Safeways Two Hour Turkey Recipes

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.

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.

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, 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!