So, I'm cooking the Thanksgiving Turkey this year...

[Septimus]

Cooking a Turkey is 90% prep work and 10% making sure that the timing is right. I used to get free turkeys from my local grocery store in my old neighborhood (when you spent x amount of cash in November), so I would do an after Thanksgiving dinner for my friends. Follow the packaging instructions for the time to weight ratio, and give the outside a good rub down with olive oil and some nice Italian Seasoning. (I generally used extra virgin olive oil, and the Italian Seasoning adds flavor without adding salt.) The olive oil helps to seal in the juices to keep it succulent and gives it a nice golden-brown hue.

Just make sure that you properly preheat and calculate the time correctly and you will have a very nice turkey dinner.

[Daydreamer]

Yeah "stuffing is evil" unless you know exactly what you are doing, and it doesn't sound like you have the experience or the knowledge for that (and no, I do not mean that in a bad way).

Deep fried turkies are great, however I find that after like an hour or two they are WAY too dry. So, if you do it that way, do it RIGHT before you eat, let it sit for like 15 minutes to rehydrate, then eat it fast.

Also, if you want to do it the normal way, a probe thermometer is your best friend. Pull the turkey about 5-10 degrees BEFORE it's 'done' and then cover it in foil and let it rest for 20 minutes or so, the temp will continue to rise, finish cooking the bird, and NOT over cook it, while rehydrating it, therefore keeping it juicy, which most turkies...aren't.

[Saphirea]

Rachel Ray had a good basting strat for the Turkey the other day. I'm looking for it.
Pretty much though, what other people have said; keeping a moist turkey is key for success as well as weight to time ratio.

[Xsaintx-Siren]

Follow the posted Alton Brown's way of cooking a turkey and you can't go wrong.

[Shuemue]

Pro-tip:

If you're cooking with gas on a major holiday like Thanksgiving or Christmas, turn it up a bit to compensate for the reduced gas pressure created by everyone cooking all at once.

There is nothing worse than dinner being delayed for 2hrs because the oven isn't getting properly hot.

[Tyche]

Deep fry it...They are SOOOOOO fucking good if you do it correctly.

[Jicent]

The way my mom does it to keep it juicy is she dips a cheese cloth in melted butter and puts it on top of the turkey for the first few hours then in the last hour takes it off so it gets nice and brown

[Jujubie]

I put mine in one of those cooking bags in the oven. I also stuff it with oranges (sliced a few times with skin still on--no you don't eat the oranges!). The citrus makes the meat more juicy and tender.

[othellojr]

I would advice you to get the turkey today, don't wait till tomorrow, at least here in Florida, most stores are either closed, or have no turkeys available tomorrow. And yeah, if you really have no clue, call around and see if you can find a place to just sell you the cooked turkey, plenty of places can/and may still take last minute orders, you will save yourself alot of hastle, as the last time I ate a turkey that was someone's first try at it, it was horrible...and it can definately ruin the meal.

[Guyverarmor]

As said above, EVOO(damn it!) does give a good color to the bird. using butter on the turkey actually makes It very good. Whatever you do, baste It! every 30min, open the oven and baste the thing for about 2 min or so. Can go wrong. And Insert various spices and etc. to the bird, gives It a awsome taste. I usually make a mixture of Olive oil, butter, rosemary(fresh Is the best If you can) and garlic. Make It Into a liquid and Inject It Into the turkey before you start cooking It. Juices Inside will flavor the turkey the whole time while cooking. good distinct flavor If thats what your looking for :D

[archibaldcrane]

16.4 pound fresh turkey purchased, as well as most of the preparatory ingredients - lemon, salt and pepper, celery, carrots. Still need the olive oil, yellow onion, parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme. (it's almost like a song).

I'll do most of the prep tonight, then take it over tomorrow morning, finish the exterior prep and pop it in at 9 a.m. Going to follow Mom's Roast Turkey to the letter - cooked on it's breast (upside down) to keep the meat moist, no basting required, not "stuffed" per se, but with a few veggies inside for flavor.

I'll probably be cooking it directly on the oven rack, with a broiler pan on a rack below to catch drippings for the gravy...oh, I need to get some cornstarch too.

I'm kinda stoked.

[Daydreamer]

16.4 pound fresh turkey purchased, as well as most of the preparatory ingredients - lemon, salt and pepper, celery, carrots. Still need the olive oil, yellow onion, parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme. (it's almost like a song).

I'll do most of the prep tonight, then take it over tomorrow morning, finish the exterior prep and pop it in at 9 a.m. Going to follow Mom's Roast Turkey to the letter - cooked on it's breast (upside down) to keep the meat moist, no basting required, not "stuffed" per se, but with a few veggies inside for flavor.

I'll probably be cooking it directly on the oven rack, with a broiler pan on a rack below to catch drippings for the gravy...oh, I need to get some cornstarch too.

I'm kinda stoked.

Sounds pretty good so far. The vege stuffing will be fine, the reason people warn against regular stuffing (with a bread type thing inside) is because turkey juices seep into it while raw and make it a health hazard, but you will be fine with a few veggies.

Also, good job on no basting, that's actually one of the worst things you can do if you want a juicy bird, every time you open the oven ...... ugh, shudder

[Norelco]

btw, I love the food/drink threads around here. Keep 'em coming.

[Daydreamer]

btw, I love the food/drink threads around here. Keep 'em coming.

Oh hell, if you wanna start a bartending thread I'll talk all freaking day.

And by bartending I mean drinks that don't involve the following: SoCo, Cream, Jaeger, Coconut Rum, Melon Liqueur, Vodka, Jose Cuervo, etc...

Drinks that do involve the following: Fresh juices (lemon, lime, orange, etc), bitters, drinks that are properly shaken or stirred, etc...

[archibaldcrane]

Turkey cavity has been rubbed with salt and lemon juice, stuffed with carrots, parsely and yellow onion, and tied tight with string. It's in a roasting pan covered in Saran Wrap in my fridge now - didn't take as long to prep as I thought. There was a small amount of "frost" inside, which seemed pretty much melted by the time I was done prepping - I figure if it's not totally defrosted now, it will be in 15 hours... All the meat was squishy and defrosted.

When I get to their house tomorrow, I'll rub the outside with olive oil, salt and pepper the outside, add some chopped fresh sage, rosemary and thyme (they sell it in a 3-pack, which is nice), and pop it in the oven directly on the rack breast-side down, with a pan underneath to catch the drippings for crucial gravy after. 4.5 hours later, great success?

We'll see.

[Norelco]

Turkey cavity has been rubbed with salt and lemon juice, stuffed with carrots, parsely and yellow onion, and tied tight with string. It's in a roasting pan covered in Saran Wrap in my fridge now - didn't take as long to prep as I thought. There was a small amount of "frost" inside, which seemed pretty much melted by the time I was done prepping - I figure if it's not totally defrosted now, it will be in 15 hours... All the meat was squishy and defrosted.

When I get to their house tomorrow, I'll rub the outside with olive oil, salt and pepper the outside, add some chopped fresh sage, rosemary and thyme (they sell it in a 3-pack, which is nice), and pop it in the oven directly on the rack breast-side down, with a pan underneath to catch the drippings for crucial gravy after. 4.5 hours later, great success?

We'll see.

Another thing to do is get your hand in under the skin and rub some of those spices. The skin is very elastic and durable and a great place to rub in some extra flavor. Not necessary, but recommended.

[Guyverarmor]

Turkey cavity has been rubbed with salt and lemon juice, stuffed with carrots, parsely and yellow onion, and tied tight with string. It's in a roasting pan covered in Saran Wrap in my fridge now - didn't take as long to prep as I thought. There was a small amount of "frost" inside, which seemed pretty much melted by the time I was done prepping - I figure if it's not totally defrosted now, it will be in 15 hours... All the meat was squishy and defrosted.

When I get to their house tomorrow, I'll rub the outside with olive oil, salt and pepper the outside, add some chopped fresh sage, rosemary and thyme (they sell it in a 3-pack, which is nice), and pop it in the oven directly on the rack breast-side down, with a pan underneath to catch the drippings for crucial gravy after. 4.5 hours later, great success?

We'll see.

Another thing to do is get your hand in under the skin and rub some of those spices. The skin is very elastic and durable and a great place to rub in some extra flavor. Not necessary, but recommended.

I agree with Norelco on this. season the outside, but also get under the skin and massage the the turkey meat with the baste or seasoning you are using. Hope It turns out well man. Would like a report on how It goes. God I am gonna love tomorrow :D :D :D :D

[Norelco]

I'm making a sausage and mushroom stuffing tomorrow. Can't wait to see how it turns out.

[Nirokun!]

i have never heard of cooking a turkey directly on the oven rack. tell me how that goes (and how much cleaning you'll do because you'll need to take out that rack and clean it, rendering it useless for other holiday cooking until you've cleaned it)

good luck :D

[archibaldcrane]

If I had a roasting pan with a wire rack, I'd use it, but unless they have one over there large enough for a 16 pound turkey (which I doubt) I'll pretty much have to do it like that. It's "approved" by the recipe I'm doing, so should be fine. Oven won't be used for other cooking for the meal, since it's all potluck.