Countdown to Thanksgiving

Day 9: Let’s talk turkey. For starters, Butterball turkey has a great site to help you get through cooking your first turkey or refresh your memory if you only do it once or twice a year. Use their tools to help you:

• Plan perfect portions. This tool allows you to indicate the number of adults, the number of children, whether you’re big eaters or light eaters and whether you want leftovers or not, then it tells you how many pounds of turkey you need and how many cups of stuffing. For 11 adults and 2 children (my teenagers are counted as adults, they eat more than I do, and we want leftovers), we need 24 lbs of turkey and 18 cups of stuffing. Bear in mind that the larger the turkey, the more bone you’ll get too, so you might want two 12-lb turkeys if you have the room in your oven.
  
  
• Figure out how long to thaw. This tool has the refrigerator option, or what I call the Last-Minute (or Oops!-I-Forgot-To-Put-The-Turkey-In-The-Refrigerator) option. The refrigerator option is definitely the set it and forget it method, the way to go for a stress-free holiday. But, we all forget sometimes, and it’s nice to have the specifics for the cold-water option too. My 24-lb turkey will take 6 days to thaw in the refrigerator, so I put it there yesterday because I want to brine it before I cook it on Thursday. (More on brining later.) Your thawed turkey can stay in the refrigerator for 4 days before you cook it.
  
  
• Figure out how long to cook. This tool gives you the amount of time it will take to cook your turkey if you roast it in an open pan in a 325° oven; it gives you the option of stuffed or unstuffed. My 24-lb turkey will take 5-5½ hours stuffed, 4-4½ hours unstuffed. That said, there are as many ways to roast a turkey as there are side dishes on my parents’ Thanksgiving dinner table (and, in case you’re wondering, that’s alot): Not just stuffed or unstuffed, brined or unbrined, breast-side-up, breast-side-down, start in a hot oven and reduce heat, start in a low oven and increase heat, cook steadily in a moderate oven, tent with foil at beginning, tent with foil at end, don’t tent with foil at all, cook in a covered roaster, rub with butter, rub with olive oil, don’t rub at all, put liquid in roaster, ... I prefer to start my turkey in a very hot (425°) oven for the first half hour, then lower it to 325° for the remaining time.

Brining a turkey is soaking it in a salt-sugar-water solution before roasting. The advantage it gives to the bird is that it moistens and flavors it on the inside, not just the outside. Cooks’ Illustrated magazine has a great “Basics of Brining” article online. When it comes to turkey, especially The Thanksgiving Turkey, I think simpler is better, so I use their basic brine, with minor modifications.

To brine my 24-lb turkey, I will use 2 gallons of brine, and allow it to brine for 8 hours. To make 2 gallons of brine, combine 2 gallons cold water, 4 cups kosher salt, and 4 cups brown sugar and stir to dissolve salt and sugar. You can add herbs and spices, peppercorns, rosemary or thyme sprigs, bay leaves, if you like, but I’m going the Taste The Turkey route this year.

If you’re brining a smaller bird, you can reduce the amount of brine accordingly, they guideline is to use 1 quart of brine for one pound of meat, but not to exceed 2 gallons of brine. Now clearly, I will not be able to find a container that will both contain the bird in the brine and fit in my fridge, so I will use a cooler, kept cool with ice packs while I’m brining.

Once brined, you’ll want to dry the turkey so that the skin will be crisp, not soggy, when roasted. If time allows, it’s best to air-dry the turkey, uncovered, on a rack on a baking sheet, in the refrigerator overnight.

If you stuff the turkey, you’ll want to stuff cold or room temperature stuffing into a cold or room temperature bird just before roasting, and once roasted, remove the stuffing immediately.

It’s a good idea to let the turkey come to room temperature before roasting it. You can let it sit on the counter for 2 hours to do this safely. When you’re ready to put the turkey in the roaster, tuck the wing tips under the body of the bird, and place turkey breast-side-up in a roasting pan. Season inside of bird with salt and pepper. If you’re going to stuff the turkey, do it now.

Cross the legs over one another and tie them with butcher’s string. Rub the turkey with butter and season salt and pepper. Place the turkey in a heavy roasting pan with sides at least two inches high. You can use a roasting rack to keep the turkey from sticking to the pan.

As I said earlier, I like to start at high heat, and reduce to low heat, to do so preheat your oven to 425° and roast the turkey for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, reduce the oven to 325°. Roast for another 4-5 hours. After 4 hours start checking the temperature of the thickest part of the thigh with an instant-read thermometer (avoid the bone). When the temperature of the thigh has reached 165°, it is safe to take the turkey out of the oven.

Let the turkey rest 30 minutes before carving. I move the turkey to foil on the counter or to a cutting board so I can make my gravy directly in the roasting pan while the turkey’s resting. This is also a great time to get all your side dishes into the oven to get them warm.

Martha Stewart’s web site has great articles on how to roast and how to carve a turkey. The USDA has good food — specifically, turkey — safety guidelines.