Posted on 11/25/2024 3:22:03 AM PST by where's_the_Outrage?
It's nothing fancy like brining or basting. It's just simply smart.
Do a quick search for roast turkey recipes, and you’ll come across countless tips and tricks for keeping your bird moist. Injecting, brining, dry brining, spatchcocking, basting—my head spins just thinking about it.
Every year I carefully consider all of these tricks, contemplating if I want to cut the backbone out of the turkey and hear the sickening crack of bones (I do not), or if I even have room for a giant turkey and its brine in my already cramped fridge. When I can’t muster the energy to prep way ahead or go the extra mile, there’s one trick that works every time no matter what. And it couldn’t be simpler.
Turn That Turkey Upside Down
You heard me! Instead of roasting the turkey breast side up, flip it over and roast it breast side down. I learned this trick from our founder Elise Bauer who uses it in her mom’s roast turkey recipe.
Prep the turkey as you normally would, thawing it completely before beginning. Bring it to room temperature and pat dry with paper towels before smothering with softened butter or olive oil. Either brine the turkey beforehand or salt the inside and outside of the bird generously, then stuff the cavity with aromatics, like lemon halves, wedges of onion, and herbs.
Tie the legs together with kitchen twine and secure the neck closed with twine or a skewer. Arrange the turkey on the roasting rack, breast side down. Roast at 400°F for 20 minutes to brown the skin, then turn the temperature down to 325°F and roast until done.
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
I also use a brine when I don't get Butterball Turkey.
(Turn That Turkey Upside Down)
First did this in 1992 just after starting a new job a couple of months before.
Put it in the oven bag, then upside-down (don’t remember which brand) and all that in a roaster just to catch the juices when I opened the bag.
Worked great 👍👍👍.
(Reynolds Turkey Bag)
That’s probably what I used
Nonsense. Turkey is naturally dry. Decide if you are making gourmet gravy or juicy turkey on the platter. Then use the drippings and bits adding butter and broth for one or the other.
Done that way in my family for over 40 years. Browning bag keeps the juices from evaporating. Moist breast meat every time.
I see so much fatty meat on the underside of a rotisserie chicken. That turkeys must be the same. So roast the turkey upside down, and the turkey will be basted by the fat dripping down.
Maybe tilt the turkey so this basting fat hits the turkey breast area more. Because the breast area is the one that comes out dry
This is the first year out of 43 years together that we are celebrating Thanksgiving by ourselves. We bought 1 turkey breast and 1 pork tenderloin. Stuffing will be on the side. I think the tenderloin will be done before the breast, so I gotta keep an eye on the temperatures for both. Should be interesting.
I’ve not cooked one upside down, but it makes sense, as it seems it would self-baste with the fatty meat being above the breasts. Plus the heat naturally rising in the oven would be a few degrees less at the lower elevation of the breasts and the roasting pan would insulate the breasts resulting in a bit more evenly cooked turkey. That’s assuming it’s not in a convection oven where the fan would negate some of that.
I like my turkey the old timey way, dry as a bone with rivers of gravy.
My mom died a little before Thanksgiving in ‘08 thereby forcing me to learn to cook. Went online to see how to do a turkey, and one of the first things I found was to do it pretty much as stated above. One of two things happen. Either the turkey falls apart under gravity into the buttery, marinade-y juices and all the chunks of the meat just basically stew like that and it’s DELICIOUS when this happens.
The other result is like how a turkey is supposed to look when my mom did it, like you’d expect a turkey to look. Still super delicious but less so than the other result, in my opinion. Another thing is the skin is a little bit darker on the sides than the top of the breast, not much, but noticeable. Not sure why.
Either way, my turkeys, while not uniform from one to another, are still so good I never wanted to try another way
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it
Unless you brine and deep fry it.
P.S. if you deep fry the turkey, you can make gravy by roasting off some turkey wings (smoked is even better)
Just get a Butterball and don’t overcook it. Works every time.
Three words for the best juiciest turkey ever. Trash Can Turkey
Thing is, the skin on the breast doesn’t brown when you turn it over.
I did this by accident, in our first year of marriage.
It turned out, perfectly!!
A Reynolds turkey bag? Does that mean you’re cooking your meal in cheap aluminum?
Use more butter.
Yea, I think you are right about that one method which I want to try but can’t do for my 35 guests. And after T Day I never seem to get back to it. I use my turkey fryer for a 5 gallon tub of boiled cottage hams and green beans. The cottage hams are artisan from my local butcher and are better and more consumed than the turkey. If I could do two 24 pound turkeys fried I would. I think it is the best T Day innovation since 1649 AD.
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