Food Cooking Tips & Techniques How to Prepare a Turkey for Roasting Skip the Butterball hotline this year and follow our easy instructions for preparing the turkey of your dreams. By Samantha Leffler Samantha Leffler Samantha is the senior food editor at RealSimple and previously launched the US Weekly food vertical, where she wrote about the intersection of food and pop culture. Real Simple's Editorial Guidelines Updated on September 29, 2023 Medically reviewed by Kristy Del Coro, MS, RDN, LDN Medically reviewed by Kristy Del Coro, MS, RDN, LDN Kristy Del Coro is a registered dietitian nutritionist, RDN, and professionally trained chef with more than 10 years of experience in the field of culinary nutrition. Her strong background in nutrition science, sustainable food systems, and culinary education makes her exceptionally qualified to write about food that is good for us and the planet—while not sacrificing flavor. Learn More Fact checked by Haley Mades Fact checked by Haley Mades Haley is a Wisconsin-based creative freelancer and recent graduate. She has worked as an editor, fact checker, and copywriter for various digital and print publications. Her most recent position was in academic publishing as a publicity and marketing assistant for the University of Wisconsin Press Our Fact-Checking Process You've thawed your turkey and preheated the oven. If it just dawned on you that you don't know how to prepare a turkey for roasting, we're here for you. Despite the intimidation factor of dramatically presenting a 20-pound roasted bird to a gaggle of family and friends, preparing a turkey for roasting is a simple task, no matter how big the bird is. Follow our simple steps for a perfectly roasted, show-stopping centerpiece. Considerations Before You Get Started If you have time, consider our to-do options that many turkey-roasting pros swear by. And by all means, avoid our don'ts. Turkey Prep Tips Here are a few turkey prep options that can enhance your roasted bird: Ensure your turkey is properly defrosted. If it's the day-of and you forgot about defrosting, don't panic. There are a few tricks you can do to make that frozen turkey oven-ready. Consider brining your turkey before cooking it. If there's still a day or two before your holiday meal, you can use a dry brine or a wet brine, either of which infuses meat with salt, resulting in a turkey that's more moist and flavorful. Pat-dry with paper towels. After removing the wrapper, set your turkey on a rack and pat it down—inside and out—with paper towels. Roasting a wet turkey creates steam in the oven, which can prevent its skin from getting nice and crispy. Set out for up to 1 hour. With your thawed, unwrapped turkey, it’s a good idea to set it on a wire rack and air it out at room temperature for no longer than an hour before you proceed with cooking. This tactic, called tempering, takes the chill off and helps dry your bird, allowing the meat to cook more evenly and resulting in a moister bird. What Not to Do Whatever you do, avoid these common turkey-prep mistakes: Do not forget to empty the cavities. Store-bought turkeys usually come with a packet of giblets, liver, and other parts you can use to flavor gravy and stuffing. It's easy to overlook these if you choose not to stuff your turkey. Do not rinse your turkey in the sink. While rinsing may seem hygienic for your turkey, it's a disaster for your kitchen. The cooking process kills bacteria in your bird, but rinsing it beforehand leaves residue in your sink and splashed droplets throughout your prep areas where bacteria can spread. Do not leave your turkey at room temperature for longer than 2 hours. Room temperature falls well within the USDA's Danger Zone—between 40 and 140 degrees F—in which bacteria can grow rapidly, leading to foodborne illness. This rule also applies to defrosting turkey and cooked turkey as well as other leftovers. Prepping a Turkey for Roasting What You Need: TurkeyBaking tray or cookie sheetKitchen twineKitchen shears or paring knifeRoasting pan with rack 01 of 04 Empty the Inside and Place Turkey on a Tray Caitlin-Marie Miner Ong Reach your hand into the turkey's cavity and remove anything that's in there, such as a packet of giblets. Place the turkey, breast side up, on a rimmed baking tray or cookie sheet. (The tray catches errant turkey juices and makes post-prep cleanup a breeze.) 02 of 04 Tuck the Turkey Wings Caitlin-Marie Miner Ong Holding a wing in your hand, lift that side of the turkey a couple of inches and tuck the wing underneath the bird's back. Lower the turkey and repeat with the other side. This step makes for more even roasting and keeps the wingtips from burning. 03 of 04 Tie the Drumsticks Together Caitlin-Marie Miner Ong Cut a piece of kitchen twine about 8 inches long. Cross the turkey legs at their "ankles"—the thinnest point, directly above the bottom joints—and then wrap the twine around the two ankles, tying a knot or bow to hold them together. This makes for a tidy-looking turkey. 04 of 04 Transfer the Turkey to a Roasting Rack Caitlin-Marie Miner Ong For cooking, transfer the turkey from the baking tray to a rack set inside a roasting pan. (Don't worry if you don't have a roasting pan: There are alternatives.) If one of the wings comes untucked, just tuck it back under the bird. How to Take a Turkey's Temperature Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit Sources Real Simple is committed to using high-quality, reputable sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts in our articles. Read our editorial guidelines to learn more about how we fact check our content for accuracy. USDA. To wash or not to wash...your turkey? Published 2013. USDA. How temperatures affect food.