HOW TO COOK A TURKEY

By stepjo7269

Ingredients

• Deep Fried Turkey:
• to to Roast Your Turkey
• To prepare the turkey for roasting, first remove the giblets (and save for gravy or stuffing). Next, rinse the bird inside and out and pat dry with paper towels.
• to you are stuffing the bird, stuff it loosely, allowing about ½ to ¾ cup stuffing per pound of turkey.
• Brush the skin with melted butter or oil. Tie drumsticks together with string (for stuffed birds only).
• Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh. The thermometer should point towards the body, and should not touch the bone.
• 350 to bird on a rack in a roasting pan, and into a preheated 350 degree F (175 degrees C) oven. Use the following chart to estimate the time required for baking.
• 45 to the skin is a light golden color, and then cover loosely with a foil tent. During the last 45 minutes of baking, remove the foil tent to brown the skin. Basting is not necessary, but helps promote even browning.
• Weight of Bird
• Roasting Time
• (Unstuffed)
• Roasting Time
• (Stuffed)
• 10-18 10-18 10-18 lbs
• 3-3.5 3-3.5 3-3.5 hours
• 3.75-4.5 3.75-4.5 3.75-4.5 hours
• 18-22 18-22 18-22 lbs
• 3.5-4 3.5-4 3.5-4 hours
• 4.5-5 4.5-5 4.5-5 hours
• 22-24 22-24 22-24 lbs
• 4-4.5 4-4.5 4-4.5 hours
• 5-5.5 5-5.5 5-5.5 hours
• 24-29 24-29 24-29 lbs
• 4.5-5 4.5-5 4.5-5 hours
• 5.5-6.25 5.5-6.25 5.5-6.25 hours
• 165 turkey is done when the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F (75 degrees C) at the thigh.
• Other Cooking Methods
• Heavy-duty portable propane burner.
• to 40-quart stockpot (26- to 40-quart capacity) or a custom-made turkey-frying pot.
• A heavy-duty cooking thermometer
• to tool that will allow you to safely lower the turkey into a vat of boiling oil, and remove it once the turkey is done.
• There are many online resources for buying turkey-frying equipment, if you can't find it at your local hardware or kitchen store.
• Prepping the Bird
• For a traditional Cajun turkey, use peanut oil for frying the bird. Peanut oil gives the best flavor and has a high smoke point. You can also use half peanut, half vegetable oil.
• Seasoning Cajun-style turkeys are traditionally injected with a liquid seasoning blend (marinade), then rubbed with a dry seasoning blend (dry rub).
• To properly season your turkey, place it in a pan and load your marinade into a hypodermic meat injector (available at kitchen supply stores and some supermarkets).
• Inject the marinade into the meat in several places on the turkey by carefully lifting up the skin, rather than poking the needle through the skin.
• Gently loosen the membrane under the turkey skin. Apply a dry rub under the skin of the bird and all around the cavity.
• 36 12 to to as much as 36 hours in advance, but you should allow at least 12 hours to give the flavors time to penetrate the meat while it's kept in the refrigerator.
• Smoked or Grilled Turkey:
• to One of the benefits of smoking a turkey is that it's almost impossible to overcook anything in a smoker. The temperature remains low and the cooking is slow, resulting in perfectly moist and tender meat with a rich, complex flavor.
• Smoked Turkey Tools
• a smoker, there are a few other things you'll need to smoke your turkey:
• large A large pan
• An accurate meat thermometer
• Wood chips--any kind of fruit wood, such as apple or cherry, complements turkey very well, but hickory, pecan, and maple will be equally good
• 15 to smoking a whole bird, we recommended that you choose one weighing no more than about 15 pounds--large turkeys take too long to heat all the way through.
• If you choose a frozen turkey, it should be thoroughly thawed before you begin.
• to sure to remove all the giblets and gizzards from the turkey, as well as the plastic pop-up thermometer.
• Prepping
• even more flavor to your turkey:
• Try brining: while not an essential part of smoking a turkey, soaking in brine before cooking gives the meat maximum flavor and juiciness.
• Rub bird with oil or butter for crispy and evenly browned skin.
• Apply a dry rub just before smoking. (If you have brined the turkey, you should not use any salt in the dry rub).
• Unfortunately, you can't stuff a smoked turkey. Make your stuffing separately in the oven.
• Smoking Your Turkey
• you have prepped your turkey, you are ready to begin smoking:
• Place turkey in the pan, breast-side up.
• to the meat thermometer deep into the thigh, being careful not to touch the bone or joints.
• 240 your smoker at 240 degrees F (115 degrees C).
• 30 30 minutes of cooking time per pound of meat.Â
• Baste the turkey with its own juices a few times during smoking, but avoid opening the smoker too often; you will lose heat and increase the cooking time.
• 165 15 thermometer reads 165 degrees F (75 degrees C) , pull the bird out of the smoker and let it rest at least 15 minutes. Carve and serve.
• Grilled Turkey
• 12-pound have a smoker? Use your charcoal grill. A 12-pound turkey is the largest that will fit most grills.
• to to Eat
• 165 only reliable test for doneness is the temperature of the meat, not the color of the skin. The turkey is done when the meat reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F (75 degrees C) at the thigh.
• to 165 to 20 been stuffed, it is important to check the temperature of the dressing. The stuffing should be 165 degrees F as well. When the turkey is done, remove from the oven and allow to stand for 20 minutes.

Preparation

Step 1

As above.