Preparing & Stuffing Turkey
I was knew someone who didn't know you had to remove the turkey
neck and giblets before roasting the bird. It was her first time
making Thanksgiving and no one had ever taught her. We're to here
to help new cooks make a fabulous turkey, from start to finish.
Before you begin, check
out our tips for Buying, Storing & Thawing Turkey.
1. 2. 3.
Before you can cook the turkey, be sure to remove
the package of giblets from the body cavity, and the neck from the
cavity (photos 1, 2 and 3 above). Save the turkey neck for making
stock or soup. The giblets can be used for making gravy
or stuffing.
4. 5. 6.
An optional step is to roast your turkey on a bed
of vegetables like shown in photo 4. We used a mixture of onions,
celery and carrots. This will keep the turkey lifted of the bottom
of the pan, allowing the juices to run down, as well as give the
pan juicess and therfore the gravy, more flavor. You may or may
not want to use the vegetable layer, depending on the turkey recipe
you are using.
Photo 5 shows lifting the skin without completely
separating it. You should do this in order to rub oil or butter
on the turkey. You can also place fresh herbs under the skin to
infuse the meat with additional flavor. We use this technique in
our recipe for Turkey
with Fresh Herbs and Pan Gravy.
Another way to infuse flavor into the turkey is to
use an injector to inject marinade or melted butter into the turkey
meat itself, as shown in photo 6. You can fin injectors at gourmet
shops, or get
one at a discount through Amazon.com by clicking here.
Stuffing a Turkey
It's important to stuff the turkey just before roasting. It is not
safe to store stuffing in an uncooked turkey, even if it is kept in
the refrigerator. If
you're looking for some good stuffing recipes, click here.
1. 2.
When stuffing the turkey, keep it loose. You want
to avoid tightly packing in the stuffing as it will expand somewhat
during roasting. Stuff stuffing in the neck cavity by lifting up
the front flap of skin as in Photo 1, and in the body cavity, as
in Photo 2. After stuffing, replace turkey legs in metal holder
or truss turkey with twine. For
instructions on how to truss the poultry, click here.
What are giblets and what should I do with them?
Giblets are the turkey's neck, gizzard, heart and liver. When cooked
until tender, they make a great addition to gravy or stuffing. If
you have dogs, you can also cook the giblets for your pet. Make sure
all bones are removed, chop up the meat and let Fido enjoy the feast
too.
What is a self basted turkey?
Self basted turkeys have been injected or marinated in a solution
which usually contains edible fat, natural broth, stock or water
and seasonings. Self-basted turkeys are labeled with the percentage
of solutions and their ingredients.
My turkey is getting too brown and it's still has a long time
to cook. HELP!
No problem, if you find the top of your turkey is getting to brown,
simply cover it loosely with a sheet of aluminum foil and continue
to roast the turkey according to schedule.
More on Turkey
If you don't find your turkey questions answered on this page,
or if you're looking for some good turkey recipes, click
here for our Thanksgiving Turkey & Gravy home page.
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