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Many folks are preparing for the Thanksgiving Holiday with family and friends and it’s a good idea to remember some important cooking tips when it comes to your turkey. USU Extension Office Emery County, Christine Jensen took time to share some turkey cooking tips with listeners.

The rule of thumb for thawing a turkey is to do so in the refrigerator because the temperature is consistent. “You need to thaw your turkeys depending on poundage and so you need to put them in the refrigerator to thaw. Don’t thaw on the countertop, that’s where bacteria grows. So if you have a 20 to 25-pound turkey, you want to thaw it 5 to 6 days before Thanksgiving day, before you’re ready to cook it, it goes from various days from there. So just make sure that you thaw it correctly. Thaw it in the refrigerator, but it on a cookie sheet, a small shallow pan, put it in your refrigerator and let it sit there,” stated Jensen. Leave the turkey in its original packaging during the thawing process. Once the turkey has been thawed, you can unwrap, remove the insides from the turkey before cooking.

“You can use the cold-water method which is to put your turkey in a clean sink, again, leave the packaging on. Every half-hour you fill your sink with cold water, and then change it every 30 minutes, for every one pound it takes a half-hour. So if you have a 24-pound turkey it will take you 12 hours to thaw that turkey,” stated Jensen. You want to make sure that the bird is submerged and that you occasionally turn the bag during the cold-water method. Make sure that water is not able to leak through the wrapping. Never use warm water.

‘You need to cook a turkey to 165 degrees. You want to test it with a thermometer and put it in the most meaty part of your turkey. Don’t put it on the thinnest part but the thickest part and that will give you a true temperature. If you stuff a turkey with your dressing or whatever you have, you have to have the stuffing at 165 degrees, which will take longer to cook. So your turkey may become dry because of that, you’re overcooking the turkey, to get the temperature of 165 degrees,” explained Jensen. Bacteria can survive in stuffing that has not reached 165 degrees Fahrenheit and may then cause food poisoning. It is recommended that you cook your dressing separately.

If you have any questions about cooking your turkey, feel free to contact Christine Jensen at the USU Extension Office Emery County at (435) 381-3535.

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