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Turkey
Safety Basics
By
Kathleen Daelemans
I'm a professional chef and have cooked a
zillion turkeys in my day but every year I find myself asking
the same questions. When is the turkey done? What are the
temperature danger zones? How early is too early to start
the refrigerator defrost-a-thon? How long can the turkey
stay out before it turns into raccoon food? Because you
never know when they're gonna implement new safety standards,
I hit the books. Okay, the truth is I can't remember all
this stuff! And because I'd rather be safe than sick, I
look it up again.
The
Danger Zone
According to the USDA, 40°-140° is considered the
danger zone. New research states 70°-100° is the
most critical zone. Regardless, harmful bacteria such as
salmonella and campylobacter grow rapidly within these fertile
temperature ranges. When internal temperatures reach 165°,
pre-existing or "zone" grown bacteria are killed
completely. "Cross contamination, undercooking, leaving
foods at room temperature for too long, and refrigerating
warm foods in large bundles so that they are slow to cool"
are the primary offenses that spawn illness-inducing bacteria,
according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"How long will it keep?"
Fresh turkey will keep one to two days in the refrigerator.
A frozen bird keeps up to a year in the freezer. Defrost
it in the refrigerator, keeping it in its original wrapping.
Be sure to place bird inside something such as a kitchen
trash bag filled with paper towels or place a plate beneath
it to catch any drippings that could cross contaminate refrigerated
items. Do not leave your turkey out for longer than two
hours total, including before and after cooking.
Defrosting
& Cooking Temperatures and Times
As a general rule, defrost frozen birds 2-3 days ahead of
time in your refrigerator. If you forget to pull the bird
from the freezer you can defrost it by letting it sit in
a clean sink full of water, under constantly running water.
Be sure to change the water occasionally by draining the
sink completely and refilling it to cover the bird. Depending
upon the size of the bird, this could take a whole day or
even more!
Breast
side up or breast side down?
What's the right side? For birds under 10 pounds you may
choose to start the bird on it's breast and flip it over
to its back for the last thirty to sixty minutes of cooking.
Some chefs swear this yields a juicier bird. I don't buy
it! I've learned through trial and error and listening to
my Mother (who makes the best Turkey dinner outside
of yours) that proper handling of a well chosen bird yields
the best results.
To
turn or not to turn…
I don't turn my bird because I'm lazy, besides it's dangerous
and very messy! If your bird is over 10-12 pounds, it will
be too difficult to flip safely. Recipes instruct you to
do this halfway through the cooking process when of course
it makes the most sense but at this point the bird is slippery
and piping hot. My advice, skip this step altogether.
To avoid burned or over browned turkey breasts, when the
breast color is to your liking, place aluminum foil lightly
over the breast during the final stages of cooking.
Scrub
a dub dub…
Hands, tools, cutting boards and counters must be kept clean!
Clean your hands, all surfaces and all of your tools between
tasks (tasks as opposed to recipes) especially when handling
raw meats, fish, poultry or dairy.
Leftovers
All leftovers should be consumed prior to midnight on Thanksgiving
night. Preferably in the company of good friends and a stack
of really great movies. Happy Holidays Everyone!
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