Posted on 11/22/2017 9:32:25 AM PST by mairdie
Just a guide. No matter what method you choose, if you keep an eye on it and check it with an instant read digital thermometer your odds of success are higher.
Oven temps, time cooked, etc. are not what you should use to determine correct doneness. The interior temperature of the meat is the only sure measure. BTW, when that little red popup pops up, the turkey is over cooked.
Since I bought some good thermometers (not the crap you buy at market) I have had wonderful success cooking meat.
The backwards Adele Davis. Amazing. Never thought of that but it makes total sense. I saw her talk once. So disappointed. Absolutely unpleasant lady.
Yes, I do 135 but the others in my family seem to prefer higher so I was trying, poorly, to do a range.
For holidays, it used to always be a party of friends that came from around the country and cooked together. But the years moved on, friends are gone, and we’re going to a restaurant for Thanksgiving. But I do love the memories.
You made my day!
I hear fried turkey is great, but I shy away from mixing gallons of boiling oil, propane fire, and alcohol.
I shoot for 145 -- medium rare. Rare does not allow the connective tissues to dissolve and so is not as tender or flavorful.
Everyone around here likes well done. It's HARD cooking steaks well done without ruining them. I've had my best luck using rib eyes. Their high fat content keeps them juicy at higher temps.
My niece cooks all beef well done. Hard to chew and sort of sad. Great idea about the rib eyes. Never thought of that.
A word of caution: use the indirect method for rib eyes. If you grill them directly over the heat source the fat drips, causing flareups which can deposit soot on the meat.
Those people had to really try hard to make such a mess.
Convince her to braise the beef -- crock pot, dutch oven, etc. Even the toughest (cheaper) cuts come out tender, and the tougher cuts have more flavor than the expensive cuts!
My MIL made pot roast in a pressure cooker which was amazing.
I will NEVER oven roast a turkey again. Deep fried all the way baby! Last Christmas present I got from my mom before she passed was a turkey fry set up.
Save the neck for me, Clark.
I like fried turkey, but I wouldn’t dare try to make one. My nephew has. This year, though, he’s doing one like crawfish- in crab boil! Can’t wait to see how it turns out.
You're braver than I.
When I find the time I intend to try roasting a (spatchcocked) turkey in a smoker. The gravy from the drippings is said to be unmatched.
My neighbor did one in a trash can, over a firepit. Built a fairly large contraption to lower it in from a distance away.
You gotta put an element of danger into the holidays. Christmas has Christmas tree fires, but until the advent (pun intended) of turkey fryers, Thanksgiving was a boring, safe holiday. Unless your in-laws are psychos, of course.
So one day I asked her, why do you all cut a little off the end of the ham before placing it in the pan. Her reply -- Because mom always did. So I asked her mother-- why did you always cut the end off the ham before placing in the pan.
Her reply -- Because the pan was always too small.
MARVELOUS!
My own family doesn’t understand why I throw out any food that seems under-cooked or suspicious.
They don’t appreciate the impact of contracting food poisoning from multiple holiday meals with my parents and grandparents.
It was something I saw on an episode of ‘Cooking Secrets of The CIA’. Culinary Institute of America. You can also put herbs and other seasonings in the cavity, if you don’t plan on stuffing the bird. This allows the seasoning to flavor the breast meat without leaving a mess on the skin. And, legs to the back of the oven and breast to front. Hotter in back of oven, allowing bird to cook evenly. (Thank you, Alton Brown.)
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