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How To Roast a Turkey

There are so many ways to roast a turkey! Here is a foolproof way and it will ensure your bird is beautifully moist and delicious!!

Ingredients

  • 1 Farm fresh turkey
  • 1 package bacon
  • salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 2 lemons, cut in half
  • 4 cups chicken stock
  • 1 bunch parsley, washed

Instructions

  • About 30 minutes before you begin roasting, take the turkey out of the refrigerator and take out the bag of giblets in the body and neck cavity; place the turkey breast-side up on the roasting rack set in a roasting pan, rub it all with sea salt and freshly ground pepper and let it sit while the oven preheats.
  •  Now you can make a Bacon weave (see the post for instructions) or you can just layer the bacon on top of the breast which ensures a moist breast because the fat from the bacon will drip into the breast - which often tend to dry out first!).  Keeping the turkey out while you make the weave takes the chill off the meat, which helps the meat cook faster and more evenly. Also, if you decide to not add the bacon, this step of leaving the bird out for a while gives the skin time to dry out, which promotes browning and crisping.
  • Preheat the oven to 475°F and place the oven rack in the bottom third of your oven, remove any racks above it, and heat to 450°F. When ready to roast, add lemons to the cavity of the bird and pour the broth or water into the bottom of roasting pan.
  • Place the turkey in the oven and turn down the heat to 350°F (if the breast starts getting too browned toward the end of cooking, shield the breast meat with aluminum foil )
  • Set a timer so that every 45 minutes, you remove the turkey from the oven, and baste the turkey all over (to baste, tilt the pan if needed and use a turkey baster or spoon to scoop up the pan liquids and drizzle them on top of the turkey). (turkey cooking trivia: basting with pan juices cools the surface of the turkey and slows down cooking, which in turn keeps the breast meat cooking at close to the same rate as the legs and thighs).
  • Remember as mentioned above, you will need about 13-15 minutes of roasting per pound.  In the last 45 minutes or so of cooking, you can also baste the turkey with melted butter or oil (do this if you feel like the skin isn't crisp enough for your liking....this will turn it a beautiful deep golden brown colour!!)
  • Once the turkey is about 3/4 of the way cooked,  begin checking the turkey's temperature. Check the temperature in three places: the breast, outer thigh, and inside thigh where the meat should be at least 165°F in all three places when the turkey has finished cooking. If it is under that temperature in any of the places you check, put the turkey back in the oven for another 15-20 minutes, making sure to protect the breast meat with foil if needed to keep it from overcooking
  • Remove the turkey from the oven and tilt the whole pan so the liquids inside the turkey cavity run out into the pan. Then, lift the whole turkey and transfer it to a clean cutting board. Tent the turkey loosely with aluminum foil and let it rest for a minimum of 15-30 minutes.
  • Carve the turkey in the kitchen to avoid the stress of doing at the table!  USe the same method you would to carve a chicken; removing the wings first, then the thighs, then the breast meat. Once you have the meat off, you can separate the thighs into thighs and drumsticks and carve the breast meat into individual slices.
  • Don't forget about the leftovers turkey!  Whatever is leftover needs to be refrigerated within two hours of cooking, making sure to pour all the liquids that are at the bottom of the pan back onto the turkey to keep it moist.  Serve later in the day, the next two days or freeze for another time!