Posted on 11/18/2007 5:38:00 AM PST by PJ-Comix
You can cook the stuffing in a roasting pan on the stove. We have a portable roaster for the turkey (plugs in out on the back step) so that we can use the oven for other stuff.
I have no idea how long you should cook your turkeys. My husband is in charge of large dead things. If it were up to me, we’d have vegetables and rolls, and plenty of dessert!
Turkeys are too complex.
I’m glad we switched to baby seal a few years back.
Taste and browning capability because butter has a lower ‘burn’ point than olive oil. Olive oil also imparts it’s own flavor, heavier taste in my opine. I want to taste the turkey not olives...
As with all cooking, we have our own tastes, so please go right ahead and use olive oil if you want. That’s what is so great about cooking, you can do whatever YOU darn well please!
Still trying to figure out the cooking time for two turkeys simultaneously. I was going to get one big turkey but the deal on the smaller turkeys was too good to pass up.
Do not be tempted to deep fry your first try. Watch someone do it right first. Be prepared to eat at Marie Calender’s as a backup :)
Don’t know if this makes me an expert or not, but I’ve been cooking turkey and dressing for 50 years and haven’t killed anyone yet.
If you live “up North” you may prefer a dressing different than us Southerners, but here goes-—(Southerners use cornbread in their dressing—not as “slimey” as Northern dressing where they use mostly bread crumbs and sometimes oysters and other disgusting things—ugh!)
The turkey is the easy part. Bake at 350 degrees in open roasting pan—about 20 minutues per pound. (DON’T cover with foil, lid, or use a roasting bag)
Drop a stick of REAL BUTTER into the pan and use it to baste the turkey every thirty minutes, using a pastry brush. (Forget the olive oil—too anemic) The skin will develope a nice mahagony color as it bakes and the butter will seal in all the juices. Meat thermometer should read 165 degrees when properly done, inserted in the thickest part of the thigh.
The Dressing————————
Bake a 10 inch skillet of cornbred—iron skillet preferred, and then:
Toast an entire large loaf of bread—can use part leftover bisquets, rolls, etc.-—Bread along with cornbread should total about two gallons of rough bread crumbs—torn toast, etc. Use a very large pan or dishpan.
The cornbread
Mix:
1 and 1-2 cups yellow cornmeal
1 and 1-2 cups all purpose flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 forth cup of sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
About 1 cup of buttermilk—can use milk.
Half stick of butter, melted
Batter should be the consistency of thick cake batter
—use the other half stick of butter to grease the skillet.
Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.
The Broth:
Boil a FAT hen or fryer— about 2-5 pounds— in two or three quarts of water enough to barely cover, along with salt and pepper to taste as in making chicken broth, for the broth you’ll need to moisten the dressing and make the giblet gravy. Add the drippings from baking the turkey along with the left over melted butter that has mixed with the drippings, Or can use canned broth and even chicken bullion cubes—one teaspoon for each cup of water
Remove the boiled hem and use for other uses. Take the the chicken broth and use it to cook:
One large onion chopped
One entire bunch of celery, chopped
Boil abut 25 minutes ‘til veggies are clear.
Pour cooked veggies and broth over bread crumbs.
Cool before adding: (unless you like scrambled eggs)
Seven raw eggs
one-forth cup sugar
2 teaspoons of salt
Half teaspoon of pepper
1-2 Teaspoons of garlic powder
2 tablespoons of celery seed
4-6 tablespoons of rubbed sage—can use more or less to taste. Don’t be afraid to taste the raw dressing to get it right. It hasn’t killed me yet-—better to get the dressing just right.
It’s sometimes difficult to judge the amount of broth you’ll need. May need to make up more broth using chicken bullion cubes, but keep adding broth until the dressing is “mushy” about the consistency of loose mashed potatoes—may need to add even more broth—place in shallow roasting pan or casserole—(You may need two pans—I use 2 of those disposable foil pans they make for lasagne)
Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes—dressing should be slightly browned on top—still somewhat soft in the middle.
Never, ever stuff the turkey with the dressing—it won’t cook throughly and you may also find the turkey will still be raw in the middle. People have gotten food poisoning doing this.
The Giblet Gravy-—here I use a short cut...
I use Campbell Cream of Chicken soup thined with half and half chicken broth and milk. Use as many cans as needed. Chop cooked giblets ( heart, gizzard, and liver—go lightly on the liver as it’s pretty strong.) into “gravy” and add chopped boiled eggs. (a couple or three eggs will do.)
The giblet are usually found under the skin at the base of the neck—the turkey neck is usually in the body cavity—hard to get out until the turkey is completely thawed. Giblets can also be bought seperatly in packages in the frozen food section—since in some of the cheaper turkeys they’re missing. Cut the gizzard meat away from the tough grisle as it’s too tough to use. In the “bought” giblets you may find no hearts. Unfortunatly, that’s the best part of the giblets.
write me if you get into trouble. Or I might be persuaded to part with the pumpkin and pecan pie recipe. LOL
I thought the turkeys already come brined?
Okay. You convinced me. Will cook the stuffing separate. Now about about the brining? I thought the turkeys already come brined. Also what about recipes for gravy?
This method is not advisable unless you have a self cleaning oven. Clean the oven before and after.
Use the time suggested on the package for the smallest bird, add about 25% for oven variations, etc. Then, run out and buy a good instant read meat thermometer. Every bird, every recipe, every oven is going to toss in variables. And remember, when you pull it, cover the bird with two sheets of foil, and internal temps will go up about 10 degrees over the next 20-30 minutes.
“I’m glad we switched to baby seal a few years back.”
Roasted Manatee - the “other turkey” - yum!
You can brine the turkey if you like, but I only brine chicken and other small birds. A turkey brined is difficult to deal with unless one has a really big refriderator. Turkeys don’t come brined that I know of.
Giblet gravy recipe is at bottom of last post.
And vice versa, all that raisins and celery and onions and BUTTER just make the turkey taste better. Plus I think the stuffing keeps the breast meat a little slower cooked than the dark meat. That is my biggest challenge - how do you get the dark meat done without over cooking the white meat?
Most turkeys sold in the grocery stores have been injected with a solution of ..... ye ole "water added" trick. Doesn't do a thing for taste, just makes it look better.
To brine a turkey, dissolve about 2 cups of kosher or sea salt in 2 gallons of boiling water. Add any "flavors" that you might want to impart, like honey, pepper, etc. Cover the turkey with the solution, adding more water to completely cover the turkey. Put in your fridge for about 12hrs.
On top of the brine, look into injecting. I love the Cajun Butter flavor, if you can get it.
Gravy is simple.
I always sacrifice the wings for the gravy. Cut them off the turkey and Roast them at 400 for about 60 minutes the night before. (note, nobody eats them on Thanksgiving day, and I always carve the turkey in the kitchen anyway... no room on the table).
Put the roasted wings, any juices, about 4 stalks of celery (diced), 2 onions (diced), and the necks and giblets in about 2 gallons of water. Bring to a rolling boil, then cover and simmer overnight. In the morning, remove the wings and giblets, remove meat from bones, chop fine, and return to the stock (reduced by about half). Use about 4 cups of this for your stuffing liquid.
Before serving, add 1 cup of cream of mushroom soup, bring up to a bubble, and then stir in some wondra flour, or cornstarch in water to thicken.
Here is Alice Waters brine recipe... We found that the meat was too salty if you soaked a 18# bird for more than 8 hours.
http://www.globalgourmet.com/food/special/2000/secrets/brine.html
I'm going to put butter into the cavity and also under the skin. Would I also rub butter over the outside of the turkey to prevent it from drying out? (I used to rub oil over the outside of the turkey then cover with foil)
bump
Since the cooking time is estimated on the thickness (which parallels the weight) of the bird, it makes no difference if you have two birds in the oven. Cook them both as if there were one (if they're the same weight), for a 12.5 pound bird in your case.
“Now where did I put my sausage and wild rice stuffing recipe?” top 50.
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