The holiday season has begun again and it’s time to get ready for Thanksgiving turkey! While not everyone enjoys turkey, it’s a seasonal classic that can be prepared in so many ways. The most traditional way to cook a Thanksgiving turkey is probably to roast it in the oven. Turkey is often purchased frozen and thawed for a couple days. Then, let the Thanksgiving turkey cook all day while preparing the rest of your meal. Those savory smells of the turkey cooking will make your stomach grumble in anticipation all day!
Thanksgiving Turkey
The tradition of preparing Thanksgiving turkey is tasty and rewarding! At Tacoma Boys, you can purchase your turkey in addition to other specialty food items to get ready for your holiday meals. It can seem like a lot of hard work, but most of the time spent cooking Thanksgiving turkey is thawing or cooking time. Thawing your turkey is a simple but important step that has to be done safely. There are a couple ways to thaw your Thanksgiving turkey: In general, most people leave it in the refrigerator to slowly thaw for a couple days. The basic guideline is 24 hours of refrigerator thawing time for every 4-5 lbs of turkey.
When it comes down to preparing the turkey with seasoning, there are so many ways to experiment! Turkey brines, seasoning blends, and marinades can all enhance and add flavor to the turkey. Tacoma Boys Poultry Seasoning with herbs like thyme and rosemary are particularly popular to use during Thanksgiving prep. Try some of these ingredients from Tacoma Boys when preparing your Thanksgiving turkey:
- Butter and olive oil
- Fresh or dried herbs: Thyme, rosemary, sage, marjoram, and bay leaves
- Spices like smoked paprika, cayenne, and red pepper flakes
- Tacoma Boys Mappe Apple or Traditional Turkey Brine
- Lemon, garlic, onion, celery, and carrots
- Brown sugar, and maple syrup
How to Cook Turkey
Many people who are unsure of how to cook turkey can be overwhelmed by the options. There are seemingly infinite recipes online with different cooking methods and seasonings. If you don’t know how to cook turkey, don’t panic! Everyone tends to have their own way to prepare turkey: But as long as you follow food safety practices and enjoy the taste of your turkey, you can make it any way you like. You can roast the turkey in the oven, slow cooker, air fryer, or more. These are just a couple options to try.
1. Roast
Perhaps the most common method of cooking turkey is roasting slowly in the oven. This can take anywhere from 2 to 4 hours or more, depending on the size of your turkey. It’s generally roasted at 350 degrees Fahrenheit after being thawed and seasoned to your liking.
2. Slow Cooker (Crockpot)
This method takes the longest, as the cooker works slowly. Depending on the size of your turkey or turkey breast, you can cook the whole bird right in your slow cooker. In general, you can simply put your thawed and seasoned turkey into your slow cooker and cook on low for several hours. This recipe by The Little Kitchen is a good guide for slow cooker Thanksgiving turkey with vegetables that is moist and flavorful!
3. Air Fryer
This is one of the newer methods of cooking turkey— Even large air fryers are a bit too small for a whole turkey, though. This method works best with turkey breasts because they’re smaller. Air fry a seasoned turkey breast at about 375 degrees Fahrenheit, flipping halfway, for about 45-60 minutes or until completely cooked though. For more details on how to cook turkey in the air fryer, check out this recipe by Spend With Pennies.
Thanksgiving Recipes
Thanksgiving recipes can include traditional classics as well as new modern twists. It’s fun to mix and match and get creative with what you and your family like to eat! Start out with tasty appetizers, like these homemade dips for the holidays. Then, bond over new and old Thanksgiving recipes like cornbread stuffing with Marie Calendars Organic Cornbread Mix and cheesy Lundberg Organic Wild Rice casserole. For dessert, roast up a butternut or acorn squash with a drizzle of Stonewall Kitchen Maple Syrup. Or, browse our blog all about Thanksgiving dessert!
Tacoma Boys offers an assortment of spices, seasonings, and specialty food items to flavor your dinner. You can particularly find a variety of gravy mixes like these to make your Thanksgiving recipes that much easier:
- Tacoma Boys Chicken or Turkey Style Gravy
- Simply Organic Chicken or Turkey Gravy Mix
- Knorr Roasted Turkey Gravy Mix
- Better Than Bouillon Gravy Mix
Tacoma Boys is here when you’re ready to shop for your Thanksgiving turkey. We also have all the fresh produce and pantry items you’ll need for an ultimate holiday dinner. And you can even check out some of Tacoma Boys top vegan Thanksgiving side dishes here! To stay up to date on insider deals and specials, sign up for Tacoma Boys’ text list. Just text (253) 246-1661 to tell Paul you want to be on the list!
