I Have Already Salted Inside the Turkey Cavity. Just Showing

• totale tijd: 1 hour 27 minutes

Ingrediënten

Buttered Cheesecloth Turkey:

One 14-to-16-pound turkey, innards for stuffing, neck reserved for gravy

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Stuffing, optional

1 or 2 sticks (8-16 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted

Instructies

Special equipment: 1 large double-layered piece of cheesecloth

Preheat the oven to 500F.

Stuff the turkey: Place the turkey on a flat surface, season with salt and pepper on the inside & out & stuff the cavity with stuffing if using.

Prepare the turkey: Soak 1 large double-layered piece of cheesecloth in the butter. Pour any remaining butter on top of the bird & cover the breast meat with the cheesecloth to keep it moist for the first part of cooking, tucking it into the natural crevices of the bird to keep it in place.

Lower the oven to 350F & count about 12 minutes per pound of the turkey weight.

After about 1-1/2 hours, take the turkey out, gently remove the cheesecloth from the top of the breasts, baste the turkey with any pan juices, rotate the pan halfway & return to the oven.

How do you know when the turkey is done? The temperature of the thigh meat (where the meat is thickest & takes the longest time to cook) should register 1"165F when tested with a thermometer. The thigh juices should also be clear, not pink. When done, remove the bird from the oven, transfer to a flat surface and allow it to rest, breast side down, for 30 minutes. Why rest the turkey breast side down after cooking it breast side up? So the juices flow back through the meat as it sits. Carve & eat.