How to cook a turkey

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My mouth watered any time someone mentioned having a left-over turkey sandwich. You know the kind, chopped thick off the bird with cranberry sauce and maybe some gravy mixed in. 

We went to my grandmother’s for Thanksgiving. It was great. We didn’t have to expend any effort except to eat. The thing is, we didn’t have left-overs.  I simply could not get the idea of warm turkey sandwich for lunch out of my head.

I became mesmerized by it. The next time I was in the grocery store, I got the biggest bird I could find and brought it home, much to my boyfriend’s dismay.

“I’m staying out of it, “ he said. [He actually was a good consultant and a big help].

I am notorious for “over-analysis paralysis.”  I am not a cook and I’ve always done my best to avoid cooking meat. Now that I had a huge raw bird in my fridge, I sort of had to figure out what to do with it....or get off the pot....or something like that.

How hard can it be, I thought.

I was beginning to regret my impulsive decision. The directions I found online just scared me even more, “reach in and pull the giblets out...make sure you sanitize your preparation area of turkey germs afterward with bleach.” Not sure this is what I signed up for.

But there he sat. So the next day I dove in. I cleaned the bird, slathered him in olive oil and popped him in the oven. Every 15 minutes or so, I’d peek in to see how he was progressing. He was browning nicely.

I sliced between the thigh and the breast, per the instructions, to see if the juices ran clear. They did indeed. I even sliced a bit off the top to taste. My, it was tasty.

Well, after a few more adventures and mistakes, we did indeed enjoy some yummy turkey. If I had planned it all out, I am certain I would have become so intimidated by everything involved that I wouldn’t have even started my delicious project.

c. 2013