Turkey experts share Thanksgiving cooking tips for family dinners

There are, of course, many ways to prepare a Thanksgiving turkey—but which is the best?

Purists insist that roasting is the only option, while other cooks and cooks point out that deep-frying, smoking or grilling are all viable options for preparing a bird for its trip to the holiday table.

Some turkey experts shared with Fox News Digital how they’ll prepare their birds this Thanksgiving – and offered tips for making the best meal possible.

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A prime turkey should be roasted, emphasized Heidi Diestel, a fourth-generation turkey farmer who lives in Sonora, California, at the Diestel Family Ranch.

“Roasting the turkey is super simple and straightforward and brings out the beautiful natural characteristics and flavor of the turkey itself,” she told Fox News Digital. “That would be our choice.”

Heidi Diestel of Diestel Family Ranch in California said she prefers to roast her turkeys because she believes it best brings out the bird’s natural flavor. (Fox News Digital)

Smoking a turkey is also an option, she said — but with one significant caveat.

“If you want to smoke your turkey, it’s best to choose a brined bird and/or brine the bird yourself before smoking,” she said.

Consider cooking your Thanksgiving turkey a certain way, says the chef

Brining, whether by injection or the “bucket method” of soaking, adds moisture to the turkey and prevents it from potentially drying out, she said.

“Smoking usually results in a more drying environment in your smoker,” she said. So it’s probably a good idea to use a “pickled bird” for this purpose.

Turkey cooking experts share their tips for preparing the perfect bird this Thanksgiving. (iStock)

Chef Todd English told Fox News Digital that his favorite way to cook a turkey is to smoke it.

English is a multiple James Beard Award winner and owns many restaurants across the United States, including Bentley Residences Miami in Sunny Isles Beach, Florida. (See the video at the top of this article.)

Although the specific brine he uses varies, he sometimes adds “a little sweetness” in addition to the salt, as this helps caramelize the turkey’s skin and add flavor.

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When smoking a turkey, English first brings the raw bird to room temperature and preheats his smoker to about 300 degrees Fahrenheit, he said.

“A meat thermometer is important.”

Then smoke the turkey for about three to four hours until it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees.

“A meat thermometer is something important. It really helps control it,” he said.

One of the biggest mistakes English sees? He said people assume that a turkey is “such a big bird that a lot of people think they have to roast it for seven or eight hours.”

Chef Todd English, seen here at Bentley Residences Miami, said a mistake he often sees is people overcooking their turkeys. (Fox News Digital)

“And that just defeats the purpose and makes it very dry and tough and not good,” he said.

One method English doesn’t particularly like is deep-frying, he told Fox News Digital.

When a turkey is fried, it can be difficult to judge whether the bird is fully cooked.

This chef recommends against cooking a turkey that weighs more than 18 pounds.

“I find that sometimes it dries out even more,” he said — although he noted that “the legs actually come out better after frying.”

If someone wants to deep fry a turkey, English suggests removing the legs and breast and cooking them separately.

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“Dark meat is very different from white meat. And the white meat needs to be treated much more gently,” he said.

English also advised against cooking a turkey that weighs more than 18 pounds.

Cook a smaller turkey, one chef advises, since the larger ones tend to lack flavor. (iStock)

“I take a 15- to 18-pound bird. I find that the larger birds are just tasteless and you have to cook them until they become drier,” he said.

Regardless of how a turkey is prepared, Diestel recommends checking the temperature of the turkey beforehand.

“You want the turkey to be super tender and as oven-ready as possible,” she said.

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She said it’s important to take the temperature of the turkey while cooking.

“When the roasting or smoking process is about halfway complete, check the thickest part of the breast and the thickest part of the thigh,” she said.

However, many people don’t realize that turkeys “cook faster in the second half of the roasting time than in the first half of the roasting time,” Diestel said.

Roasted turkeys cook faster in the second half, which many people don’t realize, one chef said. (iStock)

“It’s paramount to check the temperature while it’s in the oven,” she said.

Even after cooking, there are steps that can ensure the best possible turkey, Diestel also said.

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After cooking, let the turkey rest on the kitchen counter for at least 20 to 30 minutes, she advised.

This “locks in” the turkey’s juices and keeps it moist for consumption.

Warm plates while the turkey rests on the counter, one expert said, to ensure the food stays warm for as long as possible. (iStock)

Another pro tip is to warm the plates while the turkey rests on the counter.

“Put your plates that you want to use — as long as they are ceramic — in the oven,” she said.

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So while everyone is waiting for the others to sit down at the table, “you already have warm food and it doesn’t get cold so quickly.”