How To Make The Perfect
Turkey
The other day I was
watching a Thanksgiving special on the Food Network called Romancing The Bird with Alton Brown and it made me realize I was
selfish in not sharing information about the Turkey just because I am cooking a
turkey breast and I don’t eat skin it doesn't mean you don’t.
I am going to do a quick
walk though for new cooks or those those don’t cook turkey very often. So we
all can get it right this year.
My reference and
information is from Alton Brown and USDA.
First the bird itself and
how to pick the right turkey.
In the grocery store
there are three choices so unless you have a hunter going out to get the bird
this year this info could help with the choice you make when you’re armed with
the facts.
Always buy grade A
because Grade A tells you that the bird had no dark spots, pin feather, and is free
of bruising and has a good fat layer under the skin.
Next we need to know
what the different definitions of the turkey’s means.
Frozen---that means the
bird is kept at under zero degrees and according to USDA
Allow 1 pound of
turkey per person.
Keep frozen until
you're ready to thaw it.
Turkeys can be kept
frozen in the freezer indefinitely; however, cook within 1 year for best quality
Refrigerated---the bird
is kept at zero to twenty six degrees.
Again according to USDA
Allow 1 pound of
turkey per person.
Keep frozen until
you're ready to thaw it.
Fresh—above twenty six
degrees.
Any one is of these are
fine but be careful with fresh. It can have temperature issues and according to
USDA
Allow 1 pound of
turkey per person.
Buy your turkey only
1 to 2 days before you plan to cook it.
Keep it stored in the
refrigerator until you're ready to cook it. Place it on a tray or in a pan to
catch any juices that may leak.
According to Alton Brown
and USDA the ideal temperature for a turkey is twenty six degrees. That is the point at which a turkey is frozen
any higher than that the bird can have issues with freshness and safety.
Next is defrosting the
turkey.
Here is what UADA suggests:
In
the Refrigerator (40 °F or below)
Allow approximately 24 hours for every 4 to 5 pounds |
|
4 to 12 pounds
|
1 to 3 days
|
12 to 16 pounds
|
3 to 4 days
|
16 to 20 pounds
|
4 to 5 days
|
20 to 24 pounds
|
5 to 6 days
|
In
Cold Water
Allow approximately 30 minutes per pound |
|
4 to 12 pounds
|
2 to 6 hours
|
12 to 16 pounds
|
6 to 8 hours
|
16 to 20 pounds
|
8 to 10 hours
|
20 to 24 pounds
|
10 to 12 hours
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REMINDER: Remove the giblets from the turkey cavities after thawing. Cook separately.
Now that we have decided
on the bird the next question is brining or no brining.
I brine because I like a
juicy favorable bird. The basis is a
principle of brining is osmosis according to the show. As soon as the water in
and outside of the bird are equal, then the brine penetrates the bird and even with
cooking you flavoring and moisture will not come out of the bird.
So if you decide to
brine. I will give you a couple of ideas
of what to use in the brine, but it’s really up to you what you put in the brine as long as you use the salt and the sugar.
This would be for a
fourteen to a twenty pound bird.
The first brine is
pretty close to what Alton Brown suggests using.
1 Gallon of broth that
would be a couple of packages from the dollar store
1 cup of Kosher or Sea
Salt. You always ready know my choice is sea salt
½ cup of brown sugar.
1 Tablespoon of
peppercorn
½ tablespoon of allspice
½ tablespoon of candied
ginger
The brine I will make is
simple
I will use the water,
brown sugar, salt, and onion soup mix.
If your saying to
yourself comes on Coral keep it simple!
Ok just use broth, salt,
and sugar.
Put the brine on the
stove bring to a boil and stir. Refrigerate overnight then add ice water and put the
turkey in the cooled brine breast side down to make sure you get enough flavor
and moisture in the breast that can be the driest part of the bird. Make sure
you turnover the bird at least once during the brining. It should be left in
the brine for six to eight hours. When you take out the bird from the brine pat
it dry. Now it’s time to put it in the backing dish or pan your using.
Make sure you leave the
legs tied together. Don’t worry if it’s a plastic tie it’s meant for the oven
and it will not melt?
Next problem we all have
had is getting nicely browned and crispy skin on the turkey without over
cooking it.
This is simple. I always
rub in some oil like canola in the skin and tuck the wings under themselves
because they will burn if you don’t.
This is the time to add any flavoring or vegetables to the cavity of the
bird if that is what you’re planning to do.
Now take out some foil
and fit it to the breast of the bird then remove it. The reason you do this is so
you will have the cover for turkey ready when you put it back in the oven after
browning and it keeps you from burning your hands.
To brown the bird and
make the skin crispy set the oven at 500 degrees and put the turkey in the oven
for thirty minutes. When you take it out
after the half hour that is the time to cover the breast with the foil to keep
the breast from burning. Also you will not need to baste the bird because you
took care of that with the brine and oil so relax and let the bird cook. Also
do not go by the little pop up stick they put in the bird please ignore it.
Your turkey could be dry as a bone if you wait for the thing to pop! Don’t
remove the pop up though you don’t want there to be a hole in the turkey for
juices to spill out of.
Later on when you want to
check and see if the turkey is done insert a thermometer into the thickest part
of the breast being careful not to hit the bone because if you do it will give
you a false reading. The ideal temperature of the white meat is 180 degrees and
165 degrees in the dark meat.
Also USDA recommends that for optimum safety, stuffing a turkey is not
recommended. For more even cooking, it is recommended you cook your stuffing
outside the bird in a casserole.
Here is
the time table for roasting the turkey according to USDA
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