Contributed by Julie Cascio
(UAF Cooperative Extension Service, Mat Su District)
With Thanksgiving coming soon, our thoughts often turn to turkey. It may bring memories of family and friends gathering together, the meal to celebrate the occasion, or its abundance with leftovers to share and enjoy.
When buying a turkey, allow 1 pound per person for the main meal.
Fresh Turkeys: buy one to two days before you plan to cook it. Keep it stored in the refrigerator on a tray or pan to catch any juices that may leak. Do not buy fresh pre-stuffed turkeys. In not handled correctly, harmful bacterial in the stuffing can multiply very fast.
Frozen turkeys can be kept in the freezer indefinitely; it is recommended to cook within one year for best quality. If you purchase pre-stuffed frozen turkeys with USDA or state marking of inspection on the package, cook from the frozen state. Follow the package directions for proper handling and cooking.
Thaw turkey - in the refrigerator, in cold water, or in the microwave oven.
Thaw in the refrigerator; keep the turkey in its original wrapper. Place it on a tray or in a pan to catch any juices that may leak. A thawed turkey can remain in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 days. If necessary, a turkey that has been properly thawed in the refrigerator may be refrozen.
Thaw in cold water; wrap your turkey securely, making sure the water is not able to leak through the wrapping. Submerge your wrapped turkey in cold tap water. Change the water every 30 minutes. Cook the turkey immediately after it is thawed. Do not refreeze.
Thaw in the Microwave Oven. Check your owner's manual for the size turkey that will fit in your microwave oven, the minutes per pound, and power level to use for thawing. Remove all outside wrapping. Place on a microwave-safe dish to catch any juices that may leak. Cook your turkey immediately. Do not refreeze or refrigerate your turkey after thawing in the microwave oven.
Roast Turkey
Set your oven temperature no lower than 325 °F. Place your turkey or turkey breast on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. When your food thermometer registers 165˚F in the innermost part of the thigh, the innermost part of the wing and the thickest part of the breast, the turkey is ready. Let it stand for 15-20 minutes so the juices can settle, then it’s ready to carve.
If you choose to stuff your turkey, the ingredients can be prepared ahead of time; however, keep wet and dry ingredients separate. Chill all of the wet ingredients (butter/margarine, cooked celery and onions, broth, etc.). Mix wet and dry ingredients just before filling the turkey cavities. Fill the cavities loosely. Cook the turkey immediately. Use a food thermometer to make sure the center of the stuffing reaches 165 °F
For more even cooking, it is recommended to cook stuffing outside the bird in a casserole. Use a food thermometer to check the internal temperature of the stuffing. The center should reach 165 °F.
When dinner is over, carve the rest of the turkey from the bone and refrigerate it immediately. For safety, make sure the turkey is refrigerated within 2 hours of coming out of the oven. To make using those leftovers easy, divide the turkey up into meal-sized portions. Use leftovers within 4 days or freeze them. If there is gravy left over, you can freeze that too. Although this future dinner will be safe indefinitely, it will taste best if you eat it within 4 months.
If you have questions about roasting your turkey, call the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854), or chat live with a food safety specialist at AskKaren.gov
Other options for cooking the turkey include grilling or smoking, “spatchcooking” in which the backbone is removed, flattened then cooked, or fry the thawed turkey in a huge vat of oil. Check out https://www.fsis.usda.gov/ for more information.