Talking Turkey

(Courtesy of EPICUREOUS)

Butter Rubs
This is the simplest way to moisten a bird. You can use unsalted butter alone or, to flavor the meat and the pan drippings (which will go into the gravy), mix in herbs, lemon, white wine, or even maple syrup. Coat the entire raw turkey generously, including under the wings and thighs and underneath the bird.

If you want, you can also rub the butter mixture underneath the skin, directly onto the meat. This will particularly help with moistening the breast meat, as the butter will penetrate directly into the flesh and insulate it against overcooking. To do this, before you rub butter over the outside of the turkey, gently lift the skin and stuff as much butter as you can manage between it and the flesh. You may have to break through a fine membrane that connects the skin to the flesh. When you're done, press the skin back to the flesh and coat the entire turkey on the outside with the same mixture.

Putting Turkey in the Pan
Once you've flavored your bird, the next step is to arrange it in the pan. First, place a U- or V-shaped roasting rack in the pan. This promotes an even circulation of heat around the meat and prevents the turkey from getting soggy after sitting in the pan juices.

The next question: Which side goes up? When your turkey comes to the table, you'll want it breast-side up, with the traditional crispy golden-brown skin. But roasting it this way the entire time dries out the white breast meat. To prevent this, there are two alternatives:

So the question is how do you get to that point? Cooking a traditional Thanksgiving meal for a large group of people can often be a daunting task with the expected inclusion of a host of family traditions. However, one thing is for sure the meal will usually include a turkey, stuffing, gravy and cranberry sauce.

We have a few helpful hints we can pass on, to help you with preparing your thankgiving meal and make it a little less stressful.

1. Place the turkey on the rack with the breast side down. This protects the white meat from overcooking and allows it to absorb the juices as they run downward into the bottom of the pan. Then, for the last hour of roasting, carefully remove the pan from the oven and flip the bird over. Return it to the oven with the breast side up, allowing the breast skin to crisp up and get golden brown.

2. If you're worried about flipping a hot and heavy fowl (which can be near-impossible if your bird's more than 16 or 18 pounds), you can roast it breast-side-up the whole time if you take some precautions. Cover the breast with a double-thick layer of buttered aluminum foil or cheesecloth to help insulate it against the heat. Then uncover it an hour before it's done, allowing the skin to darken and crisp. If the skin still looks too pale but the meat is finished, feel free to broil the bird for a minute or two before pulling it out of the oven. (This works best if your broiler unit is attached to the top of your main oven and not in a separate drawer; in the latter case, the bird will only fit if you cut it up into smaller pieces.)

Roasting Without Stuffing
If you choose to roast your turkey unstuffed, you can cook the stuffing on the side in a casserole dish. Add some stock to replace the turkey juices it would have absorbed in the cavity. You can also sauté the turkey liver, gizzard, and neck in butter, cut up (shredding the neck meat off the bone) and add them for more flavor. This will make the stuffing nearly as rich as if it had been baked in the turkey itself (though don't forget to make a meatless version if you've got any vegetarians on the guest list). Not stuffing your turkey also means there's room in the cavity for aromatics, which will season the bird and add complexity to the pan drippings used to make gravy. Try placing onion quarters, celery stalks, parsley, thyme, salt, and pepper in the turkey before roasting. Stuffing cooked inside a turkey must reach an internal temperature of 165°F.

Roasting with Stuffing
Luckily, for those who love nothing more than the flavor of turkey fat and drippings seeping into the stuffing as it cooks, there are ways to get around the food safety and cooking issues. Here's how:

1. To prevent bacteria growth, don't make your stuffing ahead. It's okay to make the components of the stuffing ahead of time, but be sure they're kept refrigerated, and that wet and dry ingredients are kept separate (meaning don't mix in the eggs until the last minute). And be sure that any meat or seafood ingredients, such as shellfish or turkey giblets, are fully cooked before mixing them in.

2. Just before roasting, assemble the stuffing and gently pack it in the body and neck cavities. Be sure not to overstuff—stuffing, especially if you're using rice or bread crumbs, will expand as it cooks.

3. Using an instant-read thermometer, take the temperature of the stuffing as it cooks. To ensure that any bacteria are killed, the stuffing must be cooked until a thermometer inserted into the middle reads 165°F. However, be sure to take the temperature of the meat as well—it's likely that the meat will reach 165°F before the stuffing does. If this happens, don't leave the bird in the oven while the stuffing catches up—this will result in dried-out meat. Instead, take the turkey out of the oven to rest, transfer the stuffing to a casserole dish, and put it back in the oven (or microwave it) until it reaches the proper temperature.

Oven Temperature and Cooking Time
Food safety regulations mandate an oven temperature no lower than 325°F. But, given these parameters, there are still a lot of ways to roast a bird. You can cook it low and slow, at 325°F for hours and hours until it's done. You can blast it with high heat at the beginning or end of cooking to give it color and crisp the skin, and reduce the cooking time. You can leave the bird breast side up the whole time, or turn it over halfway through. They're all great methods, and only trial and error will determine which is best for you. As long as the bird reaches the correct temperature, feel free to experiment.

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