Roasted Stuffed Turkey
Ingredients:
Directions:
For uniform cooking results, the USDA recommends cooking the stuffing
outside of the bird. If you insist on stuffing the turkey, stuff loosely
and follow the steps below.
- Preheat oven to 325°F.
Check the wrapper to see how much the turkey weighs and determine
approximate cooking time.
- Remove the giblet bag from
the breast and remove the neck from the turkey cavity. pat skin dry with paper
towels.
- Mix stuffing and
lightly fill cavity. Allow 1/2 to 3/4 cup stuffing per pound of turkey.
It is safer to under stuff than to overstuff the turkey. Stuffing
expands during cooking. Refrigerate any leftover stuffing and bake in
greased casserole during the last hour of turkey roasting time.
- Place turkey
breast side up on a rack in a shallow (about 2 inches deep) roasting
pan. Insert meat thermometer in thigh. Add up to 1/2 cup water to the
bottom of the pan, if desired. Cover turkey loosely with a
tent of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Cooking time takes longer for a
stuffed turkey. For example, a 20 pound stuffed turkey will take 4 1/4
to 5 1/4 hours to cook.
- 5. Remove the foil cover after about
1 to 1 1/2 hours of cooking to brown the skin. Brush with vegetable oil
to enhance browning, if desired.
- A whole turkey is done when
the temperature in the innermost part of the thigh reaches a minimum
internal temperature of 165°F as measured with a food thermometer. Check
the temperature in the thickest part of the breast, the wing and the
stuffing. The stuffing must reach 165°F or higher, if it is not, return
it to the oven and continue cooking.
- Check the internal
temperature of the stuffing. Insert the thermometer through the cavity
into the thickest part of the stuffing and leave it for 5 minutes. Or
use an instant red thermometer which will register the temperature after
15 seconds.
- The stuffing temperature will rise a few degrees after the
turkey is removed from the oven. If the center of the stuffing has not
reached 165°F after stand time, return the turkey to the oven and
continue cooking.
- Allow turkey to set 20 minutes before
removing stuffing and carving to allow juices to saturate the meat evenly.
Recipe courtesy of: http://urbanext.illinois.edu
Turkey Recipes