help with turkey.....?

Question

i have never cooked one and i need to know a couple things, first if it is frozen and i need to cook it on the 19th when should i put it in my fridge to defrost? second do i need to put it in a oven bag or how would you recomed it be cooked? do you put stuffing inside of it if so why? season it? bast it? if so how offten? really have no clue how to do this so any help is very good thank you ahead of time

the weight of the turkey is 16 lbs sorry

Answer 1

its not that hard don't stress yourself out just think of it as a big chicken. Let it thaw at least 48-72 hours before hand in ref. wash it inside and out make sure you remove all innards they are stuffed both front and back. pat dry. season with salt pepper, pretty much what ever you like to use and what you have on hand. do not stuff with bread dressing its hard to get it all out at the end of cook time and too many people still get sick from salmonella. but for added flavor you can stuff the bird with onions and celery and garlic cloves. you can roast in an oven bag if pressed for time but the bird will not brown to a crisp unless if you open bag at least 30min before serving.

Answer 2

Depending on how big the turkey is, I would take it out of the freezer on the 16th so that it will be defrosted by the morning of the 19th.

I don't put my turkey in an oven bag, but that is just my preferance. What I do to cook mine is rub it with cooking oil all over the skin, and put a few pats of butter between the skin and meat of the breast. After the oiling, I put a combination of spices, sage, pepper, bay,oregeno, and a little salt and garlic.
The package that the turkey is in should have cooking directions as far as time and temp for roasing your turkey. After the oven has pre-heated, I place tin foil over the bird and place it in the oven, I baste every hour or so and then the last hour of cooking time I take the tin foil off the bird so that the skin can turn golden brown. And there you are! With your first Turkey done and beautiful!

I personally don't like stuffing in my bird so I don't do that...maybe someone else can give you tips on how to get that done.
Good luck and enjoy your dinner

Answer 3

You don't give the weight of your turkey, which tells you how long to cook it, and how long it takes to defrost. You should always defrost turkey in the fridge, never at room temp. Remove the packet of giblets, neck, etc, from the cavity of the bird. Turn the turkey breast up, and liberally butter it with softened butter or margarine UNDER the skin. Separate the skin from the breast, and run your hands up under it to accomplish this. Salt and pepper the bird, again under the skin with your hands. Get a large oven cooking bag to cook your bird in, you can find these at the grocery store this time of year. This is important, as it is the easiest way to keep the turkey from drying out, and you don't have to baste and all that. Lightly flour the inside of the bag to keep the bird from sticking. After putting the turkey in the bag, poke a few holes in the bag to keep it from bursting, and put it in your roasting pan BREAST SIDE DOWN. This will keep the breast from drying out during cooking. Cook at 325-350 (depending on how hot your oven cooks) for the recommended time for the weight of your bird - you can find this on innumerable websites. After the first hour, turn the turkey over so it is breast side up. For the last 15 minutes, cut open the oven bag to let the skin crisp and brown. The turkey is done when the juices run clear and the drumsticks move readily. The internal temp of the meat, taken with a meat thermometer, should be between 165 and 180. Be careful the thermometer doesen't touch the bone when you take the temp. After taking the bird out of the oven, cover it with foil and let it rest for 20 minutes, to let the juices settle in the meat, and so it doesn't tear when you try to carve it. For thawing and baking times, see the links..

Answer 4

My Grandma had a 24 lb turkey for Thanksgiving, that bird took about a week or so to thaw out.

Make sure you rinse the bird off inside and out, and take out the "insides" pat dry.

Put in oven bag (easiest way) be sure to cut a hole in the top of the bag and make sure it is in a roasting pan. You can put carrots, onions and celery in the bird for some flavoring. I don't think it is recommended that you actually put stuffing in the bird. You do not have to baste it or nothing when it is in the bag..it came out juicy, moist and perfect. It took about 3 1/2 hours to 4 hours to get done. I believe it has to reach 180 on a meat thermometer. Best Of Luck..Gobble Gobble
and Merry Christmas!

Answer 5

You don't say how big the turkey is. I would take out the turkey at least 2 days (put in frig) and let it defrost. I put stuffing in the turkey, put it in a pan, cover with the lid or aluminum foil, put in preheated oven 325 degrees and cook it 15 minutes for every pound. Baste when jucies start to come. Take off lid the last 1/2 hour to let the turkey brown. Baste every half hour. You can rub it done with butter before starting to cook. I have cooked a turkey for the last 45 years and they all come out juicy.