# Cold water thawing turkey?



## CrystalWriter (Dec 23, 2013)

Has anyone ever cold water thawed their whole turkey. I've taken mine out of the freezer a tad late to thaw in the freezer. And am worriec that it won't be thawed in time. 

Apparently you completely cover the bird in cold water and change the water every 30mins

Thougts ideas?


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## Macgyver1968 (Dec 23, 2013)

My bird for Thanksgiving was only about 50% thawed when it was time to start brining...so I just started the brining like that.  It was 40F outside, so I just stuck in an ice chest and left it overnight on the deck.  It came out delicious and juicy.


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## Rocket_J_Dawg (Dec 23, 2013)

I have thawed a turkey in cold water before. I think I used the laundry tub.  It worked fine, though, I prefer to do it in the fridge.

Here's what Butterball recommends. Butterball Canada


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## Andy M. (Dec 23, 2013)

Immerse your turkey, in the plastic wrapper, into a pot and put the pot in your sink or bathtub.  Fill the pot with cold water and leave the tap running into the pot at a trickle so the water is constantly changing.  The overflow will just go down the drain.  It will take several hours.  You can do it overnight.


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## Macgyver1968 (Dec 23, 2013)

Is the changing of the water for bacteria prevention?  I use 1/4 cup of salt per gallon of water for my brining solution...I figured it would be enough to prevent salmonella forming.


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## Andy M. (Dec 23, 2013)

Macgyver1968 said:


> Is the changing of the water for bacteria prevention?  I use 1/4 cup of salt per gallon of water for my brining solution...I figured it would be enough to prevent salmonella forming.



We're not taking about brining, but defrosting.

The constantly changing water speeds defrosting vs. standing water.  The frozen turkey chills the water in the pot, slowing the defrosting process.  Constantly replacing the chilled water with tap water maintains a higher temp in the pot, speeding thawing.

When brining, the salt water solution will retard spoilage but the brining bird should be kept at a safe temperature.


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## Macgyver1968 (Dec 23, 2013)

Thanks Andy...I regularly thaw meats in water (sealed in a bag)...I just thought I'd kill two birds with one stone, by brining and thawing at the same time.


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## bakechef (Dec 23, 2013)

I cold water thaw often.  When I vacuum seal meats, I try to make a fairly flat package, so they will thaw in around 30-45 minutes.  I'll likely have my turkey breast floating in the sink tomorrow to thaw it enough to get unwrapped, then it'll finish thawing in the brine.


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## taxlady (Dec 23, 2013)

Andy M. said:


> We're not taking about brining, but defrosting.
> 
> The constantly changing water speeds defrosting vs. standing water.  The frozen turkey chills the water in the pot, slowing the defrosting process.  Constantly replacing the chilled water with tap water maintains a higher temp in the pot, speeding thawing.
> 
> When brining, the salt water solution will retard spoilage but the brining bird should be kept at a safe temperature.


Sorry, I'm being a smartarse, but I don't think that holds true in Quebec in winter. That water comes out of the tap awfully cold and gets colder after it has run for a bit.


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## Andy M. (Dec 23, 2013)

taxlady said:


> Sorry, I'm being a smartarse, but I don't think that holds true in Quebec in winter. That water comes out of the tap awfully cold and gets colder after it has run for a bit.




A frozen turkey is maybe 0ºF while the water coming out of the tap is no less than 32ºF and probably closer to 40ºF (assuming the water in Quebec comes out of the faucet in liquid form ).  It's that difference that does the defrosting.


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## bakechef (Dec 23, 2013)

Andy M. said:


> A frozen turkey is maybe 0ºF while the water coming out of the tap is no less than 32ºF and probably closer to 40ºF (assuming the water in Quebec comes out of the faucet in liquid form ).  It's that difference that does the defrosting.



I'm imagining crushed ice coming from the tap in Canada


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## Andy M. (Dec 23, 2013)

bakechef said:


> I'm imagining crushed ice coming from the tap in Canada



Tough on the pipes.


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## taxlady (Dec 23, 2013)

Andy M. said:


> A frozen turkey is maybe 0ºF while the water coming out of the tap is no less than 32ºF and probably closer to 40ºF (assuming the water in Quebec comes out of the faucet in liquid form ).  It's that difference that does the defrosting.


I don't think it's close to 40F. It seems as cold as ice water. I've tried in the past -  a glass of ice water and winter tap water and they feel the same. If I had thermometer that measured in the right temperature range and was immersible, I would go measure it now.

Actually, now that I think about it. I have cold water defrosted stuff, and the water doesn't feel as cold as the tap water. I think it's because it is being warmed by the air.


bakechef said:


> I'm imagining crushed ice coming from the tap in Canada


It certainly feels that cold.


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## taxlady (Dec 23, 2013)

Andy M. said:


> Tough on the pipes.


Some years we have to put salt down the drain.


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## Aunt Bea (Dec 23, 2013)

taxlady said:


> Some years we have to put salt down the drain.



When I was a kid we used to leave the kitchen cabinet doors, under the sink, open to prevent the pipes from freezing.  If it was colder than that we left the cold water tap running a trickle all night to prevent the pipes from freezing, don't miss those days at all! 

I have thawed turkeys overnight in the kitchen sink with a big fluffy towel folded over them. I just scrub the sink, leave the turkey in its original wrapper, fill the sink with cold water and cover with the towel.  In the morning they are thawed, but still cold enough to have a little ice in the cavity.


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## Andy M. (Dec 23, 2013)

taxlady said:


> I don't think it's close to 40F. It seems as cold as ice water. I've tried in the past -  a glass of ice water and winter tap water and they feel the same. If I had thermometer that measured in the right temperature range and was immersible, I would go measure it now...



Your water pipes are deep enough underground so the water doesn't freeze on the way to your sink.  At that depth, the soil temp doesn't change all that much.

Regardless of actual temps, it's the difference in temperatures between the frozen food and the surrounding water that defrosts the food.  The greater the temp difference, the faster the thawing.


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## taxlady (Dec 23, 2013)

Aunt Bea said:


> When I was a kid we used to leave the kitchen cabinet doors, under the sink, open to prevent the pipes from freezing.  If it was colder than that we left the cold water tap running a trickle all night to prevent the pipes from freezing, don't miss those days at all! ...


Oh yeah, the cupboard doors. When it gets really cold for a while, we do that. We have even put a tarp over the edge of the counter, with the doors open, to direct the heat under the sink. We have baseboard heaters right below the cupboard doors.


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## taxlady (Dec 23, 2013)

Andy M. said:


> Your water pipes are deep enough underground so the water doesn't freeze on the way to your sink.  At that depth, the soil temp doesn't change all that much.
> 
> Regardless of actual temps, it's the difference in temperatures between the frozen food and the surrounding water that defrosts the food.  The greater the temp difference, the faster the thawing.


Oh, I agree. As I mentioned, I have cold water defrosted stuff in winter. It just seems that the water coming out of my tap is colder than the defrosting water. Without the right kind of thermometer, I can't say for sure. I do stir the water with my hand. I figure the water near the defrosting item is colder than the rest of the water. The water is slowly being heated by the air, at the same time as it is being chilled by the defrosting item. I don't doubt that running the water works well in other climates.


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## Addie (Dec 23, 2013)

taxlady said:


> Sorry, I'm being a smartarse, but I don't think that holds true in Quebec in winter. That water comes out of the tap awfully cold and gets colder after it has run for a bit.



I was thinking the same thing. Here in Boston it has always confused me as to when you really want a nice ice cold drink from the faucet, the water is warm in the summer and ice cold in the winter. You need to run both hot and cold until you get a tepid temperature.


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## CrystalWriter (Dec 24, 2013)

Thanks for the reply guys. I'm just panicking as it's my 1st time doing the meal. The turkey is sitting in the conservatory to defrost. Its as cold as the fridge. So wondered if cold thawing actuallys works. Quicker. I took it out last night 23rd, and its a 4k bird. So fingers crossed it should be. If not a late dinner


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## Andy M. (Dec 24, 2013)

A 4k bird.  Four kilograms is almost 9 pounds.  That bird should thaw easily in time for Christmas dinner or even for tonight if that's the plan.


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## GotGarlic (Dec 24, 2013)

taxlady said:


> I don't think it's close to 40F. It seems as cold as ice water. I've tried in the past -  a glass of ice water and winter tap water and they feel the same. If I had thermometer that measured in the right temperature range and was immersible, I would go measure it now.



An instant-read thermometer for meat should work for water, too. Do you have one of those?


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## taxlady (Dec 24, 2013)

GotGarlic said:


> An instant-read thermometer for meat should work for water, too. Do you have one of those?


Nope. I have a couple of old meat thermometers and a candy thermometer that works better than any previous thermometer that I have had and is fairly instant, but its lower limit is 100 F. I went to check on the candy thermometer and found that I still have an old "instant" read thermometer. It's not as instant as that candy thermometer, so we don't use it anymore and I forgot about it. I put it in a cup and ran the cold water until it stabilized. It said 32F. I won't swear to its accuracy. The face is tiny and it's marked in 2 degree increments.


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