food Safety and Inspection Service of the USDA, the thaw times for whole turkeys are as follows, and that a thawed turkey can stay in a refrigerator for 1 to 2 days prior to cooking:

Whole Turkey Refrigerator Thaw Times:

4 to 12 lbs - 1 to 3 days

12 to 16 lbs-3 to 4 days

20 to 24 lbs-5 to 6 days

If you prefer to use the cold water thawing method, you need to make sure the turkey is in a leak proof bag to prevent the turkey from absorbing the water, and any other contaminants that may occur from the standing water. As you would with any frozen meat, keep it under the water, and change the water to ice cold every half hour. The downfall to this method is, you must cook the turkey right away. This method I have once one time, and did not work out too well, so I stay with the refrigerator method.

Once your bird is completely thawed, and you are ready to cook it, preheat oven to 325 degrees. While the oven is preheating, you have to clean your bird. Remove the bag of gizzards, and the neck piece from the inside of the turkey, and rinse the bird under cold water, inside and out thoroughly, until the inside does not come out slightly pink no more. Place the turkey onto the holding rack in the roasting pan, breast down. Why breast down? Juices flow down not up, hence, a juicier bird. Next, you want to take bacon and place the strips over the back of the bird which is facing up, from top to bottom. Place in the bottom of pan, water, and cover with a lid, or make a foil tent sealing the edges completely. Follow the cooking time according to the label on the bird, if you tossed it out, some cook times for birds according to all recipes.com are as follows:

Cook Time For Turkeys (unstuffed):

10 to 18 lbs- 3 to 3 1/2 hr

15 to 22 lbs- 3 1/2 to 4 hr

22 to 24 lbs- 4 to 4 1/2 hr

24 to 29 lbs- 4 1/2 to 5 hr

During cooking, I usually baste the Turkey every half hour, from top to rear, some will argue this does make the bird anymore juicy, but I still like to. If your turkey comes with a pop out timer, you will need to relocate this timer, since you will be cooking the bird, breast side down, so you can see the timer, or simply use a meat thermometer. The turkey will be safely cooked when the internal temperature is at minimum 165 degrees, in the thickest part of the breast, and inner thigh. When the turkey is done cooking, remove from oven and let cool for about 15 minutes. Peel off and discard the bacon, prior to carving. ENJOY!