Another strange question

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Anybody got the chart for how many days to defrost your turkey, or am I already screwed?

How so? Already have one in the kitchen?

[healey36]

Small frozen turkey this year, just a bit over fifteen pounds. Six days seems more than enough time to defrost it in the fridge.

[up148]

Generally say 48 -72 hours for a bird that size so you should be good. What time are we eating.

[chuck]

If it's still crunchy on the inside/chest cavity a quick soak in COLD water should finish the thawing process pretty quick.

I gave up on whole birds a long time ago. When we had larger gatherings I'd poll the participants about 2-3 weeks before and then buy the appropriate parts plus a breast of the appropriate size. Never saw a 5 drumstick, 1 thigh and 3 winged bird and I sincerely hope I never do.

It was also a lot easier/quicker to cook in Reynolds oven bags. I think it was about 1 1/2 hours.

I also ruined our first microwave trying to cook a turkey in it (about 35 years ago). It was old school and the stirrer was on the top of the oven. Damn thing weighed a ton. Power supply was about 1/3 of the volume and had two capacitors each the size of a Quaker Oats oatmeal container and a honking big transformer. When I disposed of it I made up a grounding strap of a piece of copper and a 18" section of an old broom handle to fully discharge the caps before putting it out with the trash.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Small frozen turkey this year, just a bit over fifteen pounds. Six days seems more than enough time to defrost it in the fridge.

Way long; 2-3 days in the fridge as stated. As my better 1/2 doesn't care for turkey (think parental scarring...) we'll be having a small ham.

[healey36]

Generally say 48 -72 hours for a bird that size so you should be good. What time are we eating.

Dang, now I need to go get a bigger turkey!

[healey36]

I gave up on whole birds a long time ago.

Yeah, but cooking a whole turkey sure does make the house smell great.

As far as ham goes, the wife is a tribeswoman, so I have to carefully pick and choose when we can do that. Christmas is usually okay because I've already gone outside her guide-rails anyway, lol.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

I gave up on whole birds a long time ago.

Yeah, but cooking a whole turkey sure does make the house smell great.

Yup! Done right, hard to beat!

[HONDO74]

Do you folks fix dressing and stuff it up the turkeys butt. For years we used the turkey giblets. Boiled them for the juice and some turkey meat from the giblets and mixed it with the dressing. That makes the best moist dressing there is.

We usually go to my church for thanksgiving dinner. Kind of like a pot luck everyone brings something. Not this year staying home. And since it's just me and the mother in law I bought a small standing rib roast (prime rib) to fix for the 2 of us.

Come the 1st of December the Hy Vee in Springfield will be getting in the Alaskan King Crab. I get that for Christmas eve and day and New years eve. These are gigantic legs and claws. It was $29 dollars a pound last year. I wonder what it will be this year

[up148]

We generally do one in the oven and one deep fried. 10-12 lb birds so lots of take home left overs, but that's okay as son and I like turkey sandwiches on toast with Durkees sauce.

[chuck]

Yeah, but cooking a whole turkey sure does make the house smell great.

Cooking bags don't impede the aroma plus my oven isn't tied up for as long. I can use multiple racks for sweet potato soufflé, casseroles, etc. If I had a second oven I would consider going back to a whole bird but that's pretty far down on my wish list of kitchen upgrades. Plus the bags are pretty much idiot proof, no undercooked or overcooked bird parts.

Re "Fried Turkey", saw too many videos of how that can go really bad in a very short time. (including the All State ad).

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Do you folks fix dressing and stuff it up the turkeys butt. For years we used the turkey giblets. Boiled them for the juice and some turkey meat from the giblets and mixed it with the dressing. That makes the best moist dressing there is.

Have not stuffed a turkey in a long time; w/o a temp gauge in there it's hard to know if it's really up to temp. Used to make a sausage and cornbread stuffing, but again, not in a long time.

We usually go to my church for thanksgiving dinner. Kind of like a pot luck everyone brings something. Not this year staying home. And since it's just me and the mother in law I bought a small standing rib roast (prime rib) to fix for the 2 of us.

Sounds like a good plan and a good meal!

Come the 1st of December the Hy Vee in Springfield will be getting in the Alaskan King Crab. I get that for Christmas eve and day and New years eve. These are gigantic legs and claws. It was $29 dollars a pound last year. I wonder what it will be this year

Probably more; I noticed today that the prices in the grocery store were visibly increased for just about everything; wife had a conniption over the price for the apples and those were the 2nd cheapest in the store. Highest were $3 a pound higher. Baking potatoes are now at least $1 each.

[robert.]

[healey36]

The bag is essential. We haven't made a turkey without a bag for years.

I used to make oyster stuffing, but not too many people care for it. Now it's just some generic cornbread stuffing, maybe with a bit of beef sausage added. I haven't actually stuffed a turkey in years, as that lengthens the cooking time considerably.

Creamed onions and rutabagas generally find their way onto the table. What you don't eat mixes up well as a patch for those cracks in the driveway.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

The bag is essential. We haven't made a turkey without a bag for years.

Never done that. Always tented with Al foil.