The probe that connects to your oven, can it cause uneven cooking

17 years ago

I cooked a turkey yesterday and for the first time I used the probe that connects to my oven to determine when it was done. I remembered AnnT's advice to cook till the thigh temp was 165, and my oven instructions said cook till thigh temp was 180 so I compromised and set it to cook till 175.

So here's the weird thing. The thigh that had the probe was cooked correctly but the other thigh was just not done. I didn't discover this till I was carving it, after the bird had rested for a while so it was too late to do anything about it. I just didn't carve that part of the turkey and since I was making broth with the bones anyway, that uncooked meat got cooked in the end.

My question is, did the probe somehow help the thigh to cook? I mean, it's a long piece of metal stuck into the middle of the thigh and it probably warms up the inside of it while the other thigh gets no additional heating help.

I have to admit here that I've always used those Reynolds cooking bags to make turkeys in the past and have never had a turkey come out partially uncooked like this. After reading all the advice here for years I finally decided to roast it the regular way. Aside from the rawness, the rest of the turkey came out wonderful, the flavor was excellent and the skin perfect.

So whadaya think, was the probe at fault?

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Comments (9)

proudmamato4
17 years ago
I can't answer that, lowspark, but I did just cook my first turkey using the probe on Christmas. It was 22 lbs and stuffed. I read that the stuffing needed to reach a temperature of 165' so I put the probe into the stuffing. We took it out when it hit that temperature, and let the turkey sit about 30 minutes. When we carved it, pure perfection. It was a delicious turkey, esp. since I haven't cooked one in over 10 years. I didn't have any issues with uneven cooking.

Nancy
CA Kate z9
17 years ago
Is it possible that the less cooked side was still a bit frozen/frosty when you started cooking it? We had that happen with a prime rib this past Xmas; one side was apparently colder than the other and so cooked unevenly.
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loves2cook4six
17 years ago
Where you using convection? Maybe the other thigh was blocked from the heating element by the turkey itself.
lowspark
Original Author
17 years ago
Hmmm.. yeah, coulda been a bit frozen/frosty... I don't think so but possible.

I was using convection, but the thigh that didn't cook well was further in the oven - the probe plugs in at the front of the oven so that thigh was at the front.

I only cook a turkey once a year... so I'll probably cook it the same way next year and see what happens. I just wondered if anyone else ever had a similar experience, but if not, then it must've been some other reason as suggested above.
pkguy
17 years ago
I've cooked a few turkeys and beef roasts in my KitchenAid convection oven using the probe and temperature setting feature and never had that problem. Me thinks something else was to blame, like as said a frozen portion
pkguy
17 years ago
Oh and I don't compromise I set it to the 180
dalepar
17 years ago
When I have used the convection to roast a turkey, I turn the turkey 180 at least once. It seems that my convection blows on one side of a large item more and less on the other side. I learned this first time when my turkey was less done on one side than the other. This is not true on smaller items. I also do not insert the probe or any other temperature devices until at least half way through the cooking. I always use at least two thermometers in two different places on a turkey to assure that it is done overall.

DP
ovenbird
17 years ago
My oven does something simliar to what dalepar talks about, although maybe the opposite? When using a half sheet to roast 2 chickens on convection roast, I've noticed the parts closest to the door cook faster than the parts near the fan at the back of the oven. So I turn the pan 180 about half way through the cooking time. I've also noticed the same thing when I convection bake mini-muffins in a 24 muffin pan. Maybe it's the size of the pan that impedes even air flow...or maybe it's just the nature of the beast?
lowspark
Original Author
17 years ago
dalepar & ovenbird,
That sounds like what I need to do. Turn it around midway and THEN insert the probe. The more I think about it the more I think it may have been the fault of the convection. I'll also take pkguy's advice and let it go to 180 degrees.
Thanks y'all!

The probe that connects to your oven, can it cause uneven cooking

Comments (9)

proudmamato4

CA Kate z9

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The probe that connects to your oven, can it cause uneven cooking

Comments (9)

proudmamato4

CA Kate z9

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