These Simple Turkey Recipes Will Save Your Thanksgiving (2024)

FAQs

Should I roast my turkey at 325 or 350 overnight? ›

For the best results, we recommend brining the turkey the day/night before roasting. This allows the meat time to soak in all the flavor! Is It Better to Cook a Turkey at 325 or 350? I recommend 325ºF!

If your turkey has been properly handled, you can refrigerate and eat it for up to four days. If you are planning to freeze it, it's best to freeze it within one day of cooking for optimal texture and taste. However, leftover turkey can be frozen after three days and it will be fine.

Do not add water to pan. If you don't have a roasting rack, crunch aluminum foil into a coil or use vegetables like carrots to keep your turkey off the bottom of the pan. Brush or spray skin lightly with vegetable or cooking oil for best appearance.

Outside of flavor, oranges also play a big role in helping to make sure that your turkey is juicy and moist as well. The added moisture from the orange slices will prevent one of the worst carnal sins when it comes to poultry -- overcooking the bird.

At 325°F for an unstuffed turkey: 10-12 pounds: cook 2 3/4 to 3 hours. 15-16 pounds: cook 3 1/2 to 4 hours. 18-20 pounds: cook 4 to 4 1/2 hours.

Turkeys can be kept in the freezer indefinitely. However, cook turkeys within 1 year for the best quality.

The 'sell-by' date is used by the store and is not a storage recommendation for consumers. For longer storage, freeze a fresh turkey within one to two days of purchase or by the 'best by' date on the label. It will stay safe in the freezer indefinitely.

Don't butter your bird

Placing butter under the skin won't make the meat juicier, though it might help the skin brown faster. However, butter is about 17 percent water, and it will make your bird splotchy, says López-Alt. Instead, rub the skin with vegetable oil before you roast.

Should I put a stick of butter in my turkey? ›

Impart rich flavor and add moisture to your Thanksgiving turkey by adding a layer of butter under the skin before roasting. Learn how to do this simple (but genius) technique for a delicious Thanksgiving turkey. I'm Kelly Senyei with http://www.epicurious.com, and this is how to put butter under turkey skin.

To achieve a perfectly golden, juicy turkey, let the bird spend time both covered and uncovered in the oven. We recommend covering your bird for most of the cooking time to prevent it from drying out; then, during the last 30 minutes or so of cooking, remove the cover so the skin crisps in the hot oven.

These birds are big — sometimes tipping the scales at more than 20 pounds — but what most often catches our eyes is the bright red skin that hangs from the birds' necks. This fleshy, bumpy skin has a name: the wattle.

Besides stuffing, you can put aromatic ingredients like onions, garlic, herbs (such as rosemary, thyme, or sage), citrus slices (lemon or orange), and vegetables (carrots, celery) inside your turkey to add flavor during roasting. Remember to remove these ingredients before serving.

When you're starting to think about going to bed, preheat your oven to somewhere between 170-180ºF. If your oven temperature does not go this low, set it to its coolest setting; anything up to 200ºF is fine.

It is not safe to cook any meat or poultry in an oven set lower than 325 °F. At lower temperatures, meat stays in the Danger Zone (between 40 °F and 140°F for too long.

Yes, you can cook a turkey overnight. Not only is it a great way to roast the big bird, but it's also one of the simplest. This overnight method ensures you'll wake up to a house filled with the smell of a perfectly cooked turkey, freeing up valuable oven space (as well as your schedule, too!).

How Long Does it Take to Cook a Turkey? While the best temperature to cook a turkey is always 325°F, how much time your bird will need in the oven will depend on its weight. An unstuffed 8-pound turkey can take less than 3 hours, while a stuffed 24-pound turkey can take over 5 hours.