My first time cooking Thanksgiving dinner! How the heck do I cook a turkey?

Answer 1

Fill it with stuffing and put it in the oven. Wait for the thermometer "stick" to pop out and it's done. Just be sure to baste it now and again (take your turkey baster, fill it with the juices at the bottom of the pan and pour it over the turkey). Turkeys are very easy to cook, people make too much of it really.

Go to www.butterball.com - they have instructions there on how to cook turkeys also. Good luck!

Answer 2

Easy as pie. First buy some of those baking bags - this will ensure a moist and juicy turkey as well as reduce the cooking time. It will also save you the trouble of pinning the wings to the main body of the turkey.
If you want it stuffed, the easiest stuffing recipe is this:
Mix 1 bag PepperidgeFarm stuffing (or equivalent)
3 -4 ribs chopped celery
1 chopped onion
1 tblsn poultry seasoning
You can add mushrooms or almonds if you wish
salt and pepper to taste -
3/4 - 1 lb melted butter
1 can Chicken Broth

Use one of those thin, gauzy pastry cloths as a pouch or pocket and shove into one of two orifices. Place as much stuffing as you can without packing too tight. Mix the butter with the chicken broth. Slowly pour up to half the melted butter/broth mixture on top of the stuffing and then seal the end (either sew it up or use baking skewers).

Flip over the turkey and do the same thing.

Place turkey in floured bag and seal (follow directions on the package). Put into a pre-heated oven (325 degrees F). Usually, it's 20 minutes per stuffed turkey pound, but you will find that it will be less time. Just keep your eye on it about halfway into the cooking. If you choose not to make stuffing, figure 15 minutes per pound. When you start smelling your work, you will be filled with pride and anticipation. When your turkey is done, you should have a lot of drippings with which to make gravy. Gather all your drippings into a sauce pan. Make a roux (pronounced "row": a couple tblsns flour, salt and pepper to taste, 1/2 - 3/4 cup milk) and slowly mix into your drippings. Heat over medium temperature until it is slightly bubbling. If it is too thin, add some more roux. Taste frequently. Have fun~

Answer 3

My husband and I cook a turkey for thanksgiving dinner every year. The way we do it is we get Reynolds Oven Bags Turkey Size and put the turkey in that. The directions are great. And never fails we have a perfect turkey everytime. Good luck. And I am sure you will do just fine.And oh yea don't forget to take everything out of the turkey before cooking it. IE....the neck, and some other stuff you really dont want to eat.

Answer 4

This is what I do ..

1 Thaw out your Turkey
2.Take the innerards out of the turkey
3. Get a pain for the turkey and fill it up with one glass of water
4.3 cans of Peaches stick up the Turkeys butt
5. Stick in the oven and let it cook around 350
6. There is a little button in your turkey when it pops up its done.. Normally it takes about 4 hours to cook a turkey give or take

Just remember to put the peach juices on top of the turkey that is called baskeing

Answer 5

Get one of those turkey plastic bags big enough to hold the defrosted turkey. It comes with all the seasonings in a bag. It comes with a popup to tell you when the turkey is done. It comes with a card that has instructions like "put turkey in bag".... and it comes with a tie-wrap to close the bag. Do the few simple things it says. Turn on the oven to the temperature it says. Take the turkey out when the popup pops up. That does the whole thing needed.

There are also supermarket chains that will sell you the whole meal for $69 with enough turkey and side dishes (from Boston Market) and pie to feed 8-10 people. You give them money. They give you a box with cooked food. You re-heat the way it says and you have no worries at all.

Answer 6

1. Most likely your turkey is frozen. You need to take it out of the freezer and start thawing it in the refrigerator RIGHT NOW.

2. If your bird is more than 16 pounds, you don't have time for it to thaw. Go to the grocery store or butcher and get a FRESH (not frozen turkey).

3. Honeysuckle White has a good page on how to cook and serve turkeys. See the link below.

g'luck!

Answer 7

You should invest in a solid cookbook... like Betty Crocker's or The Joy of Cooking. One of the traditional books all kitchens should have.

I've given you a link below to Butterball Turkeys. Doesn't matter if yours isn't a Butterball. People have all sorts of family tricks as well, is there a mom, grandmom, aunt, grandfather, etc. you could call?

Like in my family, we cover the turkey with a brown paper bag that been buttered on the side touching the turkey. Keeps it moist for the hours it sits in the oven.

But don't worry, cooking a turkey is pretty easy. Put it in the oven, wait, baste, wait, baste....

The other link below is to amazon and the Betty Crocker cookbook.

Answer 8

I would say to wash the turkey (rinse it). Take out the bag inside. I don't put stuffing in the turkey. Make sure you are VERY CLEAN while handling the turkey. Wash out the sink with bleach afterwards.

This will help you:)
God Bless and Be Safe:)
Have a great Thanksgiving:)

http://lowfatcooking.about.com/od/holidayrecipes/a/turkeytips.htm

.

Answer 9

It depends on the size of the turkey...I suggest a cook book. Plus inside the turkey you will find a paper bag with the neck, liver, gibblets, and gizzard. Many new cooks have baked turkeys with the bag of extras inside. For easy baking and easy clean up purchase a turkey baking bag. It will be self basting. Have fun!
Most turkeys are sold frozen and it takes time to thaw.

Answer 10

First get a turkey,next you'll want to put your favorite seasoning on it,put in the oven for 30 minutes per 2 pounds at 350