In my 64+ years, I have seen people make countless efforts to eff up a perfectly good turkey dinner. The problem with deep frying is having to purchase the deep fryer, the oil, propane (last year it was $7 a gallon at the hardware stores in town), and when you're done, you put it all away and rarely use it because it's such a pain. Brining may be OK, but sometimes less is more, and that's the way I like my turkey dinners.
If this is your first attempt at a turkey dinner, I suggest you make a good ol' basic turkey dinner. If it's too "plain" for you, make your own changes the next time. Here's how my late mother used to do it, and the way I still do it today. Very basic, fairly easy, and I've never had anyone complain.
We usually get a 23-24 lb. bird in order to feed the relatives. We used to buy the pricey birds, but found them lacking. Frozen turkeys seem to work just fine. That's a personal choice, I guess.
The bird - pull the bags of extra parts like the neck, heart, liver, gizzard, etc. out of the cavity and rinse the outside and inside with cold water, then let it drain.
The stuffing - I'm not a fan of fruits, nuts, or any other oddball things in the stuffing. I'm also not a fan of cornbread in stuffing. It's too sweet for my taste.
I buy the bags of Rainbow or Toscana stuffing. It's just dried chunks of bread with a flavor packet in the bag. For a big group, we use 5 bags - enough to stuff the bird, and a pan of extra to go with it. You can adjust the amounts for smaller birds or to taste.
Dump the bags of stuffing in a big bowl, then sprinkle on the packets of seasoning. In a blender, quarter one or two white onions, three or four stalks of celery, 1/2 to a whole cube of melted butter, and the juice from one or two cans of black pitted whole olives. Turn it into a puree, then pour it over the stuffing mix. I do it this way because some people (especially kids) don't like chunks of onion or celery in their stuffing. This way you get the flavor without big pieces. A full blender will do 4-5 bags. You want the mixture damp, but not soggy. Mix by hand along with the olives. If you want more olives, drain them first. If it needs any more moisture, use milk.
Take the bird and cut off the pope's nose (the round, plump, pointy thing at it's posterior) and toss it in with the innards in the bag. Stand the bird up, lightly salt the cavity, then fill it with the stuffing mix. Most birds come with a plastic gizmo that holds the legs together. They'll hold the stuffing in. You can also lift the big skin flap on the other end and fill it with stuffing. Use stainless pins to hold the flap down. Put any excess stuffing in a pan and cover with foil. Bake it separately, or put it in towards the end of the bird cooking. Once all that's done, set the bird on one of those "V" rack thingys and put it in your roasting pan. Melt another 1/2 cube or so of butter, then pour it slowly over the top of the bird and spread with your hand. The butter will set up as soon as it hits the cold skin. Cover the whole thing with the butter, then give it a generous dusting of pepper. Stick a meat thermometer in the breast, even if it has one of those pop-up gizmos.
Here's the part I do a little differently, but like the results better. No need to pre-heat the over when it's an extended cooking time like the turkey. Adjust your rack so the bird is centered in the oven, then turn it on to 500 degrees, and put the bird in. Keep an eye on it, but it should be a nice golden to dark brown in about 20 minutes. Once there, drop the temperature to 325, then make a nice tent out of aluminum foil and put it over the top. A lot of cooks don't pull the foil until the end. I like this way, because the butter and skin sear a bit and seal off the top, keeping the moisture in the bird.
The wife says a 23# turkey takes about 6 1/2 hours to get to the recommended 185 degrees A 16 pounder took about 5 . Overs vary, so keep an eye on the thermometer. You can raise or lower the temp to fit your time schedule.
While the turkey is cooking, toss the giblets in a covered pot, cover with water, and simmer as long as you want. If it needs, add water. We let ours go the whole time the bird is in the oven.
For me, the gravy is one of the most important parts. Everyone seems to love my gravy, so here's how I do it.
When the bird is done, take it out of the oven and remove from the roasting pan. Let it rest for 10 minutes or so before carving. Remove the stuffing, and if you want, mix it with the pan stuffing and keep it on warm in the oven.
You'll have the grease, butter, and drippings all nice and brown in the bottom of the pan. If there's too much grease, spoon most of it off. Unless it's REALLY greasy, I just leave it. Pour the liquid from the giblets in the pan, then take a fork to loosen all the brown crunchy stuff. Once that's done, pour from the roasting pan into a pot, and bring to a boil. If you want more gravy, we use some of the water from boiling the potatoes. In a blender, mix flour and milk together - maybe enough to make 2 cups. Mixing them in the blender prevents lumps. The amount depends on how much gravy you make. Slowly pour some of the flour mixture into the liquid, stirring the whole time. Once the mixture boils and the flour cooks, it will thicken up. Thicker gravy - more flour and milk. If it gets too thick, just add water Once it's the consistency you want, turn the temp down. The secret ingredient - buy a bottle of Kitchen Bouquet and pour a tablespoon or so (I eyeball it) into the gravy. It will give it a rich brown color, and a mild flavor that is superb. Salt and pepper to taste, but I leave the salt out, and let people add it later.
Carve the bird, whip up some nice mashed potatoes, hot rolls and butter, stuffing, maybe some cranberry sauce, and enjoy a good old fashioned turkey dinner!
Rest of the family will do the other fixings.
