Forum Topic

How to roast turkey?

Having glanced through cook books by Delia, Stein, Elizabeth David, the lovely Nigella and others, we're confused - each has a different way to cook the bird. Which IS the best way to roast our turkey this Christmas? Any favourite ideas? And how long for a 4 kilo one? ;-(  

Gerry Tan ● 7436d6 Comments

The best way is to roast it upside down - the breast meat is a bit flat after this, but oh so succulent!

Sarah Felstead ● 7433d

There's nothing like a decent, well basted bird

Gareth Evans ● 7433d

To stop the breast meat getting dry, you could turn the bird a couple of times during cooking to allow the juices to flow into the breast meat.

Keith Iddon ● 7433d

Act-ually Gerry you raise an important point - conversion into metric and cooking by the kilo rather than by the 1lb - I have great difficulty in doing the 'points' when totting up the cooking times for kilos.  Why don't they show cooking time per half kilo rather than kilo?  One of the shops I frequent shows the total cooking time for the meat as well as the weight and oven temp - what a good idea, for me anyway!  Can't say I care for weight metrics when doing the Sunday joint - I prefer the old money!

Sarah Felstead ● 7435d

"...does that help?"Thanks VANESSA, that's useful indeed. My wife favours that way to roast the turkey, but 20mins per pound plus 20 for luck?...I'll have to get our butcher to tell me the weight in old money, as it were - he's a young modern butcher and only deals in kilos...and I usually convert the weight incorrectly! "We have rib of beef and chicken rather than turkey and maybe also a duck this year - luvverly!"Rib o' beef, chicken and duck...say no more, they are my particular favourites for Christmas lunch. Although I'm also partial to a giant platter of turkey sandwiches and beer on Boxing Day...some of the sarnies with mustard(proper Colmans English mustard, not that French rubbish!), some with leafover cranberry sauce and some with cold chestnut stuffing! All with a few bottles of Newcastle Brown...ah, BLISS! Have a lovely Christmas.  ;-)

Gerry Tan ● 7435d

Saw Anthony Worrall_Thompson last week on the box, he said to stop getting dried out meat, do NOT stuff the body cavity, stuff the neck end, this allows cooking from inside out as well as outside in, and do 20 mins a pound and 20 over, test the thigh and if clear liquid oozes out then it's done, does that help? We have rib of beef and chicken rather than turkey and maybe also a duck this year - luvverly!

Vanessa Smith ● 7435d