Thanksgiving and Christmas Day are the biggest days of the year for eating turkey, but many cooks are left stressed in the kitchen, worried their turkey will be dry and tasteless.
Cooking turkey meat can be tricky, with the risk of a badly cooked bird causing disappointment at the table.
But there are simple ways to ensure you only ever eat a delicious moist roast turkey again.
From how long to cook turkey, to whether to cover it with foil or not, these are the best tips to ensure a perfect Christmas dinner.
How long to cook a turkey
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The length of time you should cook a turkey is determined by its weight.
35 to 40 minutes in the oven per kilo is recommended by Jamie Oliver, meaning a 5kg bird will take between 3 – 3.5 hours.
To check if the bird is cooked, stick a small, sharp knife into the thickest part of the thigh.
If the juices run clear and the meat pulls off easily, it is ready. It not, return the turkey to the oven and check again after ten minutes.
How to cook moist turkey meat
Cooking the bird upside down will ensure the most succulent breast meat and turkey crown on your bird.
This was tested out on Food Unwrapped, who cooked three turkey’s using three popular methods to discover the best.
The reason the upside down method works so well is because the heat circulates around the oven, cooking the legs quickly as well as letting the juices fall into the breast.
The turkey must be turned over 30 minutes before it is down to brown the top.
How to get crispy turkey skin
Cooking with aluminium foil will ensure the bird has a crispy skin while helping the meat stays moist.
Cover the turkey with foil for the first half of the cooking time, ensuring there is a one inch space between the top of the turkey and the foil.
Then remove the foil for the final part of roasting to allow the skin to crisp, and to stop the meat becoming too wet.