[fredleblanc]

Nope.

For preparation, put it on a chicken roasting pan, and "painted" it with melted butter. Sprinkled on some salt, pepper, fresh sage that grows in our yard, rosemary, and some garlic powder. I stuffed lemons and onion pieces in the middle.

I used an always-in thermometer in the thigh. Baked it at 325°F with the foil on until the thigh hit 135°F — about 3 hours for our 13-pound bird — then removed foil, drizzled a bit of an olive oil/garlic powder/salt mix over the top, and then let it continue to bake until the thigh hit 165°F. At that point the breast was 175°F.

Took it out and let it set for about 45 minutes before carving. I think that's the important part. Juices thicken and settle in the meat instead of running everywhere.

I think the two key things was constant temperature monitor (over-cooking means dry) and letting it set (early-cutting loses juices).

[jameshart]

Yes, this. All the sous-vide and spatchcocking and brining zealots are overthinking it. Roast the turkey, in an oven, until it’s cooked.

[criddell]

I did sous vide but I didn't choose that due to any kind of overthinking. It's just the easiest, most idiot proof way for me. I started our turkey at 2 which meant we could eat anytime after 4:30. If we wanted to eat at 5 or 6 or 7, we could.

[jameshart]

Presumably at some point in the past this required you to have had the foresight to acquire a sous-vide cooking system that was large enough to cook a turkey. That doesn’t strike me as the sort of thing one does without putting some thought into it.

[criddell]

Well, first I had to acquire a house so I would have a shipping address that the $100 device could be shipped to.

Sous vide machines are cheap. I've had mine for more than a decade now and use it all the time for the flexibility and ease of getting pretty great results.

If you don't want to buy a dedicated device, you can get buy with a big pot of water on a burner.

If you are a DIY kind of person, you can make one for less than $50.

[sosborn]

If it works for you, great, but to me, 175 at the breast is insanity.