Selecting and Thawing a Turkey

Many humans are terrified at the prospect of cooking a turkey for the first time. A burnt, bloody undercooked turkey is not a great impression for future in-laws. After the epic disaster of ‘99, I’m redeeming myself and hopefully I will be back in my mother in-law’s good graces. Here’s six years of research to help others like me who are lost when it comes to turkey.


Fresh or frozen? Fresh turkeys should be purchased a day or two before cooking and can be frozen for up to twelve months. There are two types of frozen turkeys: pre-basted or un-basted. Pre-basted turkeys are injected with water, broth, vegetable oil and/or spices to enhance flavor and moistness during cooking. An un-basted turkey has no additional ingredients.

There are three ways to safely thaw a turkey refrigerator thawing, sink thawing and microwave thawing.

Refrigerator thawing is safest; thaw turkey in fridge for 24 hours for every 5 lbs.

The sink thawing method is a bit quicker; thaw the turkey with original wrapping completely covered in ice-cold water 30 minutes per pound. If the original wrapping is torn, place the turkey in another plastic bag, close securely and then place in water.

Microwave thawing can be tricky, read the owner's manual for the size of turkey that will fit in your oven and its thawing time. Cook immediately after thawing.


Note: Never thaw a turkey at room temperature.