Talking Turkey
In today’s podcast we will bust a few turkey myths and give you the rundown on how to prepare your turkey to make it safe for you and yours.
MYTH ONE:
Rinsing the turkey will get rid of germs.
No it won’t. Those little buggers hang on and those that do come off from the cold water will be in your sink, countertop. Do you know what will kill those surface bacteria? Salt. Salt your turkey with Kosher salt. It will allow the skin to dry nicely so when you bake the bird the skin will be nice and crisp.
MYTH TWO:
Brine the bird to make certain it is moist and put in those great flavors.
Brining the bird is a pain. Take that large bird and find a pot to brine it in. Messy. And it won’t keep the bird moist during cooking. The white meat gets dry because when the proteins reach 165 degrees F they unwind (denature) and let the water out. The proteins then develop the consistency of hair. A brine will not keep those proteins from doing what physics meant them to do.
Flavor will not stay in the brine. The flavors you put into the brine will penetrate a millimeter or two, but not all the way. Do you know what works better than brine? Salting the turkey.
MYTH THREE:
Stuffing in the turkey will cause food poisoning.
Well the answer is maybe. It depends on what temperature the bird is and the stuffing and what is in. the stuffing but if you splatchcock the turkey there is no place for it. And if you are really smart and cook the turkey sous vide (really smart people do this) then you know you have to cook the stuffing in a regular dish.
MYTH FOUR:
The pop-up will tell you when the turkey is done.
Nope- it will tell you that the turkey has spent so much time in your oven that it is over-cooked. Turkey meat is best served at 150 degrees F so that it stays moist. I know “they” say take a whole bird out at 165 degrees F, but they are trying to keep you from harming yourself.
The bird dries out after 160 degrees F – the proteins unwind and let out the moisture and the only thing that makes that turkey breast palatable is a mouthful of gravy.
So, don’t trust the Pop Up method. If you do cook a whole bird, use an instant-read thermometer, prefer the kind you leave in the bird and it alerts you when it reaches 160 degrees F and then you take the bird out and rest it.
Of note- if you splatchcock the turkey you won’t need the Pop Up. If you Sous Vide the turkey you won’t need the pop up.
MYTH FIVE:
The best way to cook the turkey is the whole bird in the oven like some relative did.
Don’t put the whole bird in the oven. I know, lots of recipes out there and you are probably afraid of how to cook the turkey perfectly. There are three ways:
The wrong way – the whole bird into the oven and cook for hours.
Oven right way – splatchcock the turkey.
Really smart way – Sous Vide the turkey giving you the best and most moist turkey everywhere.
