How do you make a juicy, moist, turkey?

No matter what I do I can't seem to make a juicy turkey. Every single year it ends up being overly dry. Is there some type of trick to getting it moist?

Some folks swear by brining, tenting, cooking it upside down, layering in cheesecloth....All great ideas btw.

But the best thing you should do for your Turkey is to take it out a smidge early and let it rest and continue cooking with the residual heat. Take it out of the Oven at least 1/2 an hour prior to carving it. It will allow the juices to redistribute and will result in a juicier and moister bird.

I probably sound like an idiot for not knowing this but I'm not a very experienced cook.

I don't recommend buying their chemical injected birds but they do have some good info. They say that the temp should be 180. I take mine out around 170 and check it again prior to serving. I've never had a problem with an undercooked bird...and I've cooked all sizes. I tent loosely with foil....you want to let some air in otherwise it'll steam and the skin will get soggy.



http://www.butterball.com/en/main_canvas.jsp?includePage=roasting_perfection.jsp&t=Roasting%20to%20Perfection&s0=plan_n_prep&s1=guide

First, let me second the other poster who said to let the turkey sit for 30 minutes bfore carving. Letting any roasted meat "rest" before cutting into it is vital (otherwise, all the juices run out, leaving you with a dry, tasteless pice of meat). If you want a flavorful, juicy turkey, you can't go wrong with this:

I've used this several times (it's from the SF Chronicle), and have always had a tremendously good turkey:

BEST WAY BRINED TURKEY
Several years ago, we roasted nearly 40 turkeys in our test kitchen, and found a brined turkey to be the best. This year, we cooked another half-dozen to refine the brine, lessening the salt.


INGREDIENTS:
1 turkey, about 12 pounds

Brine

1 cup sugar

1 1/2-1 3/4 cups kosher salt

2 1/2 gallons cold water

2 bay leaves, torn into pieces

1 bunch fresh thyme

1 head of garlic, cloves separated and peeled

5 whole allspice berries, crushed

4 juniper berries, smashed (see Note)

Roasting

2 tablespoons softened butter + butter for basting

1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground pepper

1 cup chicken stock, or more as needed

INSTRUCTIONS: Brining: Clean the turkey by removing the giblet bag, any extra internal fat and any pin feathers. Rinse well under cold tap water.

Combine the sugar, salt and 3 to 4 quarts of water in a large bowl. Stir until the sugar and salt dissolve, then add the remainder of the brine ingredients except for the remaining 1 1/2 gallons water.

Double-bag two heavy-duty, unscented trash bags (not made of recycled materials), then put them in an ice chest that is large enough to hold the turkey. Place the turkey in the doubled bags, pour in the brine, then the remaining 1 1/2 gallons of water -- there should be enough liquid to completely submerge the bird. Press out all the air in the bags, then tightly close each bag separately. Keep the turkey cold with bags of ice, which will also help keep it submerged in the brine. Brine for 12 to 24 hours.

Alternate method: Instead of using an ice chest, place the turkey and brine in a large pan or bowl and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours. If the turkey floats to the top, weight it down with a plate and cans to keep it completely submerged in the brine.

Roasting: Preheat the oven to 400°. Remove the turkey from the brine, rinse and dry well. Spread 2 tablespoons softened butter over the skin and sprinkle the pepper over the skin and in the cavity.

Tuck the wing tips under, loosely truss the legs and place the turkey on a V-shaped rack in a roasting pan. Tent the breast with foil and place the turkey in the oven.

Roasting note: To assure that the bird cooks evenly, rotate the roasting pan 180° every 30 minutes while the turkey is in the oven.

Roast for about 1 hour, remove the foil and baste the turkey with 1/2 cup stock. Return to the oven and roast, basting with pan drippings and more stock (if desired) every 20 minutes. Start checking the internal temperature after about 1 hour of roasting time. If the legs begin to get too brown, cover them loosely with foil. Roast the turkey until the internal thigh temperature reaches 165°. Total roasting time should be about 2 to 2 3/4 hours.

Let rest for at least 20 to 30 minutes before carving.

Serves 6 to 8, with leftovers

Note: Juniper berries are available in the spice section of some supermarkets and specialty grocers.

The calories and other nutrients absorbed from marinades vary and are difficult to estimate. Variables include the type of food, marinating time and amount of surface area. Therefore, this recipe contains no analysis.

It works. If you don't like the above recipe, change it to your liking but leave the salt and sugar ratios the same.

I did mine that way last year and it was delish. Add in 2 lemons and 2 oranges cut in half and squeezed into the water. Stuff the bird with a cut up onion, a quarterd lemon and another quartered orange. Stuff in a few sprigs of fresh thyme and Rosemary.


Trust me and the others that have done it, brining works!

but i've never had a dry turkey that was fresh. The frozen ones are always a challenge to keep moist IMHO

You gotta have a good butcher dept though because some stores will just defrost a frozen one and call it "fresh" You have to read those labels!

I always brine my chickens so I would imagine doing a Turkey would be terrific. I would imagine it would alter the taste of the gravy though. I don't stuff my birds anymore so that wouldn't be an issue for me.

I tend to be of the old school and Just buy a fresh Kosher Turkey, slather it with butter and lay a few strips of Bacon over the top. (I'm also of the school of whatever works)

I put it in an oven pre-heated to 500 then turn it down immediately to 325. I don't tent it or roll it over. If I can't get them to say tucked I will wrap the wing tips in a little foil though to keep them from burning.

I've never had a bad bird. But you Have to let them rest before you cut them up......

but effective I bet. Cheesecloth works well too

Multiple tricks...

First, brining. Soak it in a saltwater combo - with flavoring or spices if you want to give it extra flavor. The salt does an exchange and builds up the internal water level. I won't detail it all here, but it makes a heckuva difference. If you want to know more, post separately on brining and we'll cover it.

Second - Don't overcook. Too many people overcook. Buy yourself an instant read thermometer for $5 or so and learn to use it. Forget those pop-up things that come plugged into the turkey. They're made to blow at about 180 or 185, and the turkey will cook beyond that once you take it out. You should pull the turkey in the 160 to 165 range, and the temp will rise on its own (actual temp depends on a number of factors so I won't be too exact). The pop-up things are made to err on the side of no lawsuits, but they way overcook stuff. And forget about "meat thermometers". Get the instant reads. And don't leave it in the turkey - it'll melt (my ex-wife did that on me - leave it in, I mean).

Third, I personally avoid the overbred brands like Butterball. They're aimed at having maximum white meat, but err on the side of being basically tasteless and dry. I'd rather have a smaller turkey that wasn't puffed up. Last year I even got an heritage turkey (a now-rare breed) and it was sooooo juicy and delicious, even without brining, but probably if you just get a non-mass produced turkey, you'll be better off. FWIW, when I roast chickens now, I buy the cheaper, smaller store chickens, instead of the Purdue or whatever, and they're actually better, because they're more "real".

Yes, let it sit for 20 mins or so and let the juices rest. As like steak (which is more 5 to 10 mins), when it rests, the juices redistribute, and it will "release" the juices into the pan.

Fourth, if it's small enough, pan-cook the turkey on each leg side, to get a "leg up" up on the cooking, so it'll be more evenly cooked. Basically take a large pan, heat up peanut oil, then lay the turkey first on one leg side until it browns, then turn it over to the other leg side and brown that, then put it in the over. I do this with roast chicken; it's a little trickier with turkey, being larger, but always for good results.

And if you want a nice skin, what I've been doing for years is rubbing it in walnut oil and then rubbing in "italian seasoning" dried spice. Makes for a wonderful skin. And cook in butter and herbs.

- Tab

I never made a really good turkey until the first time I tried brining one. It made a WORLD of difference in the moistness, tenderness and flavor of the bird. Now, I'm a devotee - brine all poultry, especially turkey.

Brining rocks!

it also does a hell of a job on fish.

I gave up marinades years ago, and became a brining afficionado a couple years ago when I got good at it. I'll probably never marinade again.

That said, it has little effect on red meat, but on white meat (mainly poultry) or on fish (like salmon) it's wonderful.

For the first time I brined (simple salt water) salmon cubes for a salmon kebob, and they were incredibly juicy and wonderful.

So it's not just poulty.

I liked to put extra spices in and the salt brings them into the meat. It's a separate topic but the difference is incredible.

He said the same thing you did, that a traditional brine with salt water didn't do much for red meat. But then he made a little switch and said that when you marinate red meat in a salty marinade, that's a type of brining and about a 30 minunte "brine" in a marinade enhanced red meat quite a bit.

Just an fyi, in case you got curious about marinating again.

That's what corned beef is, I believe.

I guess I could try it again, but I don't believe it has quite the same effect that it does on poultry and fish.

Besides, I'm pretty good at cooking red meat, and juiciness is not a problem. Be interesting to try it on something like pot roast, though, which could always use a little help.

I just used one of those oven-roasting bags. I had rubbed some herbed-butter over the bird before putting it in the bag.

2.5 hours later it was done. Perfectly, and that was a 15-pound bird!

Matt

I can't really because I sorta have congestive heart failure and I have a sodium restricted diet. And even though I know they say it doesn't really make the turkey salty, I've eaten brined turkey and to my salt-sensitive palate, it does. And the gravy, to me, is inedible because it's so sodium-rich.

I do a cheesecloth on the breast and baste baste baste with butter and, at the end, baste with some white wine to add crispness to the skin. I learned that from Martha Stewart. Oh and I stuff the damn thing with thyme, lemons, orange, sage, and rosemary (I think) into the cavity. But that part I didn't learn from Ms. Stewart.

I've also had fried turkey and that's great, too. But I've never made it myself.

Also, smaller is better. I don't have much family in town, so Thanksgiving is usually a smallish affair when I cook. A smaller turkey doesn't dry out as much, from what I have read. And I have never made a bad one, so that may be true.

and start roasting breast side down for half of the time. I also like a kosher turkey because it tends to be juicier, but any fresh rather than frozen bird is going to be an improvement; I've had good results with Shady Brook Farms birds.

Brining the bird sound like a really good idea. I'm also off tot he grocery store to buy a new thermometer. Again, thanks!

cover with a foil tent until the last hour, AND, once the juices start coming, baste every fifteen minutes. I don't care if they say it won't work! I don't care if the over loses heat! This works, and I get a great turkey every time. (I keep the oven at 425 for the first half hour, then turn down to 325.)

temperature like 450. Then turn it down to the regular 325. This will seal the bird and all its juices inside. I read this in the Detroit Free Press a couple of years ago from a chef's tip and it does work. If it gets brown too fast, tent it with foil.

Brining's very good. IMHO, overcooking is the biggest reason for dry turkey. I definitely wouldn't leave it in the oven until it's 180 degrees.

The main problem is that the breast meat cooks faster and gets drier than the dark meat. If you can get away with cooking a breast only, you'll get around that. Stuffing can be cookes separately in a bowl, esp. if you mix it with chicken broth. The breast should give you enough drippings for gravy.

Cook it at 300 for an extra couple hours.

And don't buy one of those fucking useless piece of shit tasteless butterball fuckers.

But even with a butterball, if you cook slowly, it will come out moist.

And you don't need one of those earth-destroying bags, or to brine it, or anything else fancy.

It also helps to put some fruit in the cavity - a dice up pear or oranges or apples.

I have on occasion, placed a pie pan with water in the oven along with baking the turkey. Or any bird. Never fails to keep it moist.

Now I bake indirect in my charcoal kettle grill with water. The result -- turkey melts in the mouth faster than a pair of M&M's...

He cooks the bird on a bed of quartered onions, big carrot & celery hunks (in lieu of a rack), which keeps some moisture in the oven. These veggies can also be served at table or pureed to add to gravy.

He stuffs the bird cavity with quartered citrus... lemons & oranges, for a subtle fragrance and addt'l moisture.

Don't over cook the bird... it continues to cook awhile after removal from the oven.

When I carve the turkey in advance, I spoon a bit of broth over the slices. Gives a juicy sheen and helps retain moisture.

and brines it every year, ala Martha Stewart, with bacon and parsley under the skin, covered with cheesecloth, and constantly basted with white wine and butter. It is delicious and the best I have ever had. Much better than the one I used to cook.

If you baste with melted butter, you will have unbelievably moist turkey. This is how my mother taught me. Since my family only likes white meat, I usually only make the turkey breasts, which don't leave much drippings. I baste them with melted butter, though, and it is the tastiest, juiciest white meat you have ever had. Probably not the healthiest, but it's tasty.

I use those every year and haven't had a dry turkey yet. They are usually with the tin foil in the paper goods section.


I think I'm going to try brining this year also


AValdoux