Talk Turkey to Me. Renee S. Ferguson

Those who simply toss out the bag of personal parts could be united with those who feel as the above caller did. Although to some the giblets are worth their weight in gold, don’t let the absence of the little bag spoil your feast. Just fake it and try substituting the giblets with a broth made from chicken parts. Count your blessings and move on.

      Stuffing

      To stuff or not to stuff, that is the question. There are as many opinions about stuffing safety as there are recipes, but here’s the bottom line: if the stuffing has been prepared properly, placed in the turkey just before roasting, and cooked to a temperature of 160ºF, it’s perfectly safe. Here are a few tips for proper food handling when it comes to stuffing:

      •Do not prepare your stuffing in advance.

      •Do not stuff your turkey the night before.

      •Do not use uncooked meats in your stuffing.

      •Do not use eggs in your stuffing (an egg substitute is acceptable).

      •You may sauté your vegetables and meat in advance, but do not toss them with the broth and the bread cubes or crumbs until you are ready to stuff your turkey.

      •When taking the final temperature of the turkey, also take the temperature of the stuffing. The thermometer should read 160ºF when placed in the center of the stuffing.

      “Now that I’ve made my stuffing , can you tell me if I put it in the front door or the back door?”

      How about both? Loosely stuff the neck cavity and cover with the large flap of skin that you see. Hold the floppy neck skin in place with the wing tips that have been bent back behind the turkey. Lightly stuff the main cavity and don’t worry about the portion of stuffing that protrudes from the opening; it will cook and form a crust.

      Recycling Queen I

      “Is it okay if I use an old nylon for a stuffing bag?”

      Nylons and panty hose are not food-safe items. The World War II effort to recycle nylon didn’t include cooking with it. Not a good idea!

      A Philadelphia lawyer had just one question: “Do I stuff it from the beginning or cook it halfway through and then stuff it?”

      Always stuff your turkey just before cooking it.

      Stuffing recipes are highly prized. Many are family treasures, as evidenced in a call from a fun guy (you could tell by his voice . . . ):

      “After 22 years of marriage we divorced and I didn’t get her mother’s stuffing recipe. I forgot to have it entered as part of the divorce decree. I’ve asked other family members whom I’m friendly with to give me the family recipe but I don’t have it yet.”

      After some reflection, he remembered . . . “Oh, my ex called and she’s going out of town . . . I think I’ll call my ex-mother-inlaw! I get along great with her—she can’t understand why her daughter divorced me. I’ll give her a few glasses of wine and she’ll give me the recipe.”

      The Truth about Basting

      Basting is really therapy for the cook. It makes you feel as though you’re doing something to help your turkey reach a deep golden-brown color. In reality, though, basting doesn’t help the browning process at all. Your turkey will brown all by itself. Furthermore, basting does not penetrate the skin, so any effort to “flavor” the meat or keep it moist will be wasted. In fact, because you’re opening and closing your oven door so often, the oven will cool down and hence your turkey will take longer to cook. Why do you think it took Grandma all day to cook her turkey? She was in and out of the oven a zillion times!

      “Are all of your turkeys self-basting? It doesn’t say on the label?”

      Any turkey or chicken will turn a wonderful golden brown without your help. Just brush the skin with oil and roast uncovered for the first two-thirds of the cooking time, then tent the breast for the final one-third.

      After the first 15 minutes in the oven, the turkey’s skin becomes seared, so pouring juices on it is like pouring water on a plastic tablecloth—the liquid will simply roll off.

      “Oh, you have such smart turkeys!” said the caller when I told her there was no need to baste her turkey—the bird would do everything all on its own.

      “Yes, we educate them in the basics before we send them to market,” I replied.

      The caller continued with her anxious questioning, asking whether she should rinse the turkey in water. When I told her there was no need for this, she thought for a moment and then said, “Hmmm—smart, educated, and practices good hygiene. Too bad I can’t find a man like that!”

      Determining Doneness

      “I won’t eat at my grandchildren’s house. They don’t use a meat thermometer!”

      Compelling testimony from a grandma! A meat thermometer completely eliminates the guesswork in cooking turkey, or any other meat or poultry. It must be important if it would keep a grandma from dining with her grandchildren. A thermometer costs little, and once you’ve used one you’ll wonder how you ever cooked without it.

      “I just pulled my meat thermometer from the drawer and it reads 140ºF. I’m toast! How do you know when the turkey is done if you don’t have a thermometer?”

      If you just don’t have a meat thermometer, the old-fashioned method of piercing the lower thigh with a fork to see if the juices are running clear will have to do. The color of the skin is not an indication of doneness. Even if the skin is brown, it may be that the outside just cooked too quickly because of a high oven temperature. Conversely, the skin could be pale simply because you used a covered pan and the turkey itself could be done. Poke around with a fork to pierce the lower parts and check to make sure the juices are running clear.

      One caller, apparently confused, set her oven temperature at 160ºF. Confusion abounds among chefs and home cooks alike when it comes to oven temperatures and final cooking temperatures. If you were to cook your turkey to an end temperature of 160ºF, the meat—though safe to eat—would be very rare and have an unappetizing quality and texture; the juices would be very pink and the meat would be chewy. So, for optimum taste and visual appeal, it is recommended that the thigh temperature be 180ºF.