by Kevin Costello

Created on: December 14, 2009

To cook a perfect Thanksgiving turkey the most important thing is to pay constant attention to the Turkey. After you have prepared the Turkey and you have it in the oven that does not mean the your work is over.  You should preferably buy your Turkey at a butcher shop, one that was raised on a free range farm and was fed organically. It may be a little more expensive but it will  taste much better than a frozen turkey ever will.  The way I prepare the turkey before putting it into the oven is to first, take two oranges, slice them in half and rub the oranges all around the bird, after that I melt half a cup of butter in pan and mix it with half a cup of vegetable cooking oil and I rub this mix all over the bird as well.  These juices will not only prevent the bird from drying up in the oven, they will also give it lots of flavor and they make a good gravy to accompany the meat.  The next step is to place your stuffing in the bird and put it in the oven.

To get a juicy and tender turkey I normally have it in the oven for forty five minutes per Kilo. So if you are cooking a six kilo bird you need to have it in the oven for a least four and a half hours.  Once the bird is in the oven however that does not mean that you can just leave it in there unattended. You need to baste the turkey at least every thirty minutes. Basting means that you have to scoop  the juices from the turkey that have trickled down onto the baking tray with a large spoon and pour the juices back on top of the turkey so that it doesn't dry out.

After the first hour in the oven you then take a cup of white wine and half a cup of brandy and pour that all over the bird as well. This will give it extra flavor and give you a great base for your gravy. When you baste and pour the drinks on the bird try to get some into the cavities where the stuffing is as well.   

This last part is not essential but after the turkey has been in the oven for around three hours you can turn it around to make sure everything is cooked evenly. Now you should only do this if you have someone assisting you, and you have to be very careful not to burn yourself, or drop the turkey. The way I do it is to take two pieces of aluminum foil and fold it several times, then wrap the foil around the legs of the turkey and flip it. The other person should do the same but take it by the head and help flipping it over. As I said this is not essential and your turkey will come out just fine if leave it the way it is.  Also don't worry if the skin on the breast starts to get crispy and hard, the flesh underneath the skin will remain tender if you keep basting it.

When the time comes to take the turkey out of the oven, make sure you keep all the liquids in the baking tray, pour then into a sauce pan on a medium heat, then add a chicken or meat stock cube and a cup of cream and mix everything together with a whisk or a spoon for around 2 or 3 minutes, and your gravy is ready. Gravy is essential to the thanksgiving turkey because it has all the flavors from turkey and it makes it much more pleasurable to eat.

Learn more about this author, Kevin Costello.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.