Last-minute tips for a stress-free Thanksgiving in North Texas
NORTH TEXAS — Nothing says Thanksgiving more than turkey with all the "fixins."
Unfortunately, getting that turkey perfectly cooked can be a challenge. If you're like many people and only cook turkey once or twice a year, it can be an intimidating endeavor.
Fortunately, the experts at Butterball Turkey are there to walk you through it with last-minute cooking tips and fun suggestions for leftovers.
For the last 43 years, the experts at Butterball Turkey have manned phone lines to offer tips and support to the millions of people who need it.
One of the biggest mistakes people make?
Not realizing how long it can take just to thaw the turkey.
"If you haven't thawed your turkey, there's still a little hope left," said Butterball Turkey expert Andrea Balitewicz. "You can do the cold-water thawing method. And that's to keep the turkey in its original wrapper, submerge it in cold water. Keep refreshing that cold water every 30 minutes, and that will thaw one pound per 30 minutes."
To make sure it's cooked thoroughly, insert a meat thermometer deep into the turkey breast. It should be 170 degrees.
Thanksgiving leftovers
"I will tell you about one of my favorite sandwich recipes," said Balitewicz. "And that's to use the leftover stuffing to make a waffle, and that creates the bread for the sandwich. It is dynamite!"
As you might imagine, over the last four decades, the talk-line experts have received more than a few memorable calls. But for Balitewicz, one tops the list.
"We definitely get tons of memorable calls here. And they tell us stories," said Balitewicz. "One story was a gentleman who was trying to help his wife and kill two birds with one stone. He was putting the turkey in the bathtub with his kids: washing them and thawing the turkey at the same time, and that was one that we did not recommend. We said, 'No! Stop! Take the turkey out. Do one task at a time.'"
One step at a time to ensure a delicious, drama-free Thanksgiving.
If you need to call the Butterball Turkey talk line, they're staffing it on Wednesday and Thanksgiving Day, too.
You can watch videos and get recipe ideas from its website, by clicking here.