Cooking Turkey Guide - Tips and Tools

Best Cooking Method: Spatchcock Turkey

Spatchcocking a turkey requires cutting out the spine with kitchen shears and laying the turkey flat on a baking sheet for roasting. Why is spatchcocking the best method? When you roast a turkey the usual way, you have limbs covering limbs, white meat exposed to high heat, and hidden dark meat. It’s almost certain to cook unevenly. By flattening the turkey, you redistribute access to the heat source, yielding a more even cook, and crispier skin. Plus, it’s a much faster cook and you’ll have more room in your oven for cooking sides. Win, win, and win.

Set on spatchcocking this year? We’ll be there with you every step of the way in our blog post. Check it out.

Roasting Method: Icing Breasts

The science behind icing the breasts before roasting is simple. The goal is for your light and dark meat to cook at a similar pace. So, by cooling down the breast meat with ice while giving your dark meat time to warm up, you’re creating a good 20-25℉ temperature differential between the two, enough so that your dark meat will finish cooking before your breast meat overcooks. The perfect balance.

Roasting Method: Pizza Stone

A pizza stone is another tool you can use to help achieve both juicy white meat and soft dark meat without spatchcocking. Place the pizza stone in the oven before preheating and allow a little extra time for it to come up to temperature. When you put your turkey in the oven, the dark meat will absorb the extra heat radiating from the pizza stone, while the chilled breasts are as far as they can be from the heat source. This will allow your dark meat to cook faster, up to 175°F or higher, while your breast meat reaches that perfect 157℉.

You Need: Thermapen ONE

You’ll not only use your Thermapen ONE to verify your pull temp (dark meat and white meat - see temps above), and then check moments later after carryover cooking has taken place. You’ll want to use the (true) digital instant-read to verify your turkey is completely thawed (37°F) before prepping to cook.

You Need: ChefAlarm

ChefAlarm allows you to set a high alarm so that you'll be alerted when your turkey hits the exact pull temperature. For your turkey's white meat, that's 157℉. We mention our Smoke BBQ Alarm Thermometer as an alternative because of its two channels. Smoke allows two probes for viewing two cooks at once. So, if you also want to set a high alarm for your dark meat (175℉), you’ll be able to do so and monitor both at once.

Best Thawing Method: Fridge Method

Allow at least 24 hours for every 5-6 pounds of frozen turkey. A 20-pound turkey will take 4 full days to thaw in a refrigerator. This method is the least labor-intensive but requires the most time.

“Turkey must be kept at a safe temperature during ‘the big thaw.’ While frozen, a turkey is safe indefinitely. However, as soon as it begins to thaw, any bacteria that may have been present before freezing can begin to grow again.” - Turkey Basics: Safe Thawing, USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service

Learn all about the fridge method here…

Fastest Thawing Method: Water Bath

With higher risk of contamination and higher possibility of entering the “temperature danger zone,” the water bath method takes constant supervision. However, if you need a speedier thawing method and are willing to put in the extra effort, this can be done safely.

Allow 30 minutes per pound (per .45 kg), so it will still take some time. A 20-pound turkey will take 10 hours to thaw in a water bath.

Get info on all our thawing methods here…

Smoked Turkey

If you’re in the mood for a different flavor profile, try a smoked turkey. It takes minimal prepping, but requires temperature precision. Here’s what we used to pull off the cook:

Smoke™ BBQ Alarm Thermometer
Pro-Series® High Temp Cooking Probe
Pro-Series High Temp Air Probe With Grate Clip
Thermapen® Mk4

Fried Turkey

If you’re looking for a faster way to enjoy a whole turkey, and you happen to own a deep-fryer, try frying. There are some safety tips you should definitely review, and critical temperatures to remember. Here’s what we used to nail our fried turkey:

Smoke™ 2-Channel Alarm Thermometer
12″ Pro-Series® High Temp Probe