Turkey: Tips for cooking the perfect Turkey

Ah the good old Turkey. These days we tend to eat this bird, killed and then cooked, at Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving in the USA, Bank Holidays in the UK and many other sundry celebratory meals.

However, if you get the preparation and cooking of the bird wrong your special meal could be spoiled and, in a worse case scenario, the diners could end up with food poisoning.

It is therefore essential that you defrost a frozen turkey thoroughly before cooking, follow good hygienic kitchen procedures and that you ensure that the turkey is properly cooked.

Having cooked far too many Christmas meals over the years here is how I cook the Christmas Turkey. Of course everyone will have their own little quirky and personal methods. This hub though was created to answer how long a turkey needs to cook in the oven and i have added a few extras for novice turkey cookers.

1. Decide whether or not you want to buy a fresh or frozen turkey. The price will vary and usually frozen turkeys are cheaper. Remember to think about how many people are going to be joining you for Easter or Christmas lunch, before you decide on the size of your bird. Personally, I do not like to eat Turkey once Christmas Day or Easter Sunday has passed. If, however, you are happy to eat turkey sandwiches and the like until they come out of your ears, go for it. Remember though to take into account the size of your oven!
2. If you are buying a fresh bird aim to buy as late as possible. Once you have the bird home, hopefully not before Christmas Eve or Good Friday, store it in a cool place. A garage or outhouse could be perfect. Remember to cover the bird though and protect from damage or vermin.
3. If you are opting for a frozen turkey you will be able to buy when it suits you. This can mean that you are able to take advantage of any special offers. Most of these types of turkey have cooking times and guides on the inside of the packaging.
4. Thawing a turkey can take some time.It is imperative though that your turkey is fully thawed. Never place the turkey in hot or warm water to speed the thawing process up. If you want to, you can place your turkey in a bowl of cold water, which will help the thawing process.
5. Be scrupulously clean in your kitchen. Make sure that you do not cross contaminate by handling a raw turkey and then other food. Do not use utensils on the raw turkey and then elsewhere. Most of this is common sense but, if you are in doubt, check out the guidelines for handling raw meat.
6. When your turkey is thoroughly thawed remove the giblets form inside the bird. These are usually in a plastic bag. Some store bought turkeys, these days, already have the giblets removed. If you are going to use the giblets place them in a small dish in your fridge or discard if you are not going to use them.
7. The giblets can be used to make a stock for the gravy or cooked and selected parts given to a pet dog. The choice is yours.
8. I always pat my thawed turkey dry a little with a good, strong sheet or two of kitchen paper.Make sure that you dry the inside as well as the outer skin of the turkey.
9. These days we are not advised to fill the turkey with stuffing. However, you can fill the bird's rear end with stuffing or a whole large, peeled onion. Where you place the stuffing in the bird will affect the cooking time.
10. I usually use an onion in the bird's rear and cook the stuffing separately.
11. It is possible to cook a turkey in a very large microwave oven but I prefer my traditional oven.
12. Heat the oven for a few minutes. Whilst the oven is warming up you can finish the final preparations of your turkey.

OK then. How are you doing? Take a deep breath, have a glass of wine and we shall press on.

1. Decide if you want to cook your Turkey with the breast side up or the breast side facing down. The second option reduces the cooking time and will usually help the bird stay moist.
2. Try cooking the turkey upside down for the first hour of cooking time and then turning it over to the usual cooking position if you want the breast meat skin nice and brown.
3. I like to loosely cover my Turkey with foil.
4. Before I do this though I rub some butter into the turkey skin, if it is not a butterball turkey which already has this done. I then sprinkle with a tiny amount of salt.
5. Layer rashers of bacon over your turkey if preferred.
6. Leave the bird's chest cavity empty but place stuffing or an onion in the other cavity.
7. The cooking time is worked out depending on the size of the bird and the temperature of your oven. Remember that the temperature is hottest near the top of your oven. If your turkey is large and will be cooked near the bottom of the oven it will be in the coolest part.
8. Use a cooking thermometer to check that the turkey is fully cooked if desired. The temperature of the inside of the bird will need to be at least 185 degrees F.
9. I like to skewer the thigh and leg of the turkey to check whether or not the juices are running clear.
10. It is important that your turkey is not undercooked.
11. Open the foil for the final 1/2 hour, or so, of cooking time in order to brown the turkey breast skin. Now may be a good time to add the potatoes for roasting.
12. Once the bird is fully cooked leave it to rest for at least 20 minutes. This will ensure the meat is nice and juicy and will make it easier to carve. Cover the bird loosely for hygiene purposes

If you use an oven bag, to cook your turkey in, the cooking time will be reduced. See the attached tables for the timings.