We bought a Harris Teeter Premium Frozen Turkey today for $00.19/lb. We bought it for a needy family basket for Thanksgiving. So I asked my wife why we didn't buy the same turkey for our family. She said Butterball turkeys are worth the difference. Is there really that much difference in cheap turkeys and Butterball turkeys? Any experts here? Is this $00.19/lb going to be a bad turkey? If so, I will trash it and buy the Butterball turkey for the needy family basket. My bet is this turkey could have come from the same turkey farm as a Butterball.
I've had both, to me the price difference is NOT worth it, but that's just my opinion. A turkey is a turkey..................the key is not to over cook it and dry it out regardless of the brand, I'm a big fan of the Reynold Oven Bags for doing the turkey in.
I've not had a Butterball so cannot compare but can say our family has eaten many turkeys bought for $.29 a pound or so and enjoyed our meals.
If you remember to baste the turkey and don't over cook it, any turkey will taste good. I have even cooked one.
I cook three turkeys a year, and it doesn't matter to me the brand name, I always buy the 19, 29 cent ones, and they come out delicious. I have cooked Butterballs also. Turkeys are turkeys if you cook it correctly like any other piece of meat. Enjoy your Thanksgiving everyone.
Mostly all the nation's turkey production is coming out of the Carolina Turkeys plant anyway. They recently bought Butterball from Con-Agra for $325 million.
I'm sure that there are differences in turkeys just like chickens. Remember Frank Perdue and the dandelion petals causing the glorious yellow coloring to the chicken. Just as there are differences in beef and pork based on diet and how they are raised. I have always heard that what makes a Butterball turkey special is not how they are raised or what they are fed but that they are injected with fat (hence the name Butterball) in the breast of the turkey so it doesn't dry out. I cook a lot of turkeys and turkey breasts and I stopped basting them years ago. I brine them the night before and I never have a problem with them drying out. Opening the oven to baste the turkey increases the roasting time significantly. In a convection oven I can bake a brined 16-18lb turkey in around 2 1/2 hrs. It really doesn't matter how you cook them as long as you enjoy the process. It's amazing to me that with as many turkey farms as there are in NC we don't consume more turkey.
I have a convection oven, but I haven't used the convection feature for much yet, what temperature do you use for cooking your turkeys?
When I cook a brined bird I start out cooking the turkey at 475 for about 30 minutes take the turkey out and cover the breast with aluminum foil then I back the temp down to 325. It takes about 2 1/2 hrs total for a 16 lb turkey. The key to using a convection oven is understanding what a convection oven does. The fan in the back of the oven circulates air in the oven to more evenly regulate the temperatue. As an added bonus it pulls the dome of cold air away from the meat to allow the heat to more quickly cook the food. A convection oven also allows you to cook on more than one rack at a time with better results because it allows the heat to get to the upper rack of food more evenly than if you are only heating with the element on the bottom. All convection ovens are not created equal results will vary. I usually think of times and temperatures in recipes to be suggestions not realities. As you cook more in your oven you will have a better idea of how times will vary in your oven. When cooking large items in a convection oven like a turkey or prime rib I never cover them and I usually cook them on a layer of halved potatoes and onions in a shallow roasting pan or on a 1/2 sheet pan. PM me if you would like the recipe for the brined turkey. Try it once and you'll never cook them another way.
I think I am going to do two turkey breasts this year, one in the oven and one on "The Big Green Egg" grill. Another great way to do a turkey breast is in your crock pot!! Comes out really juicy!
I never thought of a turkey breast in the ole crock. Someone else mentioned this in another thread recently - going to search for recipes now!
We grill EVERYTHING around here! Anyway, we use a gas grill and rub it down with Olive Oil and some seasonings, here is a recipe for cooking instructions - http://allrecipes.com/recipe/the-greatest-grilled-turkey/detail.aspx
What!? You don't have to baste anymore? How come nobody ever tells me these things? And what is brining? I didn't even know that was a verb. :? But, hey, I can make a mean batch of Chex Mix. Next you're going to tell me I can buy that stuff in a bag at the store. :shock: LOL, Snuff
It's never too late to learn something new!!! This is the Brined Turkey recipe that I use. http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_8389,00.html this link has some great videos on it about cooking turkeys. In one Alton Brown explains why you shouldn't baste. http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/video_guide/
Thanks Robbiedon. I love Alton Brown; I don't know why I've never caught "Good Eats" when he was talking turkey (probably because of all the football on TV during turkey cooking season.) If I get put in charge of the trukey this year, I'll be sure to try the brine method. Snuff
