Holiday Cooking Tips
Turkey Cooking Tips
We highly recommend soaking your turkey in a brine first, to help ensure a flavorful and moist bird. Roast your turkey at approximately 325F. The times listed below are a guideline to help you plan the approximate time required to cook your Thanksgiving headliner to the right temperature, but always use a thermometer to determine doneness. Remove the turkey from the oven when a thermometer inserted in the thickest portion of the breast registers 155°F. As the bird rests outside the oven, the temperature will continue to rise to the perfect point.
8 – 12 lb: 2 hours, 45 minutes to 3 hours (unstuffed) 3 hours to 3 hours, 30 minutes (stuffed)
12 – 14 lb: 3 hours to 3 hours, 45 minutes (unstuffed) 3 hours, 30 minutes to 4 hours (stuffed)
14 – 18 lb: 3 hours, 45 minutes to 4 hours, (unstuffed) 4 hours to 4 hours, 15 minutes (stuffed)
18 – 20 lb: 4 hours, 15 minutes to 4 hours, 30 minutes (unstuffed) 4 hours, 15 minutes to 4 hours, 45 minutes (stuffed)
20 – 24 lb: 4 hours, 30 minutes to 5 hours (unstuffed) 4 hours, 45 minutes to 5 hours, 15 minutes (stuffed)
Prime Rib Tips
Season the roast generously the night before your cook. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate, 8 hours to overnight.
Remove roast from refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature, about 2 hours. Preheat oven to 200 degrees F
Place roast in a large roasting pan. Bake roast in the preheated oven until internal temperature reaches 115 degrees F for medium-rare, about 3 1/2 hours-4 1/2 hours, depending on roast size.
Remove from oven and tent with aluminum foil; allow to rest, about 20 minutes. Increase oven temperature to 500 degrees F.
Uncover roast. Return roast to the oven and bake until well-browned, 6 to 10 minutes. Let rest 20-30 minutes. Slice and Serve.
Reheating YOUR HAM
Cut off any skin. Score the through the fat layer, making diamond crosshatch marks.
Place the ham in a roasting pan. Place some liquid in the bottom of the pan. This can be as simple as water, or you can experiment with apple juice, soda, beer or something else with some flavor in the bottom of the pan.
Place in a 325-to-350 degree oven, brush with some glaze if desired and bake until heated through and the internal temperature reaches 135 degrees. Figure no more than 10 minutes per pound for bone-in, about 7 for boneless. You can baste the ham during roasting with the pan juices or a glaze if you like.
Cooking Porchetta Roast
Apply Kosher salt to skin. Refrigerate roast, uncovered, for 1-2 days to allow skin to air-dry; pat occasionally with paper towels.
Let porchetta sit at room temperature for 2 hours. Preheat oven to 500°. Season porchetta with salt. Roast on rack in baking sheet, for 40 minutes, rotating every 10-15 min. Reduce heat to 300° and continue roasting, rotating the pan and turning porchetta occasionally, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into center of meat registers 145°, 2-2 1/2 hours more. If skin is not yet deep brown and crisp, increase heat to 500° or turn on broiler and roast for 10 minutes more. Let rest for 30 minutes. Using a serrated knife, slice into 1/2" rounds.
