Is it actually possible to make a GOOD thanksgiving turkey?I mean, the stuffing can be great, the side dishes can be great, you can make the skin crisp, I know all that, but a lot of the meat will be just dry. And I'm not sure if injecting brine is much more than a meme.So in essence, is it possible to make a thanksgiving turkey where every last bit is tasty and juicy?t. Someone who never cooked turkey but is just curious.
My turkey is always good every year and I don't know what I'm doing differently from everyone else's dry-ass turkey. I don't brine it.I don't roast it upside-down. I don't tent it.I don't pray to Pavonus, the god of turkeys and I don't sacrifice my first born in offering; I don't sacrifice anyone else's first born in offering, either.I don't even do the traditional turkey-roasting dance to ward off the Drying Sprites from ruining the bird. None of it. No woo.I just slather it under the skin with spiced-and-herbed mayonnaise and roast it like a chicken because that's basically what it is: a big fucking chicken. Don't overthink it and you'll be fine.
Brine it for a few daysCook it upside down so the breast doesnt overcook then flip it over near the end to get the skin crispy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNyHqRjMx7o I've used that recipe the last two years and it's fucking great. None of that brining shit, just a lot of butter and fresh herbs.
>>21666841>t. never actually roasted a turkey
>>21666848I do a wet brine but roast it right-side up with foil on the breast until the last 30-45 minutes
>>21666837>>21666843So, just to clarify: There is a way where turkey breast meat is not dry?
>>21666821Spatchcock that bitch, then brine it or slather it or whatever you want to do, doesn't matter really, just add some flavor. Pull the breast at 155°, pull the dark meat at more like 175°. Yes, degrees F, only Americans give a shit about turkey.
>>21666843>Turkey slammed full of fruit inside and caked in a layer of herb butterIf this were anyone besides Chef JP doing it I'd call it a meme but I trust that man with my life.>>21666929As >>21666947 said spatchcock and keep an eye on the internal temp with an instant-read or probe thermometer and pull it a little before to allow the carryover heat to finish it off.https://www.seriouseats.com/butterfiled-roast-turkey-with-gravy-recipeAnd if you do spatchcock it then brine as follows:https://www.seriouseats.com/quick-and-dirty-guide-to-brining-turkey-chicken-thanksgivinghttps://www.seriouseats.com/the-food-lab-the-truth-about-brining-turkey-thanksgiving
>>21666821>deep fryJuice maxxed. But hazardous.>powdered milk rubTenderizes. Better at lower longer Temps (finicky Maillard management, especially. grilling.)>proper wire holder, not just inna panIf the tits' juice is the concern, have some standoff (foil, bed of taters) and/or very generous tallow applicationtmay8
>>21666957Imagine over complicating something so simple. You don't need a thermometer or to brine it. If you don't want it to be dry then baste it every 2 hours. That's literally it. Ignore all these nerds.
>>21666947Europoor detected. Enjoy your curry Ahkmed.
>>21667015Howdy. I'm >>21666837I don't baste it, either. It's just a giant chicken and basting doesn't do shit anyway. It just dribbles back down again.
>>21666821The main issue people have with turkey is drying it outIt's a big bird, you need to cook it for longerCooking it for longer evaporates moisture; dries up.You have to cook it with alot of fluid around it;-Brine it-Seal it in foil wrap-You could baste it, but that lets out moisture from the oven every time you open it. So you'd be basting it a lot to compensate.-You could salt bake it, but that's ALOT of salt and it makes the bird ..salty.Unless you are carving it as a centerpiece I would advise to cut the meat off the bird and cook it in smaller parts, bone in or out
Dry brine it for 2 days and blast it at 450fThis one was a genetic monstrosity so the thighs read 170f before the breasts were even 120fPersonally it was perfect because i prefer overcooked thighs that fall off the bone
>>21666821I make Gordon's recipe and it's pretty damn good. https://youtu.be/XO5DF8soxwM
>>21667245oh and this was my result this year
>>21666929>There is a way where turkey breast meat is not dry?Tiny window, but turkey breast meat is spectacular second-day sandwich fare, so if you fuck it up, hit the thighs, where the flavor is on thanksgiving, then eat delicious breastmeat sandwiches for the next three weeks..
>>21666821I've smoked turkeys that turned out really well. Also had some fried turkeys that were great.
Just stuff under the breast with a shit load of butter and baste every 45-60 minutes.Use a low temp (325F) and have a meat thermometer to check when it's ready to come out.And finally rest the turkey for at least 15 minutes, but up to 30-45 minutes if it's a larger bird (18+ lbs) It'll continue rising in temp by ~5-10 degrees for at least 10 minutes after coming out of the oven, so feel free to pull your bird out a bit "early" if you're near your desired doneness temp.
>Spatchcock>Season>Cover in a lemon and herb butter>Baste itWala.
>>21666837>hot mayonnaiseI could see herbed and seasoned butter though.
>>21666970>Juice maxxed. But hazardous.it's perfectly safe if you do it right and arent retarded.
>>21666821Brining is not a "meme". I hate threads like this where the OP is completely clueless and shows up here like a baby wanting to be spoonfed. Go watch a video or something. You don't inject brine. Just submerge the entire thing. Or dry brine it really well for 36 hours. You need to get salt deep into the meat. Methods are not memes, equipment isn't memes, and ingredients aren't memes. Grow up.
>>21666970>cutesy cringe languageKYS
>>21667681Well wook at big tuff and scawy anon. Oh noes! Go sodomize your grandparents, ultra faggot.
Do Julia Child's Turkey. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBY_moYQdN4It's idiot proof.
>>21667678Shut the fuck up.
>>21666821I debone it then dry brine it
Plain turkey is meant to be dry. The moisture is meant to come from the gravy, not the meat itself.
Forged about goyturkey and take the duckpill.
There's one simple trick. You have to cut the bird apart before cookingthrow out any kind of desire for a whole bird for the sake of presentation. it will only ruin half of the meat.the white meat and the dark meat require two different cook times to completecook a whole turkey to dark doneness, your white meat will be atrociously drycook a whole turkey to white doneness, your dark meat will be tough, rubbery, and probably still raw at the deepest pointscook them seperately and you can pull the white meat when it's still plump and juicy and you can let the dark meat cook longer to let all that fat render and the meat to become tenderhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhYIlntrxDs
>>21668163Retard
>>21666821Who cares if the meat is dry. That's why you make gravy.
>>21668275Everyone's going to dump gravy on it anyway, you're just wasting your time if you brine it or fry it or whatever.
>>21668334>It doesn't matter if you overcook meat, just drown it in sauce lolKill yourself any timeJust because you're too much of a retard to do it right, doesn't mean everyone else isI suppose you also eat your steak well done with ketchup?
>>21668343>I suppose you also eat your steak well done with ketchup?Since when is putting ketchup on steak the same thing as putting gravy on turkey? You're a bit of a freak if you eat just plain turkey.
>>21668343Well if you are drying the bird out by cooking it all at once. Why would I waste the juices that drip out?
>>21668347>>21668350I see I've bitten off more than I can chew here and have to admit defeat in the face of such overwhelming mental retardationI'll just have to pray you eventually come to learn that everything you think you know about turkey is wrong yourselves
>>21668358>bitten off more than I can chewStick to white meat. You obviously cant handle the leg.
>>21667669The mayonnaise melts or gets absorbed or whatever. I used to use butter but mayonnaise honestly just works better. Crispier skin. More flavorful turkey. Plus, the mayonnaise I use has lime juice in it, which has a mild tenderising effect.>>21667678It's not a meme but it's also not necessary if you don't overcook the fucking thing in the first place. Besides: most turkeys bought for Thanksgiving in the US /are brined already/ anyway. The vast vast vast vast vast majority of them, in fact. And brine won't save you from overcooking, which summons the Drying Sprites to make your bird as desiccated as a nun's cunt.
>>21666821>to make a GOOD thanksgiving turkey?>I mean, the stuffing can be great, the side dishes can be great, you can make the skin crisp, I know all that, but a lot of the meat will be just dry. And I'm not sure if injecting brine is much more than a meme.>So in essence, is it possible to make a thanksgiving turkey where every last bit is tasty and juicy?Yes and it's very simple. Cook breast and leg & thigh to their respective target temperatures. Go too far above their 'well-done' temperatures and they will be dry. Covering it with gravy won't disguise that.
>>21666821my dad cooks them every thanksgiving and they're never dry seems like most people just don't know what the fuck they're doing cause I always here the same complaints about turkey and that the sides are the best part of thanksgiving which don't get me wrong are delicious as well but a good turkey is up there too
>>21666843I really do love Jean Pierre such a good channel
>>21666841>Cook it upside downthis is what my mom does and it works great. she turns it over halfway through I think
I tried the spatchcock meme but for the last few years I've been deboning my turkey. I leave the leg and wing bones in but I remove everything else. you can roll it back up with stuffing inside, but I just cook it laid out flat on a wire rack.
>>21670178Why is there a tub of lotion with a pump on the dinner table?
>>21671176>he doesn't reuse his jo lotion pump as a gravy dispenser
>>21671467HAHAHAHAHA
>>21667898You shut up faggot, he makes a great point you fucking faggot FAGGOT FAAGGOOOTTTT
>>21666821Cook it covered, and then brown the skin under the broiler at the end
Half cooked this in a pot it didn't really fit in then gave up and bisected it to finish on a baking sheet. Worked well as most of the juices were in the pot and not overflowing the baking sheet.
you're all overcomplicating thingsjust get a butterball turkey shit has so much butter injected into it, you'd have to be a retard to have it turn out dry
A simple pan of water placed in the rack below the bird prevents dryness and assists carmelization of the skin. No skill required.
>>21671681Butterball doesn't have butter in it, retard.
To clarify what I mentioned above about target temperature, all the techniques do the same thing: temperature controle. They are designed to more finely control the breast and leg & thigh temperatures from rising too high (relative to each other) and allowing a more gradual increase to the target temperatures. - Turning the bird upside down: delays the temperature increase of breast relative to the leg & thigh meat.- Butter under the skin: acts as an insulator since water takes a long time to increase in temperature.- Liquid in tray or injected or brine: same as above.- Spatchcocking increases the surface area and allows the meat to cook quicker and also flatens the profile of the bird and allows more even cooking. There will be less overcooking of the breast because it won't be in the oven as long. Whole turkey really doesn't do well with a dry-heat method. It's more towards the shape of a sphere (low-surface area) so imagine the heat trying to get to the inside of the bird and overcooking the outside layers of meat in the process before the inside is done. People then take it out of the oven and 'carry over cooking' continues to increase the temperature even further.
>>21671609You sound mad
