Cathy Isom has some important tips about how to make sure your bird is big enough for your Thanksgiving dinner guests. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours.
When it comes to buying the right size turkey to feed everyone at your Thanksgiving dinner table, USDA’s Marilyn Gravely suggests estimating:
“about a pound per person.”
She says that’s good for a 12 to 15 pound turkey, but:
“when you get to the really large turkeys like a 20-pound turkey, they actually have a greater yield so you would actually be able to feed more than 20 people with the larger turkey.”
Keep in mind the time it’s going to take to thaw that turkey in the recommended weight, which is in the refrigerator.
“a Day for every 5 pounds.”
As far as cooking times for meal planning purposes, it roughly takes about 20 minutes a pound at 325-degrees. So for a 12-pounder:
“It will take 3 hours if it’s thawed.”
For more tips on buying and cooking turkeys, turn to the Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888—MP-Hotline (1-888-674-6854). .
I’m Cathy Isom…