Thanksgiving Turkey with Gravy
This recipe provides plenty of leftovers for turkey sandwiches when serving 4 people.
INGREDIENTS | SERVES 4–6
- 1 (15-pound) turkey
- 2 tablespoons butter
- Turkey Stuffing
- Basic Gravy
Begin thawing the turkey 3 days before you plan to serve it. Place the turkey in the refrigerator on a tray to catch drippings. Do not remove the turkey from its wrappings. Allow about 90 hours (6 hours per pound) of time to defrost the bird.
Preheat oven to 325°. Remove the giblet package from the turkey. Throw out if not using. Rinse the bird thoroughly and pat dry. Set it on a piece of aluminum foil in the roasting pan. Use a pastry brush to brush the skin with the butter.
Stuff both ends of the turkey with stuffing. Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh, facing the body of the turkey. Cover the turkey completely with foil, leaving a hole for the meat thermometer and seaming the ends of each sheet of foil together (it usually takes 3 or 4 sheets of foil). Place the roasting pan in the oven.
Cook the turkey for about 5 hours. The turkey is cooked when the temperature of the thigh reaches 170° and the temperature of the stuffing is 165°. Open the foil and cook the bird uncovered for the last 30 minutes to brown the skin. Baste often with juices.
Remove the turkey from the oven and serve with the gravy.
A Quicker Way to Thaw Turkey
Don't have 2 or 3 days to thaw a turkey before Thanksgiving? Instead of thawing the turkey in the refrigerator, try the cold-water method. Take the turkey in its original wrappings and immerse in a sink full of cold water. Change the water every 30 minutes. (This is necessary to remove risk of bacteria growth.) While this method is quicker than thawing the bird in the refrigerator (a 15-pound turkey can be thawed in under 8 hours) it is also more labor-intensive.
