Your trusty thermometer and a magic number will tell you what you oughta know.
Simply Recipes / Alison Czinkota
Youve all been waiting for hours.
How Do I Use a Meat Thermometer?
Simply Recipes / Alison Czinkota
Whats A Safe Temperature for Roast Turkey?
Well start with the short answer.The USDA says to cook your turkey to a minimum internal temperature of 165F.
(If you stuffed the turkey, the stuffing, not just the meat, should be 165F).
Thats their recommendation for all turkey that starts out raw.
This temperature ensures those nasty salmonella bacteria are all blasted, and your turkey is safe to serve.
Ive roasted numerous whole turkeys and turkey breasts to 165F and had splendid results with happy guests.
If theres one number to remember, its this one.
Are Lower Internal Temperatures Safe?
Heres where we get into the physics of roasting.
How is this even safe?
The bigger the roast, the more residual heat.
As it sits and rests out of the oven, that residual heat will cause the temperature to climb.
In essence, your turkey is still cooking after you take it out of the oven.
This is calledcarryover cooking.
This is why resting your roasted bird is especially important!
During the resting time,its still cooking.
What About Higher Internal Temperatures?
TheButterball sitesays to cook their turkey to an internal temperature of 170F.
The trickiest thing about turkey is how the breast dries out after 165F.
The whole thing is a little excessive and quite frankly takes a lot of time.
After all, most people just think of roasted turkey as a vehicle for delivering gravy.
