How the Heck Do You Make a Turkey?? :/

I didn't see anybody else mention this....I always put an onion in the neck hole. just tuck the loose skin around it so it stays put.

Clean t, season it, cover it and put in oven easiest part of dinner. Baste it every now and then. If you need explicit directions google it

If you use one of those oven cooking bags, it's simple and effortless.

All you have to do is slather the turkey really well with olive oil - make sure you get to all and really good. Then simply put the turkey in the oven bag (you may need help since the turkey will be heavy and slippery!). Close the bag; cut a few slits in it and put it in the oven at 350. Go by the instructions on the package of cooking bags. It will brown perfectly and be nice and juicy.

Like I said, simple and effortless. It's those dang sides that take all the time and effort!

Good luck! I'm sure you're turkey will be wonderful and you will come away from the day with a feeling of accomplishment!

No real suggestions here, except to tell you to be sure you take out the neck from the body cavity, and the bag of giblets from the neck cavity.

Simple, right? Everyone knows about that stuff...

Well... let me tell you about my first experience cooking a turkey! We'd just been married a few months, and, even though we were going to family for Thanksgiving, I wanted to cook my own turkey... so I got a small one, thawed it, and started prepping it for cooking. I looked in the body cavity, and found the neck... and was very disappointed that they hadn't included the giblets!

Oh, well.... I got it on to cook, and it looked beautiful! Hubby started carving the turkey, and ran into something really strange.....

Oops! Yep... you guessed it.... I didn't realize that the bag of giblets was inside the NECK cavity!

The turkey still tasted fine.....

Also... we did try to brine the turkey one year, and it did come up salty... you do have to be careful and precise in your brining....

(My son went to culinary school and has learned how to do all that properly... he brines briskets and they do come out wonderful! But he has figured out how to do that correctly.)

As far as stuffing.... I don't stuff the turkey... I know it can be done safely, but I don't want to take a chance. I cook it as dressing, separately. I do put a cut up onion and a couple stalks of celery in the cavity to add flavor......

Cooking a turkey is one of the easiest things to do. I have no idea why people make it seem so difficult.

The secret is making sure it is not frozen.

Great advice below, just wanted to let you know, you are going to do great.

Don't sweat it!

Think of the turkey like a chicken on steroids!! Brining is good, but not really necessary to be honest. I have used alton brown's brine a few times (food network). Really is tasty!

For aparagus, I get a pan, trim the asparaus, and lay on the pan. I drizzle evoo, balsamic vinegar, sea salt and fresh ground pepper. I sick it in a 425 oven while turkey is resting...and check and 'roll' every ten minutes or so.

Relax...breath...and have a LARGE glass of wine! **Have one ready for your MIL as well...she sounds like a piece of work!

Happy holidays

I have no idea why your MIL said it would be really hard to make a turkey.

For a basic classic turkey:
Buy a turkey (any brand)
Rinse it out, take out the bags of stuff inside
Put it in a Reynold's turkey bag as directed on the package
Put in the oven for the amount of time listed on the turkey bag package

Done

The bag will guarantee that it's not dry, no brining, basting, or anything else needed.

I don't do stuffing in the bird - it take longer to cook and can lead to food poisoning. I do it in the crock pot with turkey stock for the liquid and it's delicious.

Unfortunately, I have had no luck at all with asparagus, so I'm no help with that dish.

I use a cooking bag. They have instuctions on there. Turkey comes out moist and amazing.
Just don't forget to get the insides out.

Good luck, you will do GREAT.

happy thanksgiving and many blessings

I was so nervous at first too!

It's actually really easy. I ink older generations like to make it out to be soooo hard, because they want to make out like they are working harder than they actually are. Lol. (Granted, some people do a lot more with their turkeys, and it is harder... But it doesn't have to be!)

My turkey recipe is this...

Prepare the turkey by mixing seasonings (I use the same seasonings I usually use on chicken, but with a heavier hand.) into a tablespoon or two of butter, and put that through a slit cut in the skin on the top(so it melts down). Then season the entire turkey with the same seasonings, ending with a light dusting of paprika. ( gives the turkey the nice golden color.)

Toss that sucker in an oven bag, and follow the baking directions that come with the bag.

M.,
The easiest way for me to do a turkey is to make sure you give it plenty of time to thaw out. I usually cook mine in a roasting bag or cover with foil after I have done all the seasoning you want. I make it easy on myself by slow cooking it in the oven ovenight on about 325 from the time I go to Bed around 10:00 or 11:00 pm til I get up around 5:00 or 6:00 to check on progress and doneness. This leaves the oven open for anyhting else I need to bake the rest of the morning and it has come out perfect every time.

I agree with the Reynolds oven bag suggestion. I rub the turkey down after cleaning with olive or canola oil, then season with salt pepper and paprika for color. I do stuff the Turkey. No one has ever became sick, and it makes for better presentation.
I also agree with tge advice about braking the bottom off the asparagus. I steam it-if you have acess to a steamer it terns out perfect and doesn't take up oven space.

Oh I remember my first turkey - first clean the insides out. They have the gizzards and neck in a plastic bag inside the turkey. Pull them out!!!

The instructions are on the bag. I salt and pepper and put butter on mine and then put that sucker in the oven! Very easy. I do stuff my turkey so it takes a little longer to cook.

MIL is trying to psych you out. Happy Thanksgiving!!!

How exciting that you are cooking! I was nervous the first time I did the turkey too, but it turned out fabulous. I took the simple route: first, make sure it's defrosting well in advance (if frozen). It takes days to defrost. Unwrap the bird, removed the giblets and liver bags from both ends of the inside cavity, rinsed turkey with cool water, place in roasting pan on a wire rack (I have one with handles that helps when you need to lift cooked turkey out), and stuff with a cut up apple and an onion, put olive oil in my palm and spread it on top and sides of bird, then salt and pepper top. Cover, then throw it in the preheated oven. Look on the side of the wrapper to see what temp they recommend and cook according to the weight/time chart on the wrapper. About half way through I take the lid off so it browns. Then I take it's temp when it is supposed to be done, to check that it really is done. Then remove from oven and let sit with lid on for 20 or so minutes. Then carve.

It's actually really easy. Good luck!

Ever cooked a chicken? Like in a crockpot? Or in the oven? It's the same idea but it just needs to cook longer because it's bigger.

Making sure the moisture doesn't leave is important. Some people use a bag. Some use a roaster or a container with a lid.

Wash out the turkey really well. Reach into the cavity and make sure the lung tissue is all out or the meat could become bitter. Look in the cavity on top and find the package of giblets, remove the packet. Season inside and out with seasonings of choice. Ilike salt - pepper - garlic powder - poultry seasoning. Place in a big roasting pan with a cover add about a cup of water. Remember to baste (pour the juices from the bottom of pan over top of turkey) you can use a baster, ladle, or coffee cup - whatever you have and works for you.
I always stuff my turkey, just use a food thermometer to check the internal temp. It sould be at least 165* to be cooked completely. When done the legs and wings should wiggle when touched.
When you lift the turkey from the pan, have a helper hold the platter right next to the roaster, check for peices that may have fallen off. Set aside turkey, make gravy and enjoy your meal and a job well done.
It is really easy. I suggest looking for a general information cookbook, such as the Betty Crocker cookbook, tell hubby you need to find this under the tree. These books have so much information in them, cooking charts, and other helpful hints. I just looked up cooking time in my book it says for a 12-16 lb unstuffed turkey plan 4-5 hours cooking time, I would estimate an extra half hour to an hour for a stuffed bird.
ETA:
I forgot to mention my cookbook says to roast at 325*.

Don't worry. You can do this.
One thing I will say before I forget......is to reach into the cavity before you
cook it and take out the gizzards & the neck. Reach into the front whole
and the back hole. Take them out, rinse the turkey, pat it dry then you
are ready to cook it.
Give yourself plenty of time to cook the turkey by reading the label (it says
how long to cook per pound & the label will tell you the weight).
I always put my turkey in first thing about 9am because we eat about 3pm
Once the turkey is cooking, I make all of my sides (mashed potatoes,
yams etc.).
Be sure to check that the oven stays on by checking the light. I have heard many a story of the oven turning off or getting turned off but nobody
knew because they didn't check to see if the light was on.
Try not to open the oven door very often.
I only did it to baste it.
Also, I covered my turkey in a big heavy duty pan on a roasting grill made
for turkeys, then covered loosely w/a foil tent so the outside doesn't
get too dry taking the foil off towards the end to brown the top.

Relax, you will be fine. I grew up w/ my aunt who cooked very bland and dried most things out. I didn't learn to cook from her...I learned through trial and error.

I am not sure why everyone acts like roasting a turkey is such an ordeal. It's not. Have you ever roasted or baked a chicken or over stuffer? Same idea but bigger. I don't say that to give you a hard time but rather because of people like your MIL that make you nervous about it. You will be fine.

If working with a frozen turkey, be sure the turkey is fully thawed. Example: I took mine out Friday evening and put in my sink filled with wather (it was still wrapped). I changed the water a few times and it was ready by Sunday morning.

Preheat oven to 325, put turkey in pan with a little water, bake for 3.5 to 4 hours (based on your size turkey...I just did one that was just over 13 lbs and it took approx 3.5 hours but ovens do vary). If it gets browned quickly, you can wrap in foil to keep the skin from getting over done before fully cooked. Some like to have the temp at 425 for the first 1/2 to get it a good color and then reduce temperature to 325 for the duration...I do not. Either way, as it cooks, you want to baste it...I just ladle some of the water/broth as it cooks and pour over the turkey (several ladles full to be sure all areas are moistened). Personally, I put some butter, salt and pepper in the cavity.

As for brining or not...it's my understanding if you are working with a wild turkey (such as you hunted yourself), you would brine. When working with a frozen turkey, it is not necessary (although my aunt still does it because she always did growing up).

As for stuffing, you can stuff the turkey but it will take longer to cook (not sure how much because I never stuff mine...I fix it separately).

I steam my asparagus. There is a special veggie cooker from Tupperware that I use...microwavable and it always turns out great. Sure you can find a steamer elsewhere or even cook it on the stove. We usually make a hollandaise sauce to go with ours.

A few years ago my mom ended up with scheduled surgery on Thanksgiving so I had to cook! I freaked out! I'm not a "good" cook and I don't really like it. So I googled "easy Thanksgiving recipes" and tons came up. Both my mom and I had 2 crock pots and I bought 2 more and ended up doing my entire Thanksgiving meal in crock pots. It was sooooo good that now I make it every year. lol I have an electric oven roaster that I do my turkey in. It's basically just a big chicken. I sprinkle poultry seasoning on top and inside and put chopped up celery, onions and carrots around it. Then when it's done, I pull the veggies out and serve as a side and the drippings I use for gravy. I serve everything in the crock pots and they stay nice and hot. I have always HATED that everything was cold when you served it on the table. So now we do a buffet and love it. Message me your email address and I'll send you the word document that has all the recipes I use (or anyone else that wants it). I have never made asparagus so I don't have any advice. You will do great and don't stress about it. Good luck!

Ok, breathe. You have a lot of good answers here, just KISS (keep it simple silly). Whenever I keep it simple it comes out delish. Last year I tried something different and it came out dry. I usually just butter it up, salt and pepper it and let it cook. I don't use the cooking bag because I like my turkey nice and crispy. I use to stuff it with stuffing but now I just throw some onion, celery, carrots, garlic, and cut up orange into the cavity.
I usually steam my asparagus and then throw it in a pan with butter and garlic. Either that or I'll roast it with tomato and garlic.
Good luck!

Recommendations from the Food Safety people ....

http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2011/11/do-not-rinse-your-t...

One of the very FIRST things you'll see in the recommendatios. ... DO NOT RINSE OFF YOUR TURKEY.

Here's the full text ...

"1. DO. NOT. RINSE. Did you hear me? Don’t listen to your grandmother and her grandmother and all the grandmothers who tell you to rinse your poultry. DO NOT RINSE YOUR POULTRY. I’ve got science on my side on this one, Grandma! Rinsing your poultry – any bird, not just turkey – can actually cause bacteria to aerosolize (how’s that for an image?) and spread around your kitchen up to three feet! Three feet! That’s really far! Within three feet of my sink, I have my spice rack, cooking utensils, coffee pot and my baby’s bottles sitting on a drying rack. What is within three feet of your sink? Yeah… gross, huh? Plus, it is completely unnecessary. Rinsing poultry does nothing to get rid of most bacteria – the bacteria that it does eliminate are now splashing around your kitchen. What does eliminate bacteria? Proper cooking (we’ll get to that). We aren’t the only ones who will tell you this. Our friend, USDA, agrees. And, from a cook’s perspective, you really want a dry skin on your poultry so it can get nice and crispy."

From the USDA ... http://askkaren.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/549/...

"Washing poultry before cooking it is not recommended. Bacteria in raw meat and poultry juices can be spread to other foods, utensils, and surfaces. We call this cross-contamination.
Some consumers think they are removing bacteria and making their meat or poultry safe. However, some of the bacteria are so tightly attached that you could not remove them no matter how many times you washed. But there are other types of bacteria that can be easily washed off and splashed on the surfaces of your kitchen. Failure to clean these contaminated areas can lead to foodborne illness. Cooking (baking, broiling, boiling, and grilling) to the right temperature kills the bacteria, so washing food is not necessary.
Using a food thermometer is the only sure way of knowing if your food has reached a high enough temperature to destroy foodborne bacteria."

There's nothing to freak out about, really! It's just like cooking a chicken only it takes longer. If you bought it frozen, make sure it's fully thawed before you start cooking. As everyone below mentioned, slather some butter, salt, pepper and any other seasonings you like on the outside. Throw some savory veggies (a couple of carrots, a quartered onion, some celery stalks, a little garlic, whatever herbs you have on hand, a bit or green apple or slice of lemon, whatever you have) in the cavity. This will flavor the drippings and make for a tastier gravy. Cook the stuffing separately (which technically then makes it "dressing" instead of "stuffing" but who cares?).

Plan on taking the turkey out of the oven an hour before you serve it - this will give you time to heat up or finish cooking your side dishes and make some gravy.

Honestly the sides are where the work comes in - cooking a turkey couldn't be easier - you prep it, throw it in the oven and a few hours later, it's done. That's it!

You can do it!!! Not sure why MIL is trying to freak you out, you got this :)

I ALWAYS use a Reynolds Oven bag. Always. I first clean the Turkey all out, and make sure you get BOTH bags of insides out. Then rinse out and pat dry with some paper towels.

I take butter, and olive oil and rub that Turkey down really well, then generously put garlic, parsley, salt, pepper, and poultry seasonings all over and in the Turkey.

Then I chop up a good amount of celery, and onion and put it all around the Turkey inside the bag, like a bed.

Pop that thing in the oven for a few hours, go to Foster Farms website and it will tell you exactly how long you need to cook it for.

As for the asparagus, I trim the bottoms of them after rinsing them, then I take a glass cooking dish and put them in it, with olive oil, butter, and salt drizzled over them, and pop them in the oven for a few minutes until they are tender. Easy, and delicious.

Everything will go great, don't let the stress and small things get to you, or comments from anyone on how tough it is ;) You will do great, and in the end everyone will be fed no matter what happens. No worries!

Good luck!

M.,

I'm sorry that your mother in law said things to make you nervous!!

I don't read ahead so if I have said the same thing as someone else? sorry!

How do I roast a turkey?

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees

Then I take the gizzard/neck out of the cavity (they should be in a bag inside the cavity)

Next I clean it - that means rinse it off with water (NOT HOT) and pat it dry

Next I place it in my roasting pan. the I put a sliced granny apple and a sliced onion in the cavity. I rub some salt and pepper seasoning on it...cover with foil and set my timer for one hour. When the hour is up? I get my baster and suck up the juices and squeeze it over the turkey. Cover it back up and bake for another hour...a 14 lb turkey should cook in about 3 to 3.5 hours.

You will need a meat thermometer to check the temp of the turkey...it should be above 160 degrees.

The asparagus? steam for about 12 minutes - make sure the water is boiling first - add salt - and place in steam basket. I would not boil asparagus. Baked asparagus is yummy! Olive Oil, garlic, bake for 30 to 35 minutes - until desired tenderness.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Asparagus-

here's the trick to asparagus. You start at the thick end of the stalk, and you try to break it off. THe tough bit won't snap, it will bend. go a little bit at a time till it does snap. discard the tough bit.

take the asparagus you will be using, cut into approximately 3-4" lengths. Steam the asparagus until tender, but not mushy.

in a heavy bottomed pot, heat up some oil quite hot. then take cherry or grape tomatoes, which have been pierced (with a fork), drop them in the pan and cook them until they wilt. skin gets shrivelly, but the tomatoes doen't get saucy. My family likes garlic, so I'd probably add a few cloves of blackened sliced garlic too, but that's not for everyone.

toss your asparagus and tomato together, top with butter, salt, pepper, and herbs and a squeeze of lemon if you'd like.

the tomatoes are a garnish, not the main event, you want the total effect to be like 3/4 asparagus, and 1/4 tomato.

I would give you measurements, but I don't use any. (sorry)
you could add shaved parmesan over top, or bacon bits, or pecans, or pine nuts, or capers, or nothing at all.

present and enjoy.
F. B.

The turkey is the easiest part of the meal. Just make sure you have it thawed all the way before cooking it. I'm always a little worried about giving my entire extended family food poisoning for the holidays so I'm really careful to make sure the internal temp is correct.

Any brand of turkey will work, be sure that it is thoroughly thawed. Giblets removed from neck and inside the turkey. They are in little bags. Save the giblets (neck, gizzard, heart, liver) cook separately while your turkey is roasting.
Reynold's cooking bags are easy to use, follow directions in the box. Prepare the turkey. I place chunked up celery stalks including leaves, onion, salt, pepper, butter/margarine at least 1/2 stick INSIDE the turkey. Then I use string (unwaxed dental floss works well too) tie the wings and legs so they stay together.
Use roaster pan, to hold the bag / turkey.
Pat the turkey dry, put in the bag as directed (flour inside the bag first) Carefully cover the entire turkey with melted butter, can be done before putting in the bag, but is slick and messy to handle. Once the turkey is in the bag, close the bag with the tie included in the package, then cut slits in the top of bag, as directed. The slits allow steam to come out so bag doesn't blow up as it cooks.
Most turkeys, have a little "pop up" button in the breast that will pop out when done, or you can put a MEAT Thermometer in the breast, not against the bone. The directions on Reynolds package will tell you. Cook time is also charted for size of turkey. Bake as directed. You will need you rack on lower shelf slot of oven, so will be properly placed in the oven for heat circulation and even cooking. When done, the legs may separate from the bird, split in skin may appear. You can test by moving legs a bit as they will be loose at the joint. If too tight, may not be cooked enough.

While turkey is baking, probably about 2 1/2 hours for your size turkey, boil the giblets with seasoned water, salt, pepper, celery, add a chicken bouillon cube to enhance flavor. When done, remove from broth, cool and may cut up pieces for gravy or other use. I personally don't use the liver, because I don't like it, but some do. The meat on the neck is very flavorful, but tedious to remove because of bones.
Save the broth for adding to dressing.

Once the turkey is cooked, it needs to "rest" before carving, half hour or so. When you have removed all the meat you want, SAVE the bones, refrigerate until you have time to work up. Boil the bones, add some celery stalks, more chicken bouillon and boil until the meat pretty well falls off the bone. Salvage all the meat possible and save for soup or casseroles. You will be surprised at how much you can get, and the broth is wonderful for the soup.

Now back to the cooked turkey in the bag. Open the end of the bag, carefully drain off the juices into a pyrex type of pitcher, the fat will be rich and bright yellow (remember you added butter to the turkey) and as it cools, it will rise to the top. You can use the fat, make a thin paste with flour, stir over heat, until no lumps, add broth (not the fat) to the mixture, boil while stirring constantly, and make the gravy to desired consistency, salt and pepper to taste. If the gravy is too thin, you can thicken with more roué.

Enjoy your new experience!
As far as the asparagus, like everyone said, break off the tough end (stem part) before cooking. Works great in microwave with small amount of water. A nice cheese sauce is very good drizzled over top too.

hopefully you bought a fresh one and not frozen lol. I use the most fool proof recipe of all. Set the turkey on the counter (I always lay out a big garbage bag first under it sort of open to catch and drips etc. reach in the neck and the butt pull out the inside stuff (neck bone and liver, gizzards etc and the bag in the other end is usually something like turkey dressing packet etc) after getting those things out you rinse it out really good til the water runs through clear. put turkey into the pan your going to roast in. then rub it down with olive oil. wrap cheese cloth around it. put it in the oven and cook for 15 to 20 mins per pound. pull it out and take the cheese cloth off and wala your good to go. outside is a lovely golden brown and the inside is nice and moist.

Here is a "KISS" recipe. Super easy.

Prep time is 30 minutes
Cook time is 4 hours

This is a recipe to brine then cook

Original recipe makes 1 (18 pound) turkeyChange Servings
1 (18 pound) whole turkey, neck and giblets removed
2 cups kosher salt
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 large onions, peeled and chopped
4 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 stalks celery, chopped
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 cup dry white wine (if you don't have it, just skip this)

Your cook time will be less cause of the size of your turkey

Directions

Rub the turkey inside and out with the kosher salt. Place the bird in a large stock pot, and cover with cold water. Place in the refrigerator, and allow the turkey to soak in the salt and water mixture 12 hours, or overnight.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Thoroughly rinse the turkey, and discard the brine mixture.
Brush the turkey with 1/2 the melted butter. Place breast side down on a roasting rack in a shallow roasting pan, I just buy the $3 one from walmart. Stuff the turkey cavity with 1 onion, 1/2 the carrots, 1/2 the celery, 1 sprig of thyme, and the bay leaf. Scatter the remaining vegetables and thyme around the bottom of the roasting pan, and cover with the white wine.
Roast uncovered 3 1/2 to 4 hours in the preheated oven, until the internal temperature of the thigh reaches 180 degrees F (85 degrees C). Carefully turn the turkey breast side up about 2/3 through the roasting time, and brush with the remaining butter. Allow the bird to stand about 30 minutes before carving.

Also I don't brine my bird in the fridge, I just put it in the garage.

Never cook stuffing in the bird. You can add it after the bird is cooked just so it looks pretty.

I have a delicious stuffing recipe, if you would like it just PM me.

Make sure you have a good thermometer!!!!!

Make some of the sides ahead of time; stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes etc.

Asparagus is super easy. I break it around the half point or a bit higher to the top. I brush on a little olive oil and balsamic mixture and pop in oven till its very wilted looking. You can sprinkle with parmesan cheese too.

I never had a mom or any female in my life to teach me either. It's all been trial and error. But now we have the internet and forums like this to help. best wishes.

M.~

You are going to do a GREAT job. You've already gotten lots of answers about the turkey. I never brine mine but do remove giblets, rinse, etc. I put a whole onion (cut in quarters) and 2-3 cloves of garlic in the bird where you remove the giblets. I think it gives the bird a yummy flavor.

About the asparagus. One of the BEST recipes I've stumbled on and is so easy. Quarter 8-10 new potatoes, cut and clean your asparagus, mince 2 cloves of garlic, 2 tsp of rosemary, salt and pepper. Take a gallon baggie and dump all ingredients in the bag. Add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil. Shake bag until all is evenly coated. Line a cookie sheet with foil and pour the mixture out. Pick up the asparagus and place back in the bag for later. Cook @ 350 for about 40 minutes. Add the asparagus and cook for @20 mins more. The potato/asparagus mix is yummy. If you put the asparagus in at the same time of the potatoes it will be over done. If you have other potatoes that you're making just leave the potatoes out and follow the rest of the directions and your asparagus will be divine. My family loves this recipe and asks for it regularly.

If you want to do it on top of the stove this is a really good recipe too.
2 Tbsp butter
1-2 cloves of garlic
1 bunch fresh asparagus

Cut bottoms of asparagus off and then cut remainder into 2" pieces. Melt butter in pan over medium heat (do not burn butter). Add garlic cook for about a minute and then add asparagus. Stir fry asparagus until it is tender.

Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving!

Blessings!
L.

I make turkey quite often. I buy the utility grade turkeys when they are on sale for 99 cents a pound and keep them in the freezer. They are an easy and economical meal for the family. I usually just put them in brine the night before. It helps the turkey finish thawing, adds flavour and makes for a juicy, moist bird. Sometimes I stuff, but more often I make the stuffing in a separate dish. I cut up an onion to put in the cavity during roasting, throw in some fresh rosemary if you have it. It adds flavour and keeps the bird moist. If you don't care what your finished bird looks like, roast it upside down. That way the juices from the dark meat run down and baste the breast meat for you. I do this for regular family meals, but when we have company I like the bird to look nice. I rub the bird down with butter (mixed with poultry seasoning), and put a couple of pats under the skin on the breast. Just google a roasting timetable for times and temps.

Are you breaking off the bottoms of the asparagus? If you bend the asparagus it will snap off at the tender part. The bottom part should not be used. It will not become tender.

I just do it super easy every year and every year I think it comes out good. I don't stuff it now...I used to and it always came out fine. Now I just cook the stuffing separately. Make sure the turkey is thawed all the way. It takes longer than you think. I just wash the bird with some water. Put some fresh herbs (like sage) and some cut up lemons inside the cavity. Then I rub the turkey all over with olive oil and then salt and pepper. I follow basic roasting instructions for the time per pound and I baste it often. It's super easy. I don't do anything special. I used to not put anything inside or put stuffing inside. It's always good. If the top starts looking too brown then just put some tin foil over it while it continues cooking. My mom never taught me cooking recipes and over the years I just look up recipes and try them. Google "New York Times Thanksgiving" and there is this great article with recipes for everything! Don't freak out...it'll be great.

Best turkeys are brined. It makes sure that every part, including the breast, is super moist. Once you've had a brined turkey, it really is the only turkey you will eat.

I use a Spanek vertical roaster and the turkey comes out perfect every time.
I have a 14 lb fresh (not frozen) turkey.
I'll be brining it tomorrow afternoon (they say 1 hr per pound), then I'll pop it in the oven at 350 degrees for 12 minutes per pound (168 minutes total not counting the searing time).
The wings and drumsticks are foil covered till the last half hour.

http://spanek.com/roaster/basic-roaster-instructions.php

Because it steams, it always comes out very juicy and it's impossible to over cook it.

Do not do brining since you're new at this. Turkeys a cinch. Do what the person below said and use the bag. You would season it with salt and pepper first of course. Here's a recipe for our favorite turkey if you want to get a little fancy. It is VERY EASY!!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/maple-r...

Hi. First, Happy Turkey Day!!! Relax. :) I don't brine. I have heard too many horror stories about that. I find that turkey is among the easiest thing to prepare for Thanksgiving. I don't do a bunch of bells and whistles and everyone always loves my turkey.
Make sure it's thawed! I cannot stress that enough. Remove all the giblets, etc... (I left mine in the first time and still get teased about it!! haha
I don't stuff it because of chances of making people ill and don't want THAT a memory for people to bring up every year! ;)
Rinse your bird off and place it in the roasting pan with about 1-1 1/2 inches of water, sliced onions and celery and bay leaf. Sprinkle the top with salt.
Now, just bake it! I do not trust the "pop up timers" as they rarely work. Cover it in a tent of foil, tightly around the edges of the pan. Get a meat thermometer and the package or directions will tell you what temperature it should be done to (I believe 165 degrees taken deep in the thigh). I bake at about 350 degree oven. As soon as you can smell the yummy goodness, baste that bad boy with the juices of the turkey/water. Keep basting about every 1/2 hour. Be sure to get all the juices from the cavity and put those into the liquid already in the pan.. Yummmy... I know that opening the oven will increase the cook time and lower the temp. of the oven, but trust me.... I have NEVER had a dry or undercooked turkey (whew). Just keep with the basting and when it's basically done, take the foil off and take real butter and glaze the turkey with the butter and let it brown up a bit without the foil. Take it out of the oven, let sit for a bit while you get everything else finished. Letting it sit is key. A friend of mine does a honey/butter glaze that makes the bird a bit more sweet and browns quicker, but I prefer just the butter.

As for asparagus.... those are tough. I find that if I buy the smaller ones (not as large on the bottom), they work better. Cut off any whitish color on the bottom of the spear. We like to cook them in a shallow amount of water and salt until about 1/2 way done (still tough to the fork, but not raw) and then wrap them in prosciutto or bacon and then broil or grill them... very tasty and usually very tender. That's a tough side to accomplish, in my opinion.

This is a learning process and don't be discouraged if something doesn't turn out right. After all, it's about the togetherness and don't stress out! Hope all these suggestions help you out, there are a lot of answers! Please let us know how it turns out!!!

~L.

Take a deep breath. A turkey is NOT hard. Maybe she said that to make herself look really awesome, lol!

Most turkeys have cooking directions on them. I have had good success with putting the turkey in an oven bag and then setting it in the roasting pan and cooking it for however long the directions on package say- it will say how long to cook per lb. I have also done it without the bag with good results. Don't forget to remove the giblets and junk from inside the bird before cooking, of course. One thing I have tried on both chicken and turkey is using a food processor to chop up some herbs (rosemary, thyme, oregano, sage, etc), fresh garlic and salt and then rubbing that mixture under the skin before cooking. Another option is brining the turkey. There are great directions on how to do this at www.ourbestbites.com. It will NOT make your turkey too salty. It will make it extra tender, juicy and delicious. We tried this out last weekend and were very happy with the results. I believe the turkey needs to soak in brine for 10+ hours. You can put it in a big stockpot or giant bowl in the fridge to brine.
No stress! It will turn out great! I promise. The key is to just reading the directions and planning ahead since it takes a while to cook. I think all the side dishes are WAAAYYY more work than the turkey.

Look on the label. There are directions, and I know the first year I made a turkey I actually called the Butterball 800 number on the label for help!
Brining is a GREAT idea, you just don't want to do it too long.
Google "America's Test Kitchen" they probably have the best cooking advice, and allrecipes.com is a really good, reliable cooking/recipe site too.
Good luck, and don't stress!!!

After you read Wee12adopt's food safety link, go to the Butterball website and read that. It gives good advice. Make sure you thaw out your turkey on time. I'll bet the Butterball site will explain that.

For a more moist turkey, lay it on it's back instead of the back up. My mom taught me that trick. She's right!

And, buy an oven thermometer - they're great! That way you know the turkey is done. It's an emormous load off your shoulders if you know that turkey isn't still raw down in the middle...

About the asparagus - I'll bet you're laying the whole thing in the pan, aren't you? You have to snap off the bottom of the stalk - the fat part. Hold the stalk in your hand and gently flex it. It WANTS to break where it's supposed to. Go ahead and break it. There ya go. That's the part you cook. Lay them in a pan with some butter and lemon juice spritzed on, cook them quickly and don't get them overdone. Nothing worse than a soggy, limp asparagus! It's the last thing other than the rolls that you want to cook.

Great answers! I just wanted to add that I ALWAYS stuff my turkey :) Just make the stuffing like you would, then stuff the turkey and bake. I've never experienced that it adds time or that it's unsafe.

I also don't understand why everyone makes such a big deal out of baking a turkey. *roll eyes and grin* It's like THEY are the ONLY ones who know how to do it properly LOL Have fun cooking your first turkey!!