How to clean a turkey before cooking

Wash Hands and Surfaces; not the Turkey

According to the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service, washing raw poultry, beef, pork, lamb, or veal before cooking it is not recommended. Bacteria in raw meat and poultry juices can be spread to other foods, utensils, and surfaces.

The turkey may be rinsed in cold water the night before and rewrapped for roasting the next day. Be sure to wash your hands after handling raw poultry.

They did, of course, belong to a turkey, and one of similar size. You don’t need to wash a Butterball turkey? In fact, Miller said, doing so could spread bacteria around the kitchen. Open your packaged turkey in a clean sink, prepare it for cooking, and then clean your sink.

Many people think Butterball turkeys have butter in them, but they don’t. Basically the name came about because of their plump size and golden color.

There are absolutely no quality differences between fresh and frozen turkeys. Once thawed, the meat of a frozen turkey is virtually as fresh as the day it was packaged. Fresh turkeys are chilled after packaging, rather than frozen.

1. You can buy them way ahead of time. The benefit of buying a frozen bird is that you don’t have to worry about the sell-by date as much as with fresh turkey. According to a consumer research study conducted by Honeysuckle White, 66% of people purchase their turkey one week or more before Thanksgiving.

Cooking a frozen turkey will take around 50 percent longer than cooking one that’s already been thawed. This will ensure that the turkey stays above any liquid that may drain out, which would cause it to steam rather than roast. And it will cook more evenly on a shallow pan than one with high sides.

If There’s No Time to Thaw

If you‘re up against the clock and have no time left for even the “quick” cold-water thaw, then just cook the turkey as it is. It’s perfectly safe to cook a frozen or partially frozen turkey — you just need to allow some extra cooking time.