Cooking the Perfect Christmas Turkey

Cooking a turkey for Christmas can be daunting, especially for a first-timer.

We've probably all heard stories of first-time cooks who went to cook the bird on Christmas Day - only to realize some turkeys need a couple of days to thaw out, or experience cooks who whip up a feast - but forget to take the plastic bag of giblets out.

Some cooking mistakes are funny, but others can be dangerous, especially if you undercook poultry.

Every year, many people fall victim to foodborne illnesses and spend the holidays in misery.

To help you avoid that, the helpful folks at Clemson University's Home and Garden Information Center have put together a fact sheet about cooking turkeys.

They cover everything from methods to thaw your bird, how to stuff it, how to safely store leftovers and what to do with giblets.

No matter how you're going to cook the bird, from roasting to smoking to deep frying, the fact sheet has you covered, with cooking times and step-by-step methods.

About the only thing they don't cover is how to pull the wishbone so that you always get your wish.

You can find HGIC's “How to Cook Turkey” Fact Sheet here.

http://www.clemson.edu/extension/hgic/food/food_safety/handling/hgic3560.html