These recommended directions work for our Dream Dinners french cut, boneless 6-8 lb turkey, a store-bought 16 lb turkey or 6 -8 lb turkey breast.
The best way to thaw a frozen turkey is in the unopened wrapper on a tray in the refrigerator. It takes 4 hours per pound to thaw a turkey (24 hours for every 5 pounds). Your Dream Dinners turkey may weigh between 6-8 pounds. Never thaw a turkey at room temperature. If short on time, you may thaw the turkey in cold water in the original wrapping, cover completely with cold water, making sure the water is changed every 30 minutes to keep the turkey surface cold.
A note about cooking instructions:
The recommended cooking time for the turkey could take as long as 4 ½ hours. However, oven temperature calibration varies between models or may be slightly different in older ovens. These factors, as well as variation in the weight of the turkey may result in a shorter or longer cooking time.
To ensure a flawless turkey be sure to use a thermometer to check the temperature of your turkey. Check it once about 2 1/2 hours into the cooking time to gauge how quickly it is reaching the desired temperature. Once it reaches an internal minimum temperature of 165°F it is done.
Cooking Instructions:
- Pre-heat oven to 325°F
- Remove turkey from packaging, place in shallow pan and add 1-cup water.
- Loosely cover with foil and cook 2 1/2 hours. Using meat thermometer, check temp. When at 135 degrees, remove foil and cook for an additional 30 min. or until internal temp. reaches 155 degrees. Turkey will continue to cook as it rests for 20 min covered with foil.
- Once you remove your turkey, cover in foil to hold the heat and let it rest for 20 minutes (165 degrees) before carving.
Alternative Cooking Methods:
Don’t want to use your oven heat to roast your turkey? Here are some options, remember to check for doneness at the 1 ½ hr mark, cooking to 150 degrees in the center and then let rest 20 – 30 min before slicing for any cooking method:
- Using a disposable foil pan place the raw turkey and an inch of water, cover with foil and heat on your grill for 2 hrs.
- Using an electric roasting pan! Spray with non stick cooking spray place the turkey in with a cup of water, cover and roast 350 degrees for 2 hrs.
- If you have a turkey deep fryer, you can follow the directions for a regular turkey.
Summertime Turkey Recipes
- Turkey and Asparagus Quiche
- Turkey and Red Grape Salad
- Oriental Turkey Salad
- Turkey, Apple, Brie Sandwiches