I was so nervous about cooking my first big turkey this past weekend, but it went well and now I'm ready to pass on what I learned!
Allow adequate thawing time...and then some. In my head, I had imagined this worst case scenario that involved a rock hard, half frozen turkey and having to order out for pizza instead. So I did numerous Google searches for "guidelines for thawing frozen turkey." Most sources put my fifteen pound turkey in the four day range, so I pulled it out of the freezer on Wednesday. It was thawed in time for Sunday, but still had some ice crystals on it, and I had a hard time prying the neck out of the body cavity because the wire binding the legs together was stuck fast. Plus, it was still pretty cold to the touch and my hands were uncomfortable in the washing process. So next time, I'll allow an additional day of thawing time.
Inspect your turkey before you wash it and gather your tools ahead of time.
As I mentioned, I had a hard time getting the wire binding the legs to come out. In the process of trying to pry it out with a pair of kitchen shears, I knocked the pop up timer out, rendering it useless. Not that I was depending on it, but they can be useful. I also had my disposable roasting pan ready, but not my cookie sheet to place underneath it. So have all your stuff close by before you start, and after you unwrap your turkey, take a look at it before you start washing it.
Allow adequate cooking time...and then some. I don't know exactly why I was so nervous, because I have cooked small whole chickens before. I think it probably had something to do with the size of this turkey and the extended cooking time. I usually do a small whole chicken in the crockpot, and it cooks all day with very little involvement from me until it's time to pull it out and make the gravy. This time, I was worried about under estimating the cooking time and then ending up with guests so hungry they were contemplating cannibalism while they waited for the turkey to be ready. As it was, it turned out great. The bird cooked for about 4 hours, then I made the gravy and finished the potatoes and made salads while the bird cooled enough to be carved, and we ate around 4.
If you can, allow enough time for your gravy to cool too. If I had time, I would have loved to let my meat drippings sit in the refrigerator long enough to separate, so I could skim off most of the fat. I skimmed off what I could, but today when we had leftovers, the fat in the gravy had congealed into a layer of yellowish-white fat on the top of the darker part. And seeing that makes me want to die.
Save the carcass for turkey stock. My father-in-law was among the guests yesterday and he's a veteran turkey carver, so he carved all the meat off and I saved the remaining bones and bits of meat. This morning, those bones and meat bits went into my crockpot for stock. I added four cups of water, half an onion coarsely chopped, 4 carrots, coarsely chopped, a sprinkle of celery salt (I rarely have actual celery in the house), and a handful each of fresh parsley and dill, then covered it and cooked it for 8 hours. When the crockpot was cool enough to handle, I strained the stock into a glass bowl, skimmed off some fat, and refrigerated it. I've pulled it out a couple of times to skim more fat. Tomorrow morning, I'll skim the fat one last time, then freeze the stock for a future use.
With 8 adults and 2 kids, we don't have a lot left over, but if you need ideas for ways to use up turkey or chicken, be sure to check out Mommy, What's For Dinner?
I did it. I cooked my first big turkey and it turned out great. I am now officially a grown up.
Allow adequate thawing time...and then some. In my head, I had imagined this worst case scenario that involved a rock hard, half frozen turkey and having to order out for pizza instead. So I did numerous Google searches for "guidelines for thawing frozen turkey." Most sources put my fifteen pound turkey in the four day range, so I pulled it out of the freezer on Wednesday. It was thawed in time for Sunday, but still had some ice crystals on it, and I had a hard time prying the neck out of the body cavity because the wire binding the legs together was stuck fast. Plus, it was still pretty cold to the touch and my hands were uncomfortable in the washing process. So next time, I'll allow an additional day of thawing time.
Inspect your turkey before you wash it and gather your tools ahead of time.
As I mentioned, I had a hard time getting the wire binding the legs to come out. In the process of trying to pry it out with a pair of kitchen shears, I knocked the pop up timer out, rendering it useless. Not that I was depending on it, but they can be useful. I also had my disposable roasting pan ready, but not my cookie sheet to place underneath it. So have all your stuff close by before you start, and after you unwrap your turkey, take a look at it before you start washing it.
Allow adequate cooking time...and then some. I don't know exactly why I was so nervous, because I have cooked small whole chickens before. I think it probably had something to do with the size of this turkey and the extended cooking time. I usually do a small whole chicken in the crockpot, and it cooks all day with very little involvement from me until it's time to pull it out and make the gravy. This time, I was worried about under estimating the cooking time and then ending up with guests so hungry they were contemplating cannibalism while they waited for the turkey to be ready. As it was, it turned out great. The bird cooked for about 4 hours, then I made the gravy and finished the potatoes and made salads while the bird cooled enough to be carved, and we ate around 4.
If you can, allow enough time for your gravy to cool too. If I had time, I would have loved to let my meat drippings sit in the refrigerator long enough to separate, so I could skim off most of the fat. I skimmed off what I could, but today when we had leftovers, the fat in the gravy had congealed into a layer of yellowish-white fat on the top of the darker part. And seeing that makes me want to die.
Save the carcass for turkey stock. My father-in-law was among the guests yesterday and he's a veteran turkey carver, so he carved all the meat off and I saved the remaining bones and bits of meat. This morning, those bones and meat bits went into my crockpot for stock. I added four cups of water, half an onion coarsely chopped, 4 carrots, coarsely chopped, a sprinkle of celery salt (I rarely have actual celery in the house), and a handful each of fresh parsley and dill, then covered it and cooked it for 8 hours. When the crockpot was cool enough to handle, I strained the stock into a glass bowl, skimmed off some fat, and refrigerated it. I've pulled it out a couple of times to skim more fat. Tomorrow morning, I'll skim the fat one last time, then freeze the stock for a future use.
With 8 adults and 2 kids, we don't have a lot left over, but if you need ideas for ways to use up turkey or chicken, be sure to check out Mommy, What's For Dinner?
I did it. I cooked my first big turkey and it turned out great. I am now officially a grown up.
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6 comments:
I agree that preparing and serving a toast turkey gives a certain sense of grown up satisfaction. Another idea for separating your drippings is a fat separating measuring cup. It's an extra piece of equipment but I bought one at Thanksgiving and it worked really well. You can use it as a regular measuring cup too in a pinch.
All these are good suggestions, and this is making me think ahead about a month.
As for me: I hate to sound like I'm shilling for the Food Network ('cuz I'm not), but for the last few years I have made Emeril Lagasse's Southwest Turkey - his so-called "Funky Turkey". Since it's for a turkey breast, I just double all the ingredients for a whole turkey. It's a big brine and I have to put it in a crab pot to marinate overnight, but it's worth it. I overcooked it last year so it was a little dry, but for the four or five years preceding that, it's given me the juiciest turkey I've ever eaten.
Good job! You did it! :)
I haven't done it yet. I've always been the one visiting the in-laws or other family. I think I'll be a little nervous, too, the first time! :)
I am so glad your posted this. Since other relatives always host Thanksgiving and we have a LARGE family, there is hardly ever leftovers. So, I decided that since I had enough turkey points at the local grocery store to get a free turkey, that I was going to cook our own turkey after thanksgiving for our family to enjoy. This will be my first one and so I am saving your post to read again in a few weeks.
This is a great post with great advice! Thank you! I am terrified of cooking turkeys. I'm going to give it a whirl this year - because I want to have a nice Thanksgiving dinner at home instead of rushing and running from one relative's house to another.
i cooked my very first turkey last year. my hubby (who does not cook at all and who i will not let help me in the kitchen) picked the absolute largest turkey he could find. it wasn't as scary as i thought (actually very simple) but with all the sides that i prepared (plus appetizers), i was exhausted by days end. all that work and dinner was over in less than an hour!
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