N'oveinvi
jnday, November 20, 2000
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ithout a
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ov. 25, a
ksgiving
1 .^ cie Withering is no fur-
,! l | [erjaway than a
?t-luck invitation
• i i ar ', iv stand the center
^ ani fany Thanksgiv-
U111,: igFeast — the turkey. But cooking
l ■key can be an intimidating task.
H " - Do not let it frighten you.
hends taM ar ' n ^ a P er ^ ect 'y cooked turkey
gc ^^^Bires only a few simple tools; an
' r , ven; and some good, old-fash-
;43»:f d P atie " ce -
'TIpouftrypurc/iase
, j 'The most important thing to re-
lumber when purchasing a turkey
, r ‘l e .,Vihat almost any turkey you can
'hip a grocery store is frozen and
ike par ^ neec * to thawed. Refrigera-
)r thawing is the safest method for
lend voiding bacteria buildup, but you
1 toward 1 tdlow five hours of thawing
He for every pound your turkey
It was 1 . i'-lghs. This means a 10-pound
where lie wkey needs more than two days
ielpedal:#aw.
. [ThecerB^'t^hc 1 ' method of thawing is to
closure.'' uBmerge a plastic-wrapped turkey
'Oprovidecttto cold water, allowing one hour
nentovv 1 - iff la wing time per pound of
:gie faitiil; arkey. The downside is that the wa-
eshmeniii er, should be changed every one or
.'rstand id wp hours, and the chances of har-
it expener wing unwanted bacteria dramati-
. "What bally increase.
) helpuix ilf you buy a pre-stuffed turkey,
c in200k:felow the instructions on the pack-
& Hig. Many pre-stuffed turkeys
reshmaiiaJMiSt be cooked when they are
major, a
ierstandtltj
(raaVud
iirVsrrr^d
Page 3
frozen, unlike average
turkeys that need to be
thawed.
When choosing
which turkey to
buy, keep in mind
the number of
people you will
be feeding. The
conventional
wisdom is to al
low a pound to
a pound and a
half per person,
but if you are feeding
typical, hungry college
students, I would suggest
allowing at least two pounds
per person.
^Preparation
Contrary to tradition, I do not
suggest stuffing your turkey. The
stuffing adds no flavor to the bird,
and the turkey flavor can be added
to the stuffing by using the drip
pings from the turkey instead of wa
ter for the stuffing recipe. Stuffing
the bird is just extra mess and makes
the cooking time longer.
After removing the plastic
wrapping, reach into the neck cav
ity (the hole at the end with the
two little wings) and pull out the
giblet bag. This is a wax-paper bag
with the turkey’s once-vital organs
inside.
Reach into the other end and re
move the neck. Take (leart — this is
the grossest part of preparing a
turkey.
Rinse the inside and outside of
the turkey with cold water and pat it
dry with paper towels.
With a little patience, anyone
can prepare this holiday icon
Do not — I repeat — do not
wear the turkey on your head a la
Mr. Bean or Monica (from
“Friends”). Raw turkey is an breed
ing ground for bacteria that can
make you very sick, so be careful to
wash all exposed areas thoroughly
with an antibacterial agent and do
not use the same utensils for pre
cooked and post-cooked food.
Chop up some onion and what
ever other flavorings you would
like, and insert them into the main
cavity of the turkey with some salt
and pepper. Try not to think about
where you are sticking your hand
while you are doing this.
With a needle and thread or store-
bought skewers and laces, close the
main body cavity. I suggest using the
skewers and laces. They only cost
about $ 1 and make the entire process
much simpler.
Put the turkey into a shallow
roasting pan and coat the entire
turkey with melted butter. Toss on a
little salt and pepper, dump a cup of
water or turkey stock into the pan,
insert a meat thermometer deep into
the thigh (not touching the bone)
and seal the turkey tight with alu
minum foil.
Coasting 'Dom
Preheat the oven to 325
degrees, and start cook
ing. The turkey’s pack
aging should give you
a time estimate
based on the
weight of the
bird. Generally,
an eight- to I m
pound turkey
will take three
to three and a
half hours to cook.
The biggest
problem with cooking
a turkey is that the
white meat often dries
out. This is because the white
meat (the breast) is done when the
turkey reaches 170 degrees, but the
dark meat (the legs and wings)
should be cooked until the turkey
reaches 180 degrees.
To solve this problem, keep the
turkey tightly sealed with alu
minum foil to keep the moisture in.
You should only remove the foil
every 40 minutes to one hour to
baste the turkey with the drippings
that accumulate in the pan, and then
one hour before the turkey is done
to allow the turkey to brown.
Many instructions suggest only
“tenting” or loosely covering the
turkey with aluminum foil, but this
tends to lead to a drier turkey. Some
instructions also suggest browning
the turkey first and then covering it,
but this generally results in burnt
skin. Also, regardless of what in
structions comfe with the turkey, do
not cook at any temperature greater
them 325 degrees.
The turkey is done when the meat
thermometer reaches 180 degrees
and the juices that come out of the
turkey when it is poked run clear. Do
not trust pop-up timers that come
with the turkey. These often get
glued down by the turkey’s juices.
Garvinq
Be careful when removing the
turkey from the pan. The drippings
are hot and the wings have a ten
dency to fall off. Remove any
string or skewers, wait 15 to 30
minutes for the turkey to cool down
and then carve.
During the cooling time, use the
drippings to make the stuffing and
gravy. For the gravy, you can ei
ther use a store-bought mix or just
add one tablespoon of olive oil and
two tablespoons of flour with one
and a half cups of drippings to
make your own.
The graphic below shows how to
carve a turkey.
/oejtouers
Turkey can be safely kept at room
temperature for up to two hours and
can last up to four days in the refrig
erator. So you have half a week to
turn the leftover pieces of that deli
cious bird into multiple meals.
If the old standby of mayonnaise
and bread begins to lose its flavor,
any number of meals may be pre
pared with turkey. Turkey is great
as stir-fry, and turkey combined
with sauteed onions, peppers,
canned tomatoes and kidney beans
makes a great chili.
For other ideas, there will be a
variety available on the Internet.
Step 31
With the knife, find the joint
that binds the wing to the
main body and slice through it.
If you
have
prepared
the
turkey
Make a horizontal cut directly above
the wing, along
the entire g—■my, i,,,.,wm .
length
of the turkey.
Out all the way I
to the center ^ ^
turkey in half.
d i re c 11 y , ^
downward in ^
equally thick 2^
slices.
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-TKf
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*
2001 SPRING SEMESTER
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For more information call:
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