More Turkey Advice Needed.

[hammerman]

Our xmas dinner is on Boxing day this year when the kids and grandkids will be over and we'll be having turkey.

I plan to get one of the bigger Tesco frozen turkey's that is around 6kg or serves 11-14 people.

Now i plan to get this on saturday and defrost it in the fridge and cook it wednesday am. Does this sound enough time to defost it...or too much time ? Don't want it sitting around for 4 days and going off.

Any help appreciated.

HM

[Old_Geezer]

No expert but I'd have thought 4 days shold be enough to defrost, and if it looks as if it hasn't on the previous night, take it out of the fridge. (My gut feeling is that it'll be well defrosted by then though unless your fridge is very cold.) Also I'm fairly sure one can have non frozen turkeys kept chilled for 4 days without issue so I'm suspecting a defosted one wouldn't be a problem either.

[humbersloop]

That sounds fine hammerman. A good 48 hours to thaw and it certainly shouldn't go off if it's in the fridge for a couple of days after that.

[VHG]

Why not search the internet, it is full of stuff like this. Search under "defrost Turkey"

http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Healthychristmas/Pages/cooking-turkey.aspx

[humbersloop]

people ask questions here because they want the benefit of others' experience, not just abstract internet information. Which, as we all know, is always true, accurate and practicable ;)

[hammerman]

Thanks everyone...well, almost everyone.

VHG...this website is called the ANSWERBANK where people in real life, answer, and ask questions about various things. I would imagine that there's a website or answer out there in the t'interweb for everything ever put on here....but it's nice to hear peoples respected experiences in real life.

[diddlydo]

I wouldn't touch a turkey from Tesco with a bargepole - they're not cheap for no reason.

[Brinjal]

that is plenty of time. dont over cook it turkey takes less time to cook per kg than chicken does.

[hammerman]

It'll be cooked nice n slow with lemon butter pushed up under the breast skin and halved lemons in the cavity. Despite advice against, i'll also be cooking spiced orange and cranberry stuffing in the cavity.

[Ann]

//I wouldn't touch a turkey from Tesco with a bargepole - they're not cheap for no reason.//
Thats a bit snobbish Diddly, some of us can't afford expensive Fresh Norfolk Bronze turkeys! We have a very large frozen turkey every year from Asda and providing you prepare them well (I insert a whole slab of butter under the skin using the back of a wooden spoon) they are always really really moist and taste lovely. I had a fresh turkey one year from a local farmer and I honestly could not tell the difference!

[giveup]

I think it was Jamie Oliver who suggested putting a couple of clementines in the chest cavity,thought I'd give it a try. Normally use onion and a lemon.

[Chipchopper]

I'm sure that's ample time to thaw it thoroughly
I always get one from Tesco, never let me down
The cranberry & orange sounds great, I hope it all go's well

[diddlydo]

Ann86 - I'd trust a turkey from Asda even less than one from Tesco.