We've always found that being told how to check the internal temperature of the turkey in one line of instruction is very different than actually doing it. And when we're talking about not only our own health but that of our guests as well, we don't want to get it wrong! Here are a few extra tips to help you out:
In general, the best way to check the temperature of a turkey to to stick an instant-read thermometer in the meatiest part of the thigh (see photo above). This is a part of the turkey that cooks the slowest and is also one of the thickest. That means if it's at the right temperature, you can be sure the rest of the turkey has also finished cooking.
If you're not familiar with turkey anatomy, look at it from above with the smaller neck cavity on top and the larger opening at the bottom. The little wings will be at the top close to the neck opening. The big, meaty legs - the thighs and drumsticks - will be at the bottom. The drumsticks stick out from the body and attach to the thigh at a joint, which in turn attach to the body of the turkey.
In the picture above, the neck opening is to the right with the bottom to the left. The turkey is breast-side up, so the thighs are a little under the drumsticks. To take the temperature, you might need to turn the turkey on its side.
Insert your instant-read thermometer into the thigh meat so that the thermometer is parallel to the body of the turkey. You should feel some resistance as it goes into the meat. If it suddenly slides very easy, that means you've poked through into the turkey cavity. If you hit something, that means you've come to a bone.
Also, make sure you know where the temperature sensor is on your thermometer. Some have it at the tip and others have it about half an inch above the tip. Position your thermometer in the thigh meat accordingly.
Keep the thermometer there until the numbers stop moving. It's best to actually take the turkey completely out of the oven and close the oven door so you don't lose all the heat. Ovens take a long time to come back up to temperature, and leaving it open while you check the temperature is one of the reasons behind the myth that turkeys take so long to cook!
When the internal temperature registers a steady 165°F, your turkey is done.
Take it out of the oven, tent it loosely in foil, and let it rest so the juices have a chance to redistribute. If you leave the thermometer in the thigh, you'll notice the temperature rising a bit before the turkey starts to cool again.
Another test to see if the turkey is done cooking is if the juices run clear. Cut a small slit in the meat at various places around the turkey and press just above the cut with the flat of your knife. If the juices that run out are clear, the turkey is done. If you see any red tinge of blood, keep cooking for a little longer.
Do you have any other tips for checking the temperature on a turkey?
See how to cook a turkey: How To Cook a Turkey: The Simplest, Easiest Method
Related: How to Carve a Chicken (Or Turkey, Or Duck!)
(Image: Emma Christensen)
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Isnt the temp for the thigh 180 and 165 for the breast? I'm putting my probe into the breast and removing the bird at 160. Once it rests for 20 minutes it should be at 165 and perfectly juicy.
Get a electronic thermometer with a external temperature probe. You can put the probe in the turkey while it cooks and you don't need to open the oven.
Olymom- I think the breast will actually cook more quickly, so if you wait until the thigh is 180 your breast temp will be much higher.
Yes, the breast cooks much faster than the thigh (which is why I cook breast side down for the first couple of hours and then flip, and some others cover the breast with foil while the turkey cooks breast side up), so waiting for the thigh to be 180 I would imagine would result in really dry white meat.
Um....that fine print on the turkey is actually recommended cooking instructions. It is there for a reason. Furthermore, the instructions always err on the side of caution given the sue-happy society in which we reside. Kinda renders a meat thermometer a non-essential tool here.