from the turkey into the sink.
•Pat the turkey dry with paper towels. Discard the paper towels.
•Place the turkey on a rack in a shallow, open pan.
•Rub the turkey with vegetable oil for even browning, or simply spray with a cooking spray—it’s a lot less messy and there’s no brush to clean.
•Season the turkey if you wish.
•Insert an oven-safe meat thermometer into the turkey.
Seasoning: The Spice of Life
“I lived in Barbados for a while. Those people rub everything with ketchup. How do you think it would be if I rubbed my turkey with ketchup?”
“Our family uses maple syrup to baste the turkey. It’s sweet and crispy and it browns the turkey nicely.”
“My mother is from the Old Country. She’s always done this and I’ve been cooking since I was 13 so I do it too. Everyone just loves my turkey in tomato sauce!”
“I just watched this cooking show and they used pickling spice to season the turkey. What do you think of that?”
Seasoning is a matter of personal preference. In reality, any seasoning that is sprinkled or rubbed on the turkey will not flavor or penetrate the skin or the ribs. The skin is a barrier—it keeps substances from getting into the meat. Think about your own skin. If you sprinkled oregano on yourself, it wouldn’t seep through your skin and flavor your insides! The only part of the turkey that gets flavored is the skin itself—as well as the pan drippings.
Trends in seasoning change, just as recipe ideas featured in magazines change from year to year. Whatever choice of flavors is your passion, just remember to follow the timing guide for the specific cooking method you will be using. The only thing you really need to do is keep it simple.
“Do I season this all over the turkey body and make it look more ugly?”
“My buddy puts garlic under the skin, but I don’t want to put my hand in there!”
“What about apples, oranges, and an onion in the cavity or sprinkled around the outside?”
“I use mayonnaise instead of oil.”
Some people use a dry rub, while others marinate the turkey using their favorite seasonings. The variations are countless. There may be as many recipes as there are cooks, and they can range from simple to complex. Some people feel that if they don’t shake something onto the turkey they are just aren’t cooking it at all!
Permission granted. If you want to season the turkey with salt and pepper before roasting, go ahead, but know that any seasoning that you sprinkle on top of the bird or place in the cavity will not affect the flavor of the turkey and may affect the flavor of the gravy. Your only essential ingredient is oil. Everything else is superfluous.
Anatomy 101
“I need some confirmation. I thought when I got a whole turkey it would be all white meat. There’s dark meat on this one.”
Approximately 70 percent of a whole turkey is white meat. The remaining 30 percent is dark meat. If you want only white meat, purchase a breast.
“I bought a turkey and the directions said to put it breast-side-up. Where’s the breast and which side is up?”
The breast is the big bump that faces up when the turkey is placed flat on its back. If you were to place the turkey breast-side down, it would be a rock’n and roll’n bird.
“My husband is in the navy. He says a hen’s breast is bigger than a tom’s. Does a hen have a bigger breast?”
It’s not like human anatomy. Your husband’s been in the navy too long!
“That hook, the bony, butt part—do I take it off?”
Not if you belong to this family:
“That part that goes over the fence last is the piece of the turkey the men in our family all fight over. Each year we have to draw straws to see who gets the honor of eating it. It started when I was a kid and each year we’d argue about it because Dad always got it since he was the dad. Now that he’s gone, my brothers and I figured out a fair way to win the pièce de résistance.”
That pièce de résistance, by the way, is the turkey’s tail.
Giblets
In one cavity of the turkey when you purchase it is a bag containing the heart, liver, and gizzard. This trio is what are called the giblets. In the other cavity you’ll find the neck. All or part of the giblets and neck may be used to make a broth and then stored for use in any of your favorite recipes that call for broth.
“You mean I have to put my hand in there? Look, I’m straight . . . I just don’t want to run into anything I shouldn’t!”
