Post by nana on Nov 18, 2018 9:56:28 GMT -5
I copied this from the other site. Thanks for the reminder that there's more than one way to skin a cat, or cook a turkey, Chuckie! Also, I wasted time looking for this on here. Now it's in both places. And bookmarked!
I wanted to put this in its own thread because I wanted to review last years success to get ready for this year, and I just spent way too much time searching through old posts to find it. The turkey was just so good, I wanted to make sure I did it the same way this year. In a few years it will become second nature, but for now, I want the reassurance! And I'm glad I looked, because I forgot the part about the handles and which part is the top and/or bottom. So here are the directions for my 2016 turkey, in time for 2017:
Mine was a 20 pounder, stuffed with sausage and apple stuffing. I got a big old roaster at a tag sale this summer, not a Lisk but an equivalent to a size 5, only rectangular instead of oval. I had to take all the racks out and put it on the baffle and even then it was a tight squeeze. Also, both the bottom and the lid have handles, so naturally, I accidentally put the rack with the turkey in the lid instead of the bottom so that as it roasted some of the steam dripped out the edges instead of basting the turkey as it was supposed to, and even so this was a superlatively juicy turkey that had people marveling. My nephew always goes straight for the drumstick, and he said it was the best, most tender and juicy one he'd ever had, no dry or stringy parts whatsoever. It is so good for a person's ego to cook with a Chambers!
I thought of Chuckie and how he said no one could believe the turkey was cooking because you couldn't smell it once the gas was turned off, because that's what everyone here commented on. They were all mooching around the kitchen when it was time to take it out because I had turned on the gas for 15 minutes at about the halfway point and then you could smell it, but then with the gas off again the smell went away. So everyone was eager for the big reveal. And it was picture perfect. Plus instead of having to make the mashed potatoes at the last minute I made them hours earlier at a convenient time and kept them warm in the well, which made everything less hectic.
Here's my methodology for the record: I figured I would count it as a few pounds heavier because of the stuffing, so using a rough guide of 15 minutes per pound, I planned on about 6 hours cooking time. At 9:15 I put it uncovered into a "cold" oven (I have the pilot light), and turned the gas on to 500 deg. At about 9:40 or so I heard some good sizzling happening, so I poured a few cups of boiling water in the bottom of the pan (so as not to introduce something cold into the works), put the lid on, and continued with the gas until 10:30. Then gas off until about 2:00, when I turned it back on at 500 for 15 minutes. Then gas off again till 3:45, when I took it out and revealed the perfectly done, browned turkey. I turned the gas back on to 400, put the turkey back in without the lid for 5 minutes just to crisp up the skin a little, and then took it out and while it rested, I roasted a pan of butternut squash and made gravy, and at 5:00 we all sat down to the best meal ever.
PS, I dry brine it overnight, and just give it a melted butter massage, because it seasons from the inside with all the stuffing. It's good to know though, that you should keep the lid on with seasonings on the outside!
I'm adding an additional tip to this just to just to let people know that this year (2017) I added about 4 cups of water to the bottom of the pan when it FIRST went into the oven uncovered, enough to just cover the bottom of the pan. Then when I heard a good sizzling sound I put the cover on and continued with the heat on for the appropriate time. Last year, with adding the water AFTER I heard sizzling I had almost 2 quarts of pan juices, but they were kind of pale--not enough browning for our tastes. This year I didn't have as much pan juices, a little over a quart, but they were a nice deep brown and full of flavor, and with the broth I'd made (in the thermowell the night before, of course!) I had about 3 quarts of delicious, deeply flavorful gravy. It seemed counterintuitive at first, but I guess when you add the water first, by the time it evaporates and you hear sizzling, you've got enough drippings to really do something with.
So to recap--water into the oven after sizzling, then putting the lid on and continuing the heat = light colored, delicate drippings for gravy. Water into the "cold" oven, putting the lid on after sizzling, and continuing heat = dark brown, deeply flavorful gravy.
I take Thanksgiving seriously, can you tell?
I wanted to put this in its own thread because I wanted to review last years success to get ready for this year, and I just spent way too much time searching through old posts to find it. The turkey was just so good, I wanted to make sure I did it the same way this year. In a few years it will become second nature, but for now, I want the reassurance! And I'm glad I looked, because I forgot the part about the handles and which part is the top and/or bottom. So here are the directions for my 2016 turkey, in time for 2017:
Mine was a 20 pounder, stuffed with sausage and apple stuffing. I got a big old roaster at a tag sale this summer, not a Lisk but an equivalent to a size 5, only rectangular instead of oval. I had to take all the racks out and put it on the baffle and even then it was a tight squeeze. Also, both the bottom and the lid have handles, so naturally, I accidentally put the rack with the turkey in the lid instead of the bottom so that as it roasted some of the steam dripped out the edges instead of basting the turkey as it was supposed to, and even so this was a superlatively juicy turkey that had people marveling. My nephew always goes straight for the drumstick, and he said it was the best, most tender and juicy one he'd ever had, no dry or stringy parts whatsoever. It is so good for a person's ego to cook with a Chambers!
I thought of Chuckie and how he said no one could believe the turkey was cooking because you couldn't smell it once the gas was turned off, because that's what everyone here commented on. They were all mooching around the kitchen when it was time to take it out because I had turned on the gas for 15 minutes at about the halfway point and then you could smell it, but then with the gas off again the smell went away. So everyone was eager for the big reveal. And it was picture perfect. Plus instead of having to make the mashed potatoes at the last minute I made them hours earlier at a convenient time and kept them warm in the well, which made everything less hectic.
Here's my methodology for the record: I figured I would count it as a few pounds heavier because of the stuffing, so using a rough guide of 15 minutes per pound, I planned on about 6 hours cooking time. At 9:15 I put it uncovered into a "cold" oven (I have the pilot light), and turned the gas on to 500 deg. At about 9:40 or so I heard some good sizzling happening, so I poured a few cups of boiling water in the bottom of the pan (so as not to introduce something cold into the works), put the lid on, and continued with the gas until 10:30. Then gas off until about 2:00, when I turned it back on at 500 for 15 minutes. Then gas off again till 3:45, when I took it out and revealed the perfectly done, browned turkey. I turned the gas back on to 400, put the turkey back in without the lid for 5 minutes just to crisp up the skin a little, and then took it out and while it rested, I roasted a pan of butternut squash and made gravy, and at 5:00 we all sat down to the best meal ever.
PS, I dry brine it overnight, and just give it a melted butter massage, because it seasons from the inside with all the stuffing. It's good to know though, that you should keep the lid on with seasonings on the outside!
I'm adding an additional tip to this just to just to let people know that this year (2017) I added about 4 cups of water to the bottom of the pan when it FIRST went into the oven uncovered, enough to just cover the bottom of the pan. Then when I heard a good sizzling sound I put the cover on and continued with the heat on for the appropriate time. Last year, with adding the water AFTER I heard sizzling I had almost 2 quarts of pan juices, but they were kind of pale--not enough browning for our tastes. This year I didn't have as much pan juices, a little over a quart, but they were a nice deep brown and full of flavor, and with the broth I'd made (in the thermowell the night before, of course!) I had about 3 quarts of delicious, deeply flavorful gravy. It seemed counterintuitive at first, but I guess when you add the water first, by the time it evaporates and you hear sizzling, you've got enough drippings to really do something with.
So to recap--water into the oven after sizzling, then putting the lid on and continuing the heat = light colored, delicate drippings for gravy. Water into the "cold" oven, putting the lid on after sizzling, and continuing heat = dark brown, deeply flavorful gravy.
I take Thanksgiving seriously, can you tell?