Dang it, I left out an important instruction in the turkey roasting piece. After 20 minutes, breast side down, reduce the temperature to 325 and leave it there until the turkey is done.
D’oh. I hate when that happens. Anyway, here is the corrected process, which I’ll run again in tomorrow’s newsletter. Now excuse me while I go beat myself up… Bob
* Preheat the oven to 425, then cook for 20 minutes.
* Remove the pan from the oven, turn the turkey breast-side down, and cook for another 20 minutes at 425.
* Lower the temperature to 325 and guesstimate how long it will take to get within about a half hour of being completely cooked (the rule of thumb is that it cooks at about 15 minutes per pound). Leaving nothing to chance, check occasionally with a meat thermometer inserted into the thigh above the joint (165 is your safe target temp).
* Put on oven gloves or use hot pads, remove the pan from the oven, and turn again (use turkey forks if you have them). Be careful of hot juices when you’re doing the turn!!
* Continue to cook at 325. Watch carefully for browning, and remove when the turkey reaches the safe temperature of 165 on the thermometer.
* Finally, and this is really important, let the turkey rest for 20 to 40 minutes, which lets the juices redistribute. If you cut into a turkey blazing hot from the oven, those juices you’ve been patiently curating will run out and the meat will be hard (and hot) to cut.
That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. I’d love to make this a conversation, so use the comments to share your turkey roasting hits and misses.
Correction on Turkey Instructions
Correction on Turkey Instructions
Correction on Turkey Instructions
Dang it, I left out an important instruction in the turkey roasting piece. After 20 minutes, breast side down, reduce the temperature to 325 and leave it there until the turkey is done.
D’oh. I hate when that happens. Anyway, here is the corrected process, which I’ll run again in tomorrow’s newsletter. Now excuse me while I go beat myself up… Bob
* Preheat the oven to 425, then cook for 20 minutes.
* Remove the pan from the oven, turn the turkey breast-side down, and cook for another 20 minutes at 425.
* Lower the temperature to 325 and guesstimate how long it will take to get within about a half hour of being completely cooked (the rule of thumb is that it cooks at about 15 minutes per pound). Leaving nothing to chance, check occasionally with a meat thermometer inserted into the thigh above the joint (165 is your safe target temp).
* Put on oven gloves or use hot pads, remove the pan from the oven, and turn again (use turkey forks if you have them). Be careful of hot juices when you’re doing the turn!!
* Continue to cook at 325. Watch carefully for browning, and remove when the turkey reaches the safe temperature of 165 on the thermometer.
* Finally, and this is really important, let the turkey rest for 20 to 40 minutes, which lets the juices redistribute. If you cut into a turkey blazing hot from the oven, those juices you’ve been patiently curating will run out and the meat will be hard (and hot) to cut.
That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. I’d love to make this a conversation, so use the comments to share your turkey roasting hits and misses.