How long will it take depends on who you ask. I roast following Barbara Kafka's high heat method and having been using this method for over 10 years. So a turkey is never in the oven here for 5 hours or more. A 20 pound stuffed turkey will be done in 3.5 hours. Since you are picking up your turkey on Friday, you might also give Judy Roger's pre-salt method a try. Although normally I would presalted Thursday for roasting on Sunday. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Simple Roast Turkey - High Heat Method ====================================== Source:Barbara Kafka Roasting A Simple Art Many Thanksgivings at my house have proved the high-heat method to be ideal. A fifteen-pound turkey at room temperature takes two hours to roast. However, it may take several hours for the turkey to reach room temperature. While the turkey is sitting out, cover it loosely with a towel, otherwise the skin will dry out. I prefer a fifteen-pound turkey as it isn't too heavy for me to handle. It usually gives lots of good leftovers and is generally available. There are certain things to think of to ensure success before beginning: Remove the giblet bag from the interior of the bird. Remove the wing tips. Put everything except the livers into a pot and start Basic Fowl Giblet Gravy. By the time the bird is roasted, the gravy will be done. Use the liver in the dressing/stuffing or store in the freezer, covered with milk. Make sure there is a pan big enough for the turkey without it's touching the sides of the pan. Do not truss. Consider whether the bird should be stuffed or the stuffing served as dressing baked separately. If stuffing, think in terms of twelve cups of stuffing for a 15 pound bird, which will allow the big cavity to be stuffed and some more stuffing to be crammed under the skin flap at the neck. I seldom stuff because there are real food safety questions about the bird and its stuffing sitting out at room temperature. The oven must be very clean before roasting, or cooking at this high temperature will cause unpleasant smoke. In any case, there will be some smoke, so turn on the fan or open a window. Don't put the oven rack too high or the skin on the breast will get over cooked. For a twenty-pound turkey, the rack should be in the lowest position. Always put the turkey in legs first - dark meat takes longer to cook and the rear of the oven is the hottest area. If the top skin seems to be getting too dark, slip a doubled piece of aluminum foil on top of it. Don't move the turkey. Use an oven mitt to protect hands and forearms. Remove the foil with the same oven mitt ten minutes before the turkey comes out. Large turkeys are most easily removed from the pan by holding them with two pot holders, which will need to be washed. After the meal, get out a large stockpot to boil up the carcass and leftover bones for turkey soup and stock. 15 pound turkey, thawed, if necessary and at room temperature, wing tips removed, reserving giblets and neck for gravy, liver for stuffing. Fresh ground black pepper to taste 1 cup water or basic turkey/chicken stock . Place oven rack on second level from bottom of oven. Heat oven to 500F. Rinse the turkey inside and out. Pat dry. Sprinkle the outside with pepper. If stuffing, stuff cavity and crop, securing openings with long metal skewers. Lace them. Do not truss. Put turkey in an 18 X 13 X2 inch roasting pan, breast side up. Put in oven legs first. Roast until the leg joint near the backbone wiggles easily, about 2 hours. After 20 minutes, move the turkey around with a wooden spatula to keep from sticking. Remove the turkey to a large platter. Let sit 20 minutes before carving. Pour off grease from roasting pan and put pan on top of the stove. Add water or stock. Bring to a boil while scraping bottom of pan vigorously with a wooden spoon, loosening all the crisp bits in the bottom of the pan. These add intensity to the gravy. Let reduce by half. Serve on the side in a sauceboat or add to giblet gravy. 9 pounds stuffed 1 hour 45 minutes unstuffed 1 hour 15 minutes 12 pounds stuffed 1 hour 50 minutes unstuffed 1 hour 20 minutes 15 pounds stuffed 2 hours 30 minutes unstuffed 2 hours 20 pounds stuffed 3 hours 30 minutes unstuffed 3 hours Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Pre-Salting =========== Judy Rogers' Zuni Cafe method Servings: 11 to 15 Note: This is more a technique than a recipe. It makes a bird that has concentrated turkey flavor and fine, firm flesh and that is delicious as it is. But you can add other flavors as you wish. Minced rosemary would be a nice finishing addition. Or brush the bird lightly with butter before roasting. ADVERTISEMENT 1 (12- to 16-pound) turkey Kosher salt 1. Wash the turkey inside and out, pat it dry and weigh it. Measure 1 tablespoon of salt into a bowl for every 5 pounds the turkey weighs (for a 15-pound turkey, you'd have 3 tablespoons). 2. Sprinkle the inside of the turkey lightly with salt. Place the turkey on its back and salt the breasts, concentrating the salt in the center, where the meat is thickest. You'll probably use a little more than a tablespoon. It should look liberally seasoned, but not over-salted. 3. Turn the turkey on one side and sprinkle the entire side with salt, concentrating on the thigh. You should use a little less than a tablespoon. Flip the turkey over and do the same with the opposite side. 4. Place the turkey in a 2 1/2 -gallon sealable plastic bag, press out the air and seal tightly. Place the turkey breast-side up in the refrigerator. Chill for 3 days, turning it onto its breast for the last day. 5. Remove the turkey from the bag. There should be no salt visible on the surface and the skin should be moist but not wet. Place the turkey breast-side up on a plate and refrigerate uncovered for at least 8 hours. 6. On the day it is to be cooked, remove the turkey from the refrigerator and leave it at room temperature at least 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. 7. Place the turkey breast-side down on a roasting rack in a roasting pan; put it in the oven. After 30 minutes, remove the pan from the oven and carefully turn the turkey over so the breast is facing up (it's easiest to do this by hand, using kitchen towels or oven mitts). 8. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees, return the turkey to the oven and roast until a thermometer inserted in the deepest part of the thigh, but not touching the bone, reads 165 degrees, about 2 3/4 hours total roasting. 9. Remove the turkey from the oven, transfer it to a warm platter or carving board; tent loosely with foil. Let stand at least 30 minutes to let the juices redistribute through the meat. Carve and serve. Each of 15 servings: 564 calories; 77 grams protein; 0 carbohydrates; 0 fiber; 26 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 261 mg. cholesterol; 856 mg. sodium. . Notes: This same method can be used for chicken, chicken pieces, pork roasts, ribs, chops, etc.. With the smaller cuts just pre-salt 4 or five hours in advance. Even this short period of presalting makes an amazing difference. Don't cover, just refrigerate and then remove from the fridge in time for the meat to come to room temperature before cooking.

Happy Thanksgiving Canada! We aim for half an hour. Up to an hour would be fine usually but room temp and other factors come into play. The time it is sitting out during the meal, etc. Often some elders are present and young children...the kitchen is active and warm, more room heat may be used so guests are comfortable. The fridge is stuffed and opened often rising its temp. The danger zone of 40-140 for bacteria growth is hard to keep track of. A half hour is plenty time for a gravy and getting a crowd to sit, and getting sides on the table. The first thing i do when i have guests for the day or a few days is lower the fridge temp. My fridge has a 'blast' button for the fridge and freezer. Used when you can predict heavy use. Our turkey is good, organic, cooked properly, but not really the star of the show. Tradition for sure, but the sides are what everyone wants. And leftovers. (i make thanksgiving sliders with the leftover biscuits) We platter up but the oven stays on for seconds if needed. All sides stay in the 275 oven. A carved platter of turkey, with both legs, the other breast side goes in the fridge right away to chill. The carcass goes right back in the oven to pick later and roast for stock and soup. A good rule is to keep it hot, or chill quickly and keep it cold. Here is a link that might be useful: shelf life advice

You've started the "how to cook anything turkey related" debate months before Thanksgiving! Ha, no worries. I'll start the ping pong match. Cooking time varies on size and sizes vary so for me, cooking any meat in an oven or BBQ requires a thermometer. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees, start checking the internal temp every 5 minutes at about one hour, and figure anywhere from 1-1.5 hours of total cooking time. When the internal temp reaches 155-160 degrees, it's ready to take out and be tented with aluminum foil for 10 minutes of rest before being carved. If you want to be real spiffy, before slicing, use a boning knife to separate the meat from the ribs, then slice the now boneless hunk of meat vertically. Very nice presentation and the pieces are juicier than if sliced thinly the traditional way. If the breast isn't already brined, you have time to give it a bath in a bowl of salted water before cooking. Doing this will insure moist meat that won't dry out. Google "brine turkey breast" and you'll find out how. Many suggest a variety of ingredients but the important ones can be used alone, water and salt. Rinse it well and dry before cooking. Very easy and very significant results. Even if you only have a few hours to brine the breast, it will make a difference. Remember to put the bowl into the fridge (or put in ice cubes) to keep the meat cold. For an easy path to moist turkey breasts, Trader Joes sells kosher turkey breasts. Apparently, brining is a step used in making it kosher so these need no further treatment and always come out juicy (when not overcooked).

Thanks, plllog, I was hoping you would chime in. I've read so many of your posts between the kitchen and the cooking forums. The reheat mode starts with steam and convection heat, and after about five or so minutes, the steam stops (vented out, I think), but the oven cavity stays moist. I've used the reheat mode for brisket, roast, chicken, even salmon, etc., with great results... and my gut tells me that it would work great with the turkey... but Thanksgiving seems a high risk time to be trying something new! The turkey is 14 lbs, and is fully smoked/cooked/packaged. It's supposed to be a good brand from a high end grocery store... so I think I'm starting with a good turkey... and hopefully I can do it justice. I do have a probe. Once the turkey reaches temperature, it will be going into my car for a 30 minute drive to where we will be eating. So... it won't be really hot when we eat..., but I don't want it cold either. I looked again at the user's manual. The convect humid mode doesn't add steam, it just doesn't vent humidity that is generated. So, this doesn't feel right for my turkey. There is a convection steam mode... which combines steam with the convection heating at whatever temperature I set. The steam doesn't cut off automatically, but I can stop the steam whenever I want. This is the mode I actually used to roast a whole turkey last year... which turned out superb. Turkey was super moist, and the skin was perfectly browned and crispy. (It was magic...) I'll look at the turkey when I unwrap it to see if I think I could disassemble it without mangling it. I do kind of want it to look pretty, though, so I think I'd rather leave it looking like a turkey if I can get comfortable with my approach to reheating.