The Turkey

Brining all said and done, it was time to cook the bird.
Weighing in at 17.65lbs, I started off cooking it (on a rack, stuffed with aromatics) at 425 to help dry the skin. This worked, but 20 minutes in it also set off all the smoke detectors in the house. (Burning turkey fat and butter = lots of smoke)

I opened all the windows, fanned the smoke detectors with the broom and turned the oven down to 325 and continued baking the turkey for 4 hours.

I was surprised at how few juices were actually released - so too was the gravy maker, who was hoping for more. We took the bird out, tented it with aluminum foil, and let it rest for about 30 minutes while the stuffing and green bean casserole were in the oven.


Then came the carving...


I need to seriously invest in a serrated knife before this time next year.

The turkey was moist and delicious. I would say that the only part that was noticeably salty was the meat right next to the skin, but it was not overwhelming, just well seasoned.

My roommate was in charge of the gravy, thickened with cornstarch, which was awesome!
(Stock made from the giblets, neck and heart with celery, onions and some other secret ingredients + turkey drippings + the meat from the neck, giblets and heart + cornstarch slurry + salt and pepper to taste)