This works with all turkeys – they don’t have to be the most expensive brand to get fabulous results.
Thaw your turkey in cold water – it may take a whole day or longer depending on the size.
Remove “innerds”, wash turkey thoroughly and pat dry with paper towels.
Preheat oven to 375. (You bake the turkey for one hour at this temp, then lower it to 325.)
Here in the South, we normally don’t stuff our turkeys. We make cornbread dressing and serve it on the side. If you prefer to stuff your bird, I can’t help you with that unfortunately. 🙂
Slice one stick of butter and insert underneath the skin on the breast of the turkey. If you have any butter left, insert it into the cavity of the bird. Rub the turkey liberally with Cavender’s Greek Seasoning (http://www.greekseasoning.com – it is locally available here, and it’s a staple in my kitchen). You can also turn the bird upside down so that the breast is in the bottom of your roasting pan. This keeps it from drying out and you won’t believe how moist it makes the meat. (The only problem with this is that it’s hard to turn a bird back over when it’s fully cooked and falling apart.)
At this point, your turkey is ready to go into the oven. You could stuff it with a chopped onion or garlic cloves if you’d like additional flavor, but it’s completely optional.
Bake the turkey for one hour at 375 degrees, then turn the oven down to 325 and bake until the internal thigh temperature reaches 180 degrees and the juices run clear. This normally takes 3 or 4 hours (or longer depending on how large your turkey is). Baste the turkey periodically with juices from the bottom of the pan.
I use a large enameled turkey roaster with a lid (and I do put the lid on it – it will brown beautifully). By the end of the cook, the turkey is usually literally falling apart and the smell is awesome!
Enjoy!
Arkansas Soaper 