Cooking a Butterball turkey for the very first time can be nerve-racking and that thawed turkey sitting on the counter looking at you can be very intimidating. I am here to tell you, it is not that bad.If you already purchased a turkey fryer, you must eager to learn how to cook a butterball turkey using a turkey fryer.
Cooking a Butterball turkey is actually pretty simple, it just takes a little patience while you wait for it to slowly roast in the oven until the skin turns a beautiful golden brown color.
What You Need:
- Roasting Pan
- Baster
- Meat Rack
- Aluminum Foil
- Pastry Brush
- Thawed Turkey
- Melted Butter or Vegetable Oil
- Salt
- Pepper
- Seasoning
**The type of seasoning you use is completely up to you. Some people opt for salt and pepper only. Others may use sage and poultry seasoning, or other herbs.
The first, most important step to roasting a turkey is to determine how long it needs to cook. You don’t want to have all of your sides ready and still be waiting on the turkey to cook while the sides get cold.
A turkey that weighs under 15 pounds needs to cook for about 15 minutes per pound. A larger turkey needs to cook for about 12 minutes per pound. That means, for a 20 pound turkey, it will need to cook for approximately four hours.
- Preheat your oven to 325° F.
- Open the bag the turkey came in and drain all the juices.
- Thoroughly rinse the turkey with cold water and pat dry.
- Place the meat rack in the roasting pan and place the turkey on the meat pan.
- Remove the gizzards and neck from the inside of the turkey.(You can use these “extra parts” for the gravy or stuffing, or simply discard them)
- Make sure the turkey is breast side up, with the wings turned back.
- If you are stuffing your turkey, this is where you will shove the stuffing into the large cavity of the turkey.
- Brush the melted butter or vegetable oil over the entire turkey using your pastry brush. I also pour a little extra in the bottom of the pan.
- Insert your meat thermometer into the thigh of the turkey. Do not let it touch any stuffing or the bone. This is very important because you do not want to serve under-cooked turkey to your guests.
- Set the roasting pan with the turkey in the center of the preheated oven.
- Periodically baste your turkey with the melted butter and turkey drippings from the bottom of the pan. This will help keep your turkey moist.
- About two-thirds of the way into the cooking time, place the aluminum foil over your turkey like a tent. Be careful to not allow it to touch the skin. This will prevent over browning of the skin.
- When your meat thermometer reaches 180° F, you can remove your turkey from the oven.
- Allow the turkey to rest for fifteen minutes, then it is ready to carve and serve.
Yes, your turkey is completely ready to serve.As i said at the begening,this is so simple, even a ameature cooker like me can learn how to cook a butterball turkey & wonder his neigbours.Believe this post will make you intersted to cook a turkey . Don’t forget to share your opinion while you follow our recipe.Learn more about infrared cooking here.