Never cooked a Thanksgiving turkey before. Anyone have a really, really good recipe that will wow my guests?

Answer 1

I prefer to deepfry a turkey but I have used this recipe and it always gets great comments.

Maple Marinated Roast Turkey recipe

1 (10 pound) turkey
2 medium onions, chunked
3 celery ribs, chunked

Marinade
1 cup fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup vegetable oil
12 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
4 fresh thyme sprigs
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon black pepper

Maple Butter
2 sticks butter
6 tablespoons maple syrup
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon black pepper
2 teaspoons coarse salt

Maple Glaze
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

To marinate: Combine the marinade ingredients in a sturdy, 2-gallon zipper-lock bag. Add the turkey to the bag and seal. Set the turkey in the bag, breast side down in a large bowl and place in the refrigerator overnight.

To make maple butter: Place all ingredients in food processor and process until smooth.

To make glaze: Combine glaze ingredients in small bowl and whisk to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste.

To cook turkey: Position rack on the lowest position in oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Remove the turkey from the marinade and pat dry. Loosen the skin over the breast, wings, and upper thighs by gently sliding fingers underneath the skin. Rub half the maple butter beneath the skin distributing it evenly.

Rub the remaining maple butter over the outside of the turkey. Stuff the cavity with the onions and celery. Tie the legs together loosely and place the turkey breast side up on the rack. Roast the bird about 3 hours or until a thermometer reads 180 degrees F. Baste with maple glaze every 20 minutes. Tent with foil if browned before done.

Answer 2

Grilled Whole Turkey

A whole 15 to 20 pound turkey may be prepared on either a gas grill or a Weber charcoal grill.

Instead of using a roasting pan, it is easier to use a homemade pan from extra heavy duty foil - using three layers of foil and making it just big enough to hold the bird; the sides need to be about 2 1/2" high.


Clean turkey well, removing any bits of pin feathers and cleaning the cavity of any remaining pieces of innards.

Soften a 1/2 cup of butter to room temperature and rub the cavity with half of the butter.

Stuff with your favorite stuffing. With the remaining butter, stuff a little between the skin and the breast meat and rub some over the skin of the turkey. Stuff a little bit of the stuffing between the skin and the breast also. Skewer the cavity opening shut. Also place a little stuffing in the neck cavity, tuck the neck skin under and skewer shut. Salt and pepper the turkey and place about three pieces of bacon on top of the bird.

Place the turkey crosswise on the gas grill so that the pan is evenly distributed over the two sets of jets. Set the flame so that a temperature of 300 to 325 degrees is maintained (usually the lowest setting}. Cover with heavy duty foil for the majority of the cooking.

Estimated cooking time is approximately 20 minutes per pound at 300 degrees. Remove the foil for the last hour of cooking. Every once in while, baste the turkey with the juices (or with the basting juice recipe to follow). If you have "hot spots" in the jets of the grill, twice during the cooking turn the turkey around (and the pan, of course) so that one side is not more cooked than another.

Toward the end of the cooking time, open the grill and insert the meat thermometer into the fleshy part of the thigh and cook until the internal temperature reaches 170 to 175 degrees (remember that the turkey will continue to cook after it is removed from the heat of the fire).


Basting Juice:

1/2 cup butter
1 medium onion, chopped
Neck and gizzard
2 teaspoons chopped dried rosemary
3 cups chicken stock or water
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup sweet Marsala wine or port wine
1/2 cup vermouth
Juice from two lemons

In a heavy pot over medium-high heat, melt butter; saute onion until just translucent. Add the neck and gizzard; continue cooking for approximately 4 minutes. Add the rosemary and chicken stock or water; simmer until reduced by halve. Remove from heat and strain well.

Use the gizzard and neck in the stuffing or the gravy. For the basting juice, mix together the strained stock mixture, marsala or port wine, vermouth, and the juice of the lemons.

Answer 3

First question would be, how many guests? You need to plan on about 6-ounces of turkey per guest to calculate how big of a bird to buy. When you buy it ... the turkey will probably be frozen, so you will need to allow it to defrost in your fridge for about 3 or 4 days prior to cooking it. Read the label directions -- it will tell you how long to cook the bird and at what temperature. Set your oven to preheat while you are preparing the bird. Remove the turkey from the wrapper, and pull everything out of the body cavity -- little packets of giblets, gravy mix, ect. Rinse the entire bird, inside and out, with cool water. Pat the bird dry and place it in a roasting pan. Undo the plastic clip holding the legs together. Fill the palm of your hand with table salt, and smear the table salt all over the INSIDE of the bird. Take 1 or 2 sticks of real butter, and slice into 4 sections the long way -- backward of how you would cut off a pat for your bread or dinner roll. Gently lift the skin of the bird away from the meat at the tail-end of the bird. Slide the long pats of butter in between the skin and the meat. Tuck the skin back into place, and secure the legs. Fold the wing-tips underneath the bird and/or cover the wings with aluminum foil to prevent them from burning during cooking. If you want to use the giblets to make gravy, place them in the roasting pan next to the turkey. When the turkey is done cooking, you can chop up the giblets and stir them into your gravy. Place the roasting pan into the oven. Put 1 - 2 cups of water in the roasting pan. Close the oven door and walk away. When the proper amount of time has passed, check the bird -- most turkeys come with a "pop-up timer". If the turkey is done cooking, the skin will be golden brown and the "pop-up timer" will have popped-up (it will look a little like a syring waiting to be used when it's popped-up). Carefully remove the pan from the oven and allow it to sit for 10 minutes before you do anything to the bird. Remove the bird from the roasting pan, and place onto a platter. Let the bird continue to "rest" for another 5 - 10 minutes before carving. Carve, serve, and enjoy! :)

Answer 4

Carefully, using your hands, work an open pocket under the skin of the turkey breast. In a bowl, combine 1 tsp each garlic powder, seasoning salt, onion powder, salt and pepper and vegetable oil into a paste. Rub onto the breast meat under the skin. Place 4 celery ribs, cut into 1 inch pieces, 2 carrots, cut in large pieces, 1/2 an onion a washed lemon pierced with the tines of a fork in the cavity of the bird. Cover turkey loosely with a tent of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Roast the turkey until temperature in the thickest part of the thigh reaches 180°F. Remove the foil tent after 1 to 1 1/2 hours of cooking time and rub mayonnaise (kraft, hellman's, dukes) or vegetable oil lightly over entire bird for a great crispy skin. Preheat oven to 325 degrees and bake according to chart below. Allow Turkey to set for 20-30 minutes before carving to allow juices to re-distribute.

8 to 12 pounds 2 3/4 to 3 hours
12 to 14 pounds 3 to 3 3/4 hours
14 to 18 pounds 3 3/4 to 4 1/4 hours
18 to 20 pounds 4 1/4 to 4 1/2 hours
20 to 24 pounds 4 1/2 to 5 hours

Answer 5

I once cooked one in My Weber Barbecue. It was great. I cooked it breast down. to sear it for a half hour. Then I turned it on it's back and covered it with some foil. The coals have to be to the side. Then cover it and fill the coals every so often. If you use a meat thermometer let it cook to 145 degrees then take it out. Usually about three hours or less. Don't over cook it. Remember after you take it out it will continue to cook for a bout a half hour. It cooks internaly. So overcooking will make it dry. By starting out upside down and searing it first it will bring all the juice into the white meat making it juicy and moist. You can stuff it with whatever but don't use lighter fluid on the coals. Use Mesquite to cook with and start the fire with one of those news paper starters.

Answer 6

It kind of depends on where you are from and what you like in a bird. Last year on Food Network, they had a week of food gurus giving their versions of the world's finest turkeys. Although I am a traditional southern girl, I strayed from my roots and tried something new that Emeril showed. Watch cooking shows or check their website about a week or two before, but BUY A FRESH TURKEY. It makes all the difference in the world.

Answer 7

Hi! The best way to cook a turkey is to cook it for about 15-30 minutes per pound. Varies to your oven. I have the famed turkey that everyone looks forward to every year!

These are my steps to making a turkey.....

Clean turkey inside and out....
I usually stuff it with Stove Top but you can add any stuffing recipe inside.

Then after stuffing I lay it in a roasting pan that has a lid to cover. I place about 1/4 inch of water in the bottom (this will help with basting and to make much more gravy) then I put in about (3) 1 tablespoons of butter or margarine on each side of the turkey with the water. just scatter the tablespoon pats of butter or marg....

Then I completely cover the turkey with a layer of butter or margarine like you are lotioning the turkey but it's not rubbed in just over the skin.... ( this is great to make it brown real nice ) Then over the butter I sprinkle Italian Seasoning that comes mixed in a season shaker already and with or without poultry/roasted chicken seasoning from a shaker..... I add the roasted chicken/poultry seasoning if I have some, if not, it's still great with just with the Italian seasoning.....these seasonings can be bought at your grocery store in the spice aisle.

Just coat, you don't have to overdo the seasonings on the turkey, just enough so you can see that it's shaked on.... also add a sprinkle of salt and pepper...

The seasons make a great taste and topping and flavor to your turkey.....

The turkey will do the rest of it's seasoning itself

Tie the legs together with twine or rope (usually the turkey comes with ties and a time popper... Butterball Brand does...) Cover and cook in oven, when everything begins to boil and you see the juices flowing out of the turkey to the bottom you want to baste it every half hour or 15 minutes after liquids start to boil in pan..... Cooking time depends on the size but it's usually 15-30 minutes per pound. I suggest using Butterball since it is the best but if you use something else that's fine too.

After you see the turkey to brown a little, remove lid of roasting pan and cook the rest of the turkey with lid off and continue to baste.... with a turkey baster, suck up juices and put all over the turkey and stuffing. This will make the stuffing juicy too....

You will have a beautiful browned roasted beauty! A juicy tender cuts. It won't be dry. Do not poke while cooking, if unsure of doneness, you can slice turkey towards end of cooking time to see if the breast part is done because that's the part that takes the most to cook.....

To make gravy, mix a tablespoon of water with a cup of flour and mix before adding to removed pan drippings from turkey.... Then simmer over low heat to thicken. Add water to make the gravy less thick...... Thickness of gravy and cooking time is up to you.... Remember gravy will thicken upon standing and cooling.

Stuffing additions: canned and then drained water chestnuts, just add to prepared stuffing, you can also add a half rolled tube of Jimmy Dean Sausage (original style) to the stuffing. Just brown and add to stuffing, do not add sausage fat from pan.

If you have any questions...let me know. This will be a hit for your guests....

ENJOY! & Happy Thanksgiving.....

Answer 8

Fry it. Buy a turkey fryer and look up recipes on the web for marinades or buy a store bought bottled marinade. You can also find on the web how to cook them. I guarantee you'll NEVER eat another baked turkey again. Try www.recipezaar.com OR www.allrecipes.com OR www.recipegoldmine.com. GOOD LUCK!

Answer 9

If you have a really big (deep cooker),that you have to cook outside with. The best way to cook a deliciously moist Turkey,is to inject it with crab boil,shove a peeled onion inside the empty cavity,and deep fry it. If you have never eaten one cooked this way let me tell you it is ddddddddeeeeeeeeellllllllliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiccccccccccccooooooooouuuuuuuuussssssssss!
Hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving

Answer 10

Yes, I think I have something different. Try putting the turkey in the oven undside down or should I stay backside up? Then tords the last 1/3 of cooktime flip it.