Turkey Safety: How to Avoid Salmonella and Food Poisoning During Thanksgiving

Of course, the safety of the turkey begins with a good thaw of the bird, which you should start on Sunday, unless you prepare a very small frozen turkey or a fresh turkey. The turkey should be thawed in its original unopened packaging in a large roasting dish so that the turkey juice is not splashed by anything underneath. Generally, you need to schedule 24 hours for every five pounds of turkey. It may take even longer if your turkey is very big (over 20 pounds).

Turkeys should only be thawed in the refrigerator, never on the kitchen counter or porch, regardless of outside temperature.

The danger zone for bacteria growth is between 40 and 140 degrees. If the outside of the turkey stays in this area for more than two hours, bad bacteria can develop, resulting in further food poisoning.

If you forget to thaw your turkey, there is an emergency approach for defrosting in cold water. Again, do not remove the bird from its plastic wrap. Put it in cold water, not hot, and change the water every 30 minutes, or as often as possible. This helps keep the surface cold while the inside thaws, again to prevent bacterial growth.

If you need to thaw cold water, it will take a little more time. Calculate approximately 30 minutes defrost time per pound of turkey with this emergency method, which means that a 20-pound defrost will need at least 10 hours to defrost and an additional five hours to roast at 325 degrees.

Once your turkey has thawed, or if you have bought a fresh turkey, the Department of Agriculture recommends keeping it in the refrigerator for up to two days before cooking. So, if you order a fresh turkey, the perfect day for pickup is next Tuesday or later.