Chowhound is a weekly column about what’s trending in Detroit food culture. Tips: [email protected].
Maybe you’re a rookie fretting a first attempt at roasting your gathering’s Thanksgiving bird. Maybe you’re already a sage, seasoned holiday feast-maker just looking to up your game a little. If memory serves, I was in a panic prior to preparing my first pilgrim’s feast. Then I learned the truth: turkey’s basically a big chicken. Cooking one’s not complicated.
With birds that are frozen to begin with (most are), complete and proper thawing is a priority on the turkey dinner to do list. I’ve taken countless, panicked calls over the years from family, friends, staff, and customers who forgot to pull rock-solid, boulder-size poultry from freezers until the last-minute. Tip 1: Don’t do that. Tip 2: If you do, don’t despair. Doing things easy, let your fridge do the work. A hard-frozen turkey takes about one day to thaw per 3-4 pounds of weight, so if you have a frosty 13-20-pounder (average weight range for the typical American household), plan on plucking yours from the freezer the weekend before Thanksgiving. Should you miss that opportunity, you’ll need cool, running water to make up for lost time. Never let your birdsicle sit thawing at room temperature or use hot or warm water to speed the process. You may succeed at bringing up surface temperatures in short order, but by the time the ice melts at the Tootsie Roll center of your Thanksgiving centerpiece, you’ll be running afoul of the time risk for bacterial growth in the outer meat which warmed hours earlier. When thawing with water: A cold bath with a steady trickle of water flowing over your fowl is the ticket, so plunge it potted and unpackaged into your sink with the drain open or, if need be, still plastic-wrapped in a roasting pan plunked overnight in your tub or shower. Your turkey’s completely thawed when you can easily access its body cavity.
Additionally:
A. Don’t forget to remove giblets sometimes packed under the neck flap. Again, if you do forget and roast them, fear not, your turkey won’t be infected with giblet flavor. You’ll be fine. As a matter of fact, chop them up later and feed them to Fido of Fifi the cat. You’ll be their hero. As to that turkey neck cavity, there’s room enough there to cook another cup or two of stuffing in.
B. Stuffing stuff: Making it couldn’t be simpler. Shop the day-old bread rack at your grocery store for a loaf or two of whatever you choose. Toast it dry in a 250-degree oven — even days in advance — then cube it. Lightly sweat 1 cup each of diced onions (your choice: white, yellow, brown, or green) and celery in one stick of butter (salted or unsalted) before adding ¾ cup fresh-chopped parsley and ½ cup sage (dried or finely-chopped fresh). Combine with cubed bread in mixing bowl, adding only enough chicken, turkey, or vegetable stock to moisten the bread. Light, fluffy stuffing results from not over-soaking, which leads to sodden, heavy stuffing. More moisture will be absorbed by the bread during roasting. On that note: Remember to salt those body cavities before filling, which draws luscious roasting jus inward.
C. Need gluten-free stuffing? Easy-peasy. Substitute six cups of cooked but cooled quinoa for the bread component. I like the tri-color kind for eye appeal.
D. Problem: there’s not enough room left in your packed fridge for the oven-ready or leftover turkey. Check the weather. As long as it’s 40 degrees or less outside, use outdoor spaces for storage (garage, shed, car trunk, patio, etc.), provided they’re racoon-proof, of course.
E. When pan juices start flowing, begin basting. It’s like after drinking beer. Once those floodgates open, you keep going every 45 minutes or so. Dutiful basting helps render a moist, beautifully-browned and crisp-skinned bird. Unfortunate analogy for food conversation, granted. Still, it serves.
F. Cook time particulars: Start roasting at 350 degrees until slight browning begins, then lower to 300. If your turkey hasn’t had a thermometer breast implant, it’s done when those leg and thigh portions get loose enough to pull effortlessly away from the body of your bird. Some folks foil-wrap their wing tips and drumstick bones. I don’t bother. Do tie your turkey legs together (and tuck-up the tail) to hold in stuffing.
G. Detailing: 1. Rub raw bird with a little oil (your choice) before seasoning simply with salt, pepper, and (I like) sage. 2. Once out of the oven, let the turkey rest for at least 15 minutes before slicing.
For potential questions or concerns I haven’t addressed, consider calling the Butterball Hotline at 800-288-8372. A longstanding service (since ’81) of, perhaps, the world’s signature Thanksgiving turkey supplier, the good folks at Butterball are already manning the phone lines 24/7 to offer Turkey Day prep and storage tips, along with trouble-shooting assistance straight through the big event date (Thursday, Nov. 23). When I called the number to check it out, one quick prompt (“press or say ‘3’”) connected me with Jan; a live-body, home economist-cooking instructor-cookbook writer who came across as ready, willing and able to lend a virtual, holiday table hand. She’s been with Butterball since ’82, taking her part of the 100,000-plus calls for help that come in annually; 15,000-plus on Thanksgiving Day proper.
“Thawing, cooking, and leftovers are the big questions,” Jan let me know, seconding some of the advice and information I’ve shared with you here on those first two topics. Next week, I’ll offer two recipe suggestions on what to do with all that extra turkey besides making those killer sandwiches with plenty of black pepper and mayo (griddled turkey cakes with bacon and leeks, tomatillo enchiladas).
Until then, here’s a general star to steer by as we get geared up to feed everyone over the coming Holidays. Don’t procrastinate with your shopping or meal prep. Like the song says, start making your lists and checking them twice. I think you’ll find out that staying ahead’s nice. Turkey time is coming to town.
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