The big day is coming up soon and you are probably wondering what is the best way to thaw a turkey for Thanksgiving. Don’t worry, we have you covered with this guide, and we also have a Thanksgiving planning guide that is worth a look while you’re here! There are three methods that you can use to thaw your turkey: in the fridge, in cold water, or cooking from frozen. We’ll go over each method and tell you which one is the best option for your needs.
Here’s The Best Way to Thaw a Turkey
Depending on how much time you have, there are different ways that you can thaw your turkey. If you have at least two days before Thanksgiving, the best way to thaw your turkey is in the fridge.
How to Thaw a Turkey in the Fridge
In our opinion, this is the best way to thaw a turkey, you just need to make sure you have enough time.
Here’s how to do it:
- Check the weight of your turkey, as this will determine how long it needs to thaw in the fridge.
- For every pound of turkey, you need to allow for 4 hours of thawing time. So, if you have a 15-pound turkey, it will need to thaw in the fridge for about 60 hours, or 2.5 days.
- When you know how long your turkey needs to thaw, place it in the fridge, breast side up, on a tray to catch any drips.
- You can leave your thawed turkey in the fridge for up to two days. After that, it needs to be cooked.
How to Thaw a Turkey Using Cold Water
If you don’t have time to thaw your turkey in the fridge, you can use cold water. This method is faster than using the fridge, but it requires more attention. Here’s how to do it:
- Check the weight of your turkey, as this will determine how long it needs to thaw in cold water.
- For every pound of turkey, you need to allow for 30 minutes of thawing time. So, if you have a 15-pound turkey, it will need to thaw in cold water for about 7.5 hours.
- Place your turkey in a large container of cold water. Make sure the turkey is fully submerged and change the water every 30 minutes.
- Once thawed, cook the turkey immediately.
How to Cook a Turkey from Frozen
If you don’t have time to thaw your turkey using either of the methods above, you can cook your turkey from frozen. This is the fastest way to thaw a turkey, but you will need to cook it longer than normal and it will result in a slightly drier bird.
Here’s how to do it:
- Check the weight of your turkey, as this will determine how long it needs to cook.
- For every pound of turkey, you need to allow for 50 minutes of cooking time. So, if you have a 15-pound turkey, it will need to cook for about 7.5 hours.
- Place your frozen turkey in a roasting pan breast side up and cover loosely with foil.
- Cook the turkey according to the time specified above.
- Remove the foil for the last hour of cooking to crisp up the skin.
Now that you know the best way to thaw a turkey, it’s time to start preparing for the big day! We hope this blog post was helpful and that you have a wonderful Thanksgiving! If you’re having issues and in need of oven repair before the big day, don’t hesitate to give Sloan Appliance a call.
P.S. If you’re dealing with stains from your dinner, we have a Thanksgiving stain cleanup guide ready for you!
