The most important thing you should know about Turkeys

blueberrypie

julieq wrote: »

It's about mass, so they will rest fine after roasting, better than an empty bird which has a cavity which allows cooling. If you're nervous about resting the meat for a big meal, even doing it for 15-20 minutes gives a fair bit of leeway when finishing off.

I take mine out, cover it in foil and then put a folded fleece blanket over it, which keeps all the heat in. I don't remember where I read to do this, but it works very well.

Apart from not trying to get everything ready for the exact same moment that the turkey comes out, resting also allows you to use the oven space for the things that don't take very long to cook. I also think it makes it taste better, and carve more easily.

julieq

I usually just use a loose foil covering, it's more to stop moving air cooling the surface than anything else as there's plenty of heat stored in the turkey or meat itself and it radiates up through so things do stay warm. You get a lot more blase about resting once you start trusting it as a technique.

VickyA_2

Thanks everyone for all your tips :T . It's my first ever year that I'm cooking on Christmas Day, due to my mum's op. Mr VickyA and I have been given the task of cooking the turkey and trimmings. :eek:

GoToGal

julieq wrote: »

I usually rest small joints of meat for 30 minutes or so, but I like to live life on the edge

Hehe you rebel you Thanks for the thread, I'd never have spotted it buried somewhere else. Ive got the three bird roast as some other posters and didn't even think about the resting

Merry Christmas all

Barneysmom

VickyA I hope it all goes well for you.
I make a cheater stuffing to go with mine,
Mix a pack of Paxo (other products are available lol) in the usual way, then mix it with a pack of sausage meat, add some dried cranberries (I cut them in half), then cook in the oven for about an hour or so.
You don't have to add the cranberries but it packs it out a bit more.
It's very tasty and makes the turkey go further, some of my family prefer it to the bird!

julieq

The best advice, Vicky, is to keep your sense of humour and not to try to make everything perfect.

I remember my first Christmas dinner, and it was a bit of a fog of stress, steam, bits of pork product, and a timing list synchronised with an atomic clock which I still somehow managed to miss bits of, ending with a frantic 2 minutes when everything came out at once (turkey included). I recall wracking my brains to remember the sorts of things my mother seemed to do so I could follow that same precise sequence. I eventually sat down to eat, covered in sweat, the meal disappeared in what seemed next to no time, and I didn't enjoy it at all.

Gradually you develop your own ways of doing things (like for example telling children they have to peel 10 sprouts per present they're allowed to open, that's a great one ) to simplify things and it's a lot less of a chore. I quite enjoy it now, in fact I've been dribbling for about 2 days at the thought of turkey gravy.

VickyA_2

Many thanks! :beer: Hopefully I'll be enveloped in a fog of gin...... Or that's my ideal! I'm going to be prepping as much as possible the day before, so at least the potatoes etc won't need peeling.

julieq wrote: »

Gradually you develop your own ways of doing things (like for example telling children they have to peel 10 sprouts per present they're allowed to open, that's a great one ) to simplify things and it's a lot less of a chore. I quite enjoy it now, in fact I've been dribbling for about 2 days at the thought of turkey gravy.

Maybe I'll have to get my 27 year old brother on this tack?! Or my dad?

Barneysmom

Yes, get the men peeling spuds, it'll keep them out of mischief! :cool:

A little secret I have is to keep a bottle of Baileys under the sink for these occasions! Keep putting it in your coffee and no one will ever know

julieq

There's a whole chapter in Fanny Craddock's classic "Coping with Christmas" discussing the merits of various forms of alcohol based anaesthia when cooking for Christmas, and I think she recommends barley wine with gin chasers as most effective.

Barneysmom

Might be an idea to start a new thread on this subject, sounds like fun!