Do you use a covered turkey roaster?

[Crash]

I've used a domed (covered) turkey roaster for the past 12 years. The recipe is the same: Stuff my 17 lb turkey, place on a rack in the roaster, cover and roast in the oven @400*F for 3.5 hours.
The bird comes out brown and juicy.

Recently however, I've noticed, many cooking shows are roasting turkey in uncovered rather shallow pans. They claim that in a domed roaster, turkey braises instead, or steams.

I always considered a covered roaster to be an oven within the oven, acting as a buffer maintaining even temperature between oven cycles.

What do you guys think?

 

[SizzlininIN]

I've always used the covered also. However, this year I'm using a roasting pan like the cooks on foodnetwork use that has just the rack inside.

 

[Crash]

I've always used the covered also. However, this year I'm using a roasting pan like the cooks on foodnetwork use that has just the rack inside.

What size bird do you roast and do you stuff?
Were you unhappy with your previous results? What is prompting you to change?

 

[Gretchen]

Never never never!!! Covered gives a basically steamed bird. Uncovered gives you that Bon Appetit cover picture of a Norman Rockwell Thanksgiving Day turkey.
When I married and moved to near DH's family, we started with T'giving at their beautiful gracious home with DMIL's absolutely legendary cooking. She covered her turkey--and when bags came available, put it in the bag. Good, but "pasty" looking, even after a final "brown" in the oven.
They began coming to our house for T'giving and I did my turkeys as my dad did (with chestnut stuffing). DMIL ALWAYS raved about the beauty and luciousness of the turkey. She was a grand lady.
We always fix a 20+ # turkey--this year a 24#er. Good bread stuffing inside--cornbread dressing outside. No brining.

Please try it without a cover!!! I don't even use a rack--just stick it in the pan.

 

[SizzlininIN]

I grew up with my mom always using a covered roasting pan and I inherited the pan when she passed away. She always removed the lid in the end to let the bird brown really nicely. I loved her turkey.....it was always so tender and juicy. I've decided to try the open roaster for a change. Its just something I've seen used so often I wanted to see the difference for myself. Yes I will stuff the cavity with stuffing but also make extra stuffing on the side and bake seperately. I'm fixing a 15# bird this year.

 

[Andy M.]

I use an open pan. Part way through, I cover the breast with foil.

 

[Katie H]

Always uncovered here. However, I drape the whole exposed part of the turkey with several layers of butter/white wine soaked cheesecloth and baste through that. At the end I remove the cheesecloth and soak it in my giblet broth to extract all the flavor and yummies it has gotten while the turkey roasted. I then use the broth when I make my gravy.

 

[Robo410]

I have a calphalon covered roaster...used mainly as a braising box ...great for pot roasts etc. For turkey, I only use the cover for the middle third of the cook time...in place of the foil tent. works great.

 

[Crash]

Thanks everyone.

Never never never!!! Covered gives a basically steamed bird. Uncovered gives you that Bon Appetit cover picture of a Norman Rockwell Thanksgiving Day turkey.
When I married and moved to near DH's family, we started with T'giving at their beautiful gracious home with DMIL's absolutely legendary cooking. She covered her turkey--and when bags came available, put it in the bag. Good, but "pasty" looking, even after a final "brown" in the oven.
They began coming to our house for T'giving and I did my turkeys as my dad did (with chestnut stuffing). DMIL ALWAYS raved about the beauty and luciousness of the turkey. She was a grand lady.
We always fix a 20+ # turkey--this year a 24#er. Good bread stuffing inside--cornbread dressing outside. No brining.

Please try it without a cover!!! I don't even use a rack--just stick it in the pan.

Gretchen, I have an 18lb bird this year. How hot an oven and how long do you suggest cooking it uncovered? How shallow of a pan do you recommend? The turkey will be stuffed.

 

[carolelaine]

I've cooked the turkey both ways and I like it both ways. I stuff the inside of the bird with onion, celery, lemon, sage, and apple. Then I make the dressing with the drippings. I usually make a seasoned butter rub to go under the turkey skin with sage, thyme, marjoram and a little salt and pepper. I start mine at 400 and then reduce the heat to 325.

 

[Alix]

Score another on the uncovered side of things. However, I do my turkey breast down to start and only flip it over to give a nice browning to the breast at the end. Works like a dream.

Oh, and I use a rack. I have to say though, that is more for ease of removing the turkey from the pan than anything else. LOL.

 

[bullseye]

I, too, prefer uncovered. I start a 20#+ turkey, stuffed with hot stuffing, at 475* breast down, in a rack. After 30-45 mins., I turn breast up and reduce heat to 325*. I then cover the breast with bacon strips until the bird is within 15* of done. At this point, I remove the bacon, dole it out (it's good to be the chef!), and finish the bird at high temp for the duration. Rest for 30 mins. and carve (you need to be there, ready, if you want an oyster--see previous comment, and there's a maximum of one available). Always juicy, always golden, always crispy skin.

 

[suzyQ3]

So funny to see this thread right now. The food section in last week's Los Angeles Times did a whole testing routine on four differently prepared birds, something they dubbed the Great Turkey Smackdown of 2006: brined, dry-salted, covered, and finally, uncovered at high heat.

Turns out they liked the dry-salted one the best (see the *article for details). Interestingly, they did not like the covered turkey, claiming that the flavor was pallid in comparison with the other birds and that it tasted more steamed than roasted. I say "interestingly" not because I was at all surprised but because that exact method was the one they touted with much fanfare just last year. I even ran out and bought one of those Granitewear covered roasters but never did get around to trying that method...luckily, I guess.

*If you're interested in the article but can't access it, message me and I'll send it to you.

 

[Crash]

Interesting article SuzyQ. I'll have to make a decision tonight.

 

[AllenOK]

(you need to be there, ready, if you want an oyster--see previous comment, and there's a maximum of one available). Always juicy, always golden, always crispy skin.

ROFL! I'm the only one on my house that goes for the oysters. At the country club I worked at in Michigan, we I carved at the Roast Turkey Family Style buffet line, hardly anyone would ever ask for the oysters, and I usually went through 5 or 6 big tom's for one of those nights.

 

[Crash]

Happy Thanks Giving everyone.
In the end I decided, the day of the holiday is no time to experiment. I cooked the turkey in my domed roaster according to my notes. I used a fresh 18lb Butterball in a 400* oven for 3.5 hours. The roaster was covered the entire time. Measured temperature was 180 in thigh and breast, 165 in the center of stuffing.

 

[RPCookin]

I don't mess with success. My mom has a Westinghouse electric roaster (it is more than 40 years old), and the whole family has been using it for holiday roasts for as long as I have any memories of such things. I borrowed it yesterday as usual to cook my 19 lb Tom. I chose not to stuff the bird, as that always seems to create a bit of uncertainty in the cooking time, and the mushroom dressing I was making did not require direct association with the turkey. I packed the neck and body cavities with rosemary sprigs clipped fresh from the garden, then basted the outside with marjoram, thyme and rosemary leaves mixed into EVOO. Cooked at 325° in the roaster for 3 hours. Finish temps - breast 170°, thigh 180°. The turkey was perfect... maybe not quite as brown as one done in an oven and an ucovered pan, but carved and served on a platter nobody seemed too worried about that. The turkey got rave reviews from all 12 diners.

 

[Crash]

I grew up with my mom always using a covered roasting pan and I inherited the pan when she passed away. She always removed the lid in the end to let the bird brown really nicely. I loved her turkey.....it was always so tender and juicy. I've decided to try the open roaster for a change. Its just something I've seen used so often I wanted to see the difference for myself. Yes I will stuff the cavity with stuffing but also make extra stuffing on the side and bake seperately. I'm fixing a 15# bird this year.

Hi Sizzlin

How did your experiment go? Will you be using the open roaster again this year?

 

[jennyema]

I use an open pan. Part way through, I cover the breast with foil.

I've never known anyone who roasted a turkey in a covered pan. Until now.

 

[jennyema]

So funny to see this thread right now. The food section in last week's Los Angeles Times did a whole testing routine on four differently prepared birds, something they dubbed the Great Turkey Smackdown of 2006: brined, dry-salted, covered, and finally, uncovered at high heat.

They ran that article last year, too, I think. Preferring the dry-brined bird. I almost tried it, but "chickened" out.

I have done that with chickens since and it does work really well.