2 Hour Turkey Recipes

2-HOUR STEAM ROASTED TURKEY

Steps:

• 1. BEFORE YOU GET STARTED: You will be baking at a very high temperature, there's no room for error, so, make sure your oven is clean or it will smoke up the house. Also, the oven must register accurate temperatures. If you are uncertain about this, test your oven with an oven thermometer. Do NOT bake any side dishes in oven while turkey is roasting.
• 2. TOOLS YOU WILL NEED: Roasting Pan with Rack (big enough for turkey) You will need a meat thermometer: the kind you leave in during baking (not an instant-read) would be nice, however, you can test close to the end of cooking time with an instant read.
• 3. Thaw turkey in the fridge breast side down. NOTE: this could take a couple of days. Remove 30 minutes prior to roasting and turn breast side up. NOTE Do NOT rush the thawing process by trying to thaw on the counter. This is not safe!
• 4. Remove giblets and anything in the cavity of the turkey; set aside for making giblet gravy and/or stock. Cut off any excess fat around the body cavity. There's always a big hunk right at the main cavity entrance. Discard it.
• 5. Rinse off the turkey and dry inside and out with paper towels. It must be dry as you are going to oil the skin. Oil the turkey on all sides (oil will help keep moisture in), place breast-up and prop the vent open with an eating fork. The fork will stay in the turkey during roasting. Do not tie the legs together and do not stuff. You want the heat to circulate. NOTE: If you do not have Olive Oil, use some other kind of oil, do not use butter, it tends to burn.
• 6. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.
• 7. Place breast-up on an oiled rack and place inside roasting pan. Do not salt (salt draws out moisture), however, you may pat herbs and pepper on the oiled skin or place in cavity. Insert meat thermometer at the breast bone. Push all the way until it touches the breast bone. It should not touch any part of the pan or the inside of the oven. NOTE: Optional: Spray pan and rack with PAM. Line with aluminum foil and spray the foil as well. This will make for a much easier clean up.
• 8. Lay a greased sheet of aluminum foil loosely on top of the turkey; do not tuck or wrap; just let it lie on top.
• 9. Pour 3/4-inch of water or stock into bottom of roasting pan. This should not touch the turkey, adjust rack if necessary. Check that ¾" of liquid remains in the bottom of the pan throughout roasting. Do not baste and open the oven as SELDOM as possible.
• 10. Roast turkey for 2 hours (18 to 20-pound). Remove from oven when the thermometer reads 160°. NOTE: For a larger turkey, you may need some more time. Watch thermometer.
• 11. Let turkey rest for 10 to 20 minutes before carving. NOTE: if meat at leg/thigh joint seems excessively red, return this portion to oven while craving the rest.

2-HOUR TURKEY

Steps:

• 1. PREHEAT OVEN TO 475 degrees F (240-250 degrees C). This is what you'll roast it at for the ENTIRE time. Since this employs the use of a VERY hot oven, make sure your oven is CLEAN before you start, AND put about 1 inch of water in the bottom of the roasting pan to reduce the risk of smoking your family out of the house. NOTE: Even WITH a pristine oven, I still smoked out my house last Thanksgiving... so a tip to cut down on the smoke issue is to add about an inch of water (or broth) to the roaster pan...and keep replenishing it as needed. By doing this, not only was the smoking problem eliminated, but I had terrific drippings for gravy! Place oven rack on LOWEST or SECOND-TO-LOWEST position in oven. The lowest position may be too hot in some ovens since it's directly above the heating elements.
• 2. Remove all giblets, neck, pop-up thermometer (if there is one), and any trussing (like the plastic thing that holds the legs together). Rinse turkey THOROUGHLY, inside and out with cool water, letting all water drain out of neck and body cavities. Pat dry, inside and out, with paper towels.
• 3. Place on V or U-shaped wire rack in roasting pan, so that turkey doesn't rest on the bottom of the pan. The first time I made this I didn't have a rack, so I just slapped it in my grandmother's old-fashioned blue-enamel roaster pan and it turned out FINE. If you don't have a rack...take a long piece of aluminum foil and wad it up into a long rope, then coil it in the bottom of the pan and rest your turkey on that. NOTE: I STRONGLY RECOMMEND KEEPING 1-2 INCHES OF WATER IN THE BOTTOM OF YOUR ROASTING PAN DURING COOKING. This will GREATLY reduce smoking (which can be brutal). The first year I made this, I didn't put water in the bottom of the pan...and I smoked out my house. The turkey was fabulous, but the house was SO smoky.
• 4. Rub the entire outside of dried-off turkey with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. I use Kosher salt because it has large, coarse grains.
• 5. Pull wing tips AWAY from the body, twist them and tuck them, backward, under the bird... up by its neck.
• 6. Using aluminum foil, form caps over the end of each drumstick. If any parts of the turkey extend beyond the pan rim, make a foil "collar" underneath to make sure drippings flow back into the pan. Do NOT tie legs together, do NOT add stuffing, do NOT close body cavity. It's probably okay to put a little seasoning in the cavity (herbs, lemon, onion) but don't fill up the cavity.
• 7. Pour 2 inches of water into the bottom of the pan.
• 8. Bake on the 2nd to lowest rack in the oven.
• 9. Halfway through cooking time, turn the roasting pan around 180 degrees to ensure even cooking. Do NOT flip the bird over.
• 10. It's done when the internal temp (in the thickest part of BOTH the THIGH and BREAST is 160 degrees. Make certain they are BOTH at temp. Sometimes the thighs take a bit longer. When done, remove from the oven. Approximate Cooking Timing: 10-13 lbs. = 50 minutes to 1 1/4 hrs. 13-16 lbs. = 1 1/4 hrs to 1 hour 50 minutes. 16-19 lbs. = 1 1/2 hrs to 2 hrs. 19-22 lbs. = 1 3/4 hrs to 2 1/4 hrs. 22-24 lbs. = 2 hrs to 2 1/2 hrs. 25+ lbs. = 2 1/4 to 2 3/4 hrs...or a bit more depending on how humongous it is. Are you sure it's not an ostrich you're roasting? If not, call the Guinness Book of Records.
• 11. Cover completely with foil and let rest 30-45 minutes before carving. The internal temp will continue to rise to the recommended 165 degrees. After resting, transfer to a platter for carving. NOTE: There will likely be a lot of juices in the cavity. Drain them before transferring the bird to a platter. Save the juices to make gravy or moisten dressing.

SAFEWAY'S TWO HOUR TURKEY

Steps:

• Remove and discard truss that holds turkey legs together. Pull or trim off and discard any excess fat in neck or body cavity. Remove giblets and neck.
• Rinse turkey inside and out with warm water. Pat dry with paper towels.
• Place the adjustable V-shaped rack in a 13 x 16 x 3-inch roasting pan (set rack sides so the bird is a minimum of 2 inches from pan bottom).
• Rub turkey skin generously all over with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Set bird breast-side-up on rack. Pull wings away from body, then firmly twist them to push the wing tips under the bird.
• Using aluminum foil, form caps over the tips of the end of each drumstick. If any parts of the turkey extend beyond pan rim, fashion a foil collar underneath to make sure drippings flow back into pan. Do not tie legs together, add stuffing, or close body cavity.
• Insert an oven-safe meat thermometer near the center of the breast through thickest part until the tip touches bone, which is most accurate spot to check doneness.
• Verify oven temperature and set pan on the lowest rack in a 475° oven. Roast according to time chart:.
• 10-13 lb. 50min to 1 1/4 hrs.
• 13-16 lb., 1 1/4 hrs to 1 hr 50 mins.
• 16-19 lb., 1 1/4 hrs to 2 hrs.
• 19-22 lb., 1 1/2 hrs to 2 hrs.
• 22-24 lb., 1 1/2 hrs to 2 1/2 hrs.
• Continue to check as directed during cooking, until thermometer reaches 160°. Halfway through roasting time, rotate pan in oven to assure even cooking and browning (Tip C). If areas on turkey breast start to get browner than you like, lay a piece of foil over the dark areas.
• Remove pan from oven, set in a warm spot, and loosely cover pan with foil to keep it warm. Rearrange oven racks to accommodate potatoes and dressing. Decrease oven temperature to 400º. Let turkey rest 30 to 60 minutes. The resting period will allow the internal temperature to reach 165°, the USDA safe cooking temperature for poultry.
• Drain juices from body cavity (often plentiful in unstuffed birds) into roasting pan. Transfer turkey to a platter or rimmed cutting board. Set aside juices for gravy.
• Cut off turkey legs at thigh joint . If joint is red or pink, return legs to the oven for 3 to 5 minutes (at 300° to 475°) or heat in a microwave oven for 3 to 4 minutes.
• Carve the rest of the turkey. Carving juices may be clear to pink or rosy; both are fine. Save juices to pour into gravy if desired.
• Time Saving Tip. If you have a frozen turkey, place it in the refrigerator to thaw 4-6 days before Thanksgiving. Take it out an hour before cooking to bring it to room temperature.
• Helpful Hints.If there is any smoke, check pan and wings for drips into oven; adjust foil under wings, or slide roasting pan onto a larger shallow rimmed pan. Wipe drips from oven bottom.

TWO-HOUR TURKEY AND GRAVY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°F.
• Put the onion, garlic, and rosemary, if using, into the empty turkey cavity. Place the turkey in a large roasting pan, breast side up, and brush with the butter or oil. Place in the oven, uncovered, and roast, unattended, for 1 hour. Carefully remove the turkey from the oven (close the door of the oven), watching out for steam. Brush the turkey with butter or its juices. Return to the oven quickly and reduce the heat to 400°F.Roast another 30 minutes, checking the pan juices occasionally. Cover with foil if the breast is too brown. Cook another 30 minutes, adding stock if the pan juices evaporate.
• The turkey is done when a meat thermometer inserted in its thigh registers 170°F and the juices run clear. Let rest 10 minutes (the temperature should rise 10 degrees in 10 minutes). Remove the turkey to a board or platter for carving. Carve. Discard the onions and garlic from inside the turkey. The turkey can be made a day ahead and refrigerated before reheating, carved, or it can be carved 10 minutes after resting.
• If you decide to roast and carve the turkey ahead of time or if you want to freeze a portion of the turkey for another occasion, place the carved turkey in a shallow baking dish, cover it with broth, then wrap with foil or place the dish in a plastic bag; refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 1 month. When you are ready to serve, defrost, if necessary, in the refrigerator for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 1 month. When you are ready to serve, defrost, if necessary, in the refrigerator, then bake in a 350°F. oven for 30 to 45 or until heated completely through (or heat in the microwave).
• While the turkey is resting, place the pan over medium-high heat. The skin, fat, and juices should be a beautiful dark bronze, not black. Remove all but 1/2 cup of the fat. Keep as much of the juices as possible. Whisk the flour into the fat and cook, stirring, until the flour turns light brown. Whisk in the rest of the broth, and boil until thick and flavorful, stirring occasionally. Strain if lumpy or any part is burned. Add water or canned broth or stock if a thinner gravy is desired. Add as much cream as desired. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

GOOD EATS ROAST TURKEY

Steps:

• Two to three days before roasting: Begin thawing the turkey in the refrigerator or in a cooler kept at 38 degrees F.
• Combine the vegetable stock, salt, brown sugar, peppercorns, allspice berries, and candied ginger in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally to dissolve solids and bring to a boil. Then remove the brine from the heat, cool to room temperature, and refrigerate.
• The night before or early on the day you'd like to eat: Combine the brine, water and ice in the 5-gallon bucket. Place the thawed turkey (with innards removed) breast side down in brine. If necessary, weigh down the bird to ensure it is fully immersed, cover, and refrigerate or set in cool area for 8 to 16 hours, turning the bird once half way through brining.
• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. Remove the bird from brine and rinse inside and out with cold water. Discard the brine.
• Place the bird on roasting rack inside a half sheet pan and pat dry with paper towels.
• Combine the apple, onion, cinnamon stick, and 1 cup of water in a microwave safe dish and microwave on high for 5 minutes. Add steeped aromatics to the turkey's cavity along with the rosemary and sage. Tuck the wings underneath the bird and coat the skin liberally with canola oil.
• Roast the turkey on lowest level of the oven at 500 degrees F for 30 minutes. Insert a probe thermometer into thickest part of the breast and reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Set the thermometer alarm (if available) to 161 degrees F. A 14 to 16 pound bird should require a total of 2 to 2 1/2 hours of roasting. Let the turkey rest, loosely covered with foil or a large mixing bowl for 15 minutes before carving.

FASTEST ROAST TURKEY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place the turkey on a cutting board with its breast side down, and using a very sharp knife or cleaver, cut out the bird's backbone.
• Turn the turkey over and use your knife or cleaver to remove the legs and thighs. Press down on the turkey breasts to flatten the carcass.
• Place the turkey parts in one large roasting pan. Tuck between them onion, celery pieces, and, if using, herbs, and shower with salt and pepper. Dot turkey pieces with pats of butter.
• Place pan in a 450 degree oven for 30 minutes, then reduce heat to 325 degrees and baste with accumulated juices.
• Start to check the temperature of the breast and the thigh meat roughly 15 minutes later, and remove them from the oven when they have reached 165 degrees. As with a whole bird, you should tent the meat with foil and allow it to rest for at least 30 minutes.

PERFECT TURKEY

Steps:

• 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. 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.

A SIMPLY PERFECT ROAST TURKEY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Place rack in the lowest position of the oven.
• Remove the turkey neck and giblets, rinse the turkey, and pat dry with paper towels. Place the turkey, breast side up, on a rack in the roasting pan. Loosely fill the body cavity with stuffing. Rub the skin with the softened butter, and season with salt and pepper. Position an aluminum foil tent over the turkey.
• Place turkey in the oven, and pour 2 cups turkey stock into the bottom of the roasting pan. Baste all over every 30 minutes with the juices on the bottom of the pan. Whenever the drippings evaporate, add stock to moisten them, about 1 to 2 cups at a time. Remove aluminum foil after 2 1/2 hours. Roast until a meat thermometer inserted in the meaty part of the thigh reads 165 degrees F (75 degrees C), about 4 hours.
• Transfer the turkey to a large serving platter, and let it stand for at least 20 to 30 minutes before carving.

KITTENCAL'S BLASTED RAPID ROAST 2-HOUR WHOLE TURKEY

Steps:

• Set oven rack to second-lowest position.
• Set oven to 450°F and preheat for about 8 minutes.
• Grease a large roasting pan and a flat rack to fit into the pan.
• Pour about 2 cups water into the pan or enough to cover the bottom of the pan generously.
• Rinse the turkey inside and out with cold water, then pat dry using paper towels.
• In a bowl mix together the melted margarine with salt until well combined.
• Slice off the hanging neck skin then tuck the wing tips under the breast.
• Using cotton butcher's string tie the legs together (do not use nylon string for this).
• Place the turkey on a flat rack breast-side down into the roasting pan.
• Brush turkey with margarine/salt mixture then generously season with fresh ground black pepper.
• Turn the turkey over with breast-side facing up, then brush the top of the turkey with remaining margarine mixture (you do not have to use the full amount of margarine) then season with lots black pepper.
• Insert a meat thermometer into the fleshy part of the thigh but away and not touching the bone.
• Roast turkey at 450°F rotating the pan 180°F about halfway through roasting (at this point you will most likely need to add in more water to your pan).
• Roast at 450°F for 1-1/2 hours to 2-1/2 hours, cooking time will vary depending on the size of your turkey.
• Cook/roast the turkey until the thermometer reads 170°F (the temperature will rise to 180°F when the turkey is removed from the oven).
• For 14-pound turkey start checking the thermometer at around 75 minutes.
• Do not allow the water in the pan to evaporate or your oven will start to smoke, add in more if needed during cooking time.
• When the thermometer reads 170°F remove from oven then lift one side of the turkey to allow the juices from inside cavity to drain off in the pan.
• Cover loosely with foil and allow to stand for 30 minutes (do not slice or stick with a fork or the juices will run out of the turkey).

2 HOUR TURKEY

Steps:

• Cut off skin at the neck.
• Cut off wing and second joint.
• Remove giblets.
• (It's probably a good idea to cook the wings and giblets to make stock since most of the juice will stay in your turkey rather than making a lot of pan drippings).
• Clean turkey and pat dry.
• Salt and pepper inside and out.
• Coat all over with oil, rubbing in a little to make sure you have a good coating.
• Sprinkle generously with paprika.
• Place turkey on its side in a large roaster.
• Roast in a 400 degree oven for 2-3 hours.
• 3/4 of the way through the cooking time, turn turkey to the other side.
• It is very important that you DO NOT PIERCE THE SKIN.
• Just a hint: To ensure you don't pierce the skin and let out all the juice you might want to use a couple old (clean) oven mitts and just pick up the bird to flip it.

2-HOUR TURKEY, REALLY

Steps:

• Since this employs the use of a VERY hot oven, make sure your oven is CLEAN before you start to reduce the risk of smoking your family out of the house. Place oven rack on lowest position in oven. Preheat oven to 475*F.
• Remove all giblets, neck, pop-up thermometer (if there is one) and any trussing. Rinse turkey THOROUGHLY, inside and out with cool water, letting all water drain out of neck and body cavities. Pat dry, inside and out, with paper toweling.
• Place on V or U-shaped wire rack in roasting pan, so that turkey doesn't rest on bottom of pan. First time I made this I didn't have a rack, so I just slapped it in my grandmother's old-fashioned blue-enamel roaster pan and it turned out FINE.
• Rub entire outside of dried-off turkey with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. I use Kosher salt because it has large, coarse grains.
• Pull wing tips AWAY from the body, twist them and tuck them, backwards, under the bird -- up by its neck.
• Using aluminum foil, form caps over the end of each drumstick. If any parts of the turkey extend beyond pan rim, make a foil "collar" underneath to make sure drippings flow back into pan. Do NOT tie legs together, do NOT add stuffing, do NOT close body cavity. THAT's a NO; NO; NO;. Half-way through cooking time, turn roaster/turkey around to ensure even cooking.
• If any part of the turkey becomes too brown during cooking, cover it loosely with foil tent.
• Cooking timing chart below: (times are approximate) 10-13 lbs. = 50 minutes to 1 1/4 hours 13-16 lbs. = 1 1/4 hrs to 1 hour 50 minutes. 16-19 lbs. = 1 1/4 hrs to 2 hours 19-22 lbs. = 1 1/2 hrs to 2 hours 22-24 lbs. = 1 1/2 hrs to 2 1/2 hours 25+ lbs. = Are you sure it's not an ostrich you're roasting? If not, call Guinness Book of Records. It's done when internal temp (in breast) is 160 degrees. When done, remove from oven. Cover completely with foil, and let rest 30-45 minutes before carving. The internal temp will continue to rise to the recommended 165*F. After resting, transfer to platter for carving. NOTE* There will likely be a LOT of juices in the cavity, drain them out before transferring the bird to a platter. Save the juices to make gravy or moisten dressing!

TWO HOUR TURKEY (REALLY)

Steps:

• 1. Since this employs the use of a VERY hot oven, make sure your oven is CLEAN before you start,to reduce the risk of smoking your family out of the house. Place oven rack on lowest position in oven. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.
• 2. Remove all giblets, neck, pop-up thermometer (if there is one) and any trussing. Rinse turkey THOROUGHLY, inside and out with cool water, letting all the water drain out of the neck and body cavities. Pat dry, inside and out, with paper toweling. Place on V or Y shaped wire rack in roasting pan. First time I made this I didn't have a rack, so I just slapped it in my grandmother's old-fashioned blue-enamel roaster pan and it turned out FINE.
• 3. Rub entire outside of dried turkey with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. I use kosher salt because it has large, coarse grains. Pull wing tips AWAY from the body, twist them and tuck them backwards, under the bird...up by its neck. Using aluminum foil, form caps over the end of each drumstick. If any parts of the turkey extend beyond pan rim, make a foil "collar" underneath to make sure drippings flow back into the pan. Do NOT tie legs together, do NOT add stuffing, do NOT close body cavity. NOT, NOT, NOT.
• 4. Half-way through cooking time, turn roaster/turkey around to ensure even cooking. If any part of the turkey becomes too brown during cooking, cover it loosely with foil tent. Use the cooking timing chart below: 19-13 lbs. = 50 minutes to 1 ¼ hours 13-16 lbs. = 1 ¼ hours to 1 hour 50 minutes 16-19 lbs. = 1 ¼ hours to 2 hours 19-22 lbs. = 1 ½ to 2 hours 22-24 lbs. = 1 ½ to 2 ½ hours 25+ lbs. = Are you sure it's not an ostrich you're roasting? If not, call the Guinness Book of Records!
• 5. Turkey is done when internal temp (in breast) is 160 degrees. When done, remove from oven. Cover completely with foil, and let rest 30-45 minutes before carving. The internal temperature will continue to rise to the recommended 165 degrees. After resting, transfer to platter for carving.
• 6. NOTE: There will likely be a LOT of juices in the cavity; drain them out before transferring the bird to a platter. Save the juices to make gravy or moisten dressing!

SIMPLE ROAST TURKEY

Steps:

• Remove any giblets from the cavity and reserve for stock or gravy. Pat turkey and turkey neck dry with paper towel; rub turkey all over with 1/2 teaspoon salt per pound of turkey, the pepper and the lemon zest, including the neck. Transfer to a 2-gallon (or larger) resealable plastic bag. Tuck herbs and 6 garlic cloves inside bag. Seal and refrigerate on a small rimmed baking sheet (or wrapped in another bag) for at least 1 day and up to 3 days, turning the bird over every day (or after 12 hours if brining for only 1 day).
• Remove turkey from bag and pat dry with paper towels. Place turkey, uncovered, back on the baking sheet. Return to the refrigerator for at least 4 hours and up to 12 hours to dry out the skin (this helps crisp it).
• When you are ready to cook the turkey, remove it from the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature for one hour.
• Heat oven to 450 degrees. In the bottom of a large roasting pan, add the cider and enough wine to fill the pan to a 1/4-inch depth. Add half the onions, the remaining 6 garlic cloves and the bay leaves. Stuff the remaining onion quarters and the lemon quarters into the turkey cavity. Brush the turkey skin generously with oil or melted butter.
• Place turkey, breast side up, on a roasting rack set inside the roasting pan. Transfer pan to the oven and roast 30 minutes. Cover breast with aluminum foil. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue roasting until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of a thigh reaches a temperature of 165 degrees, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours more. Transfer turkey to a cutting board to rest for 30 minutes before carving.