HELP! SMELLY TURKEY - can we cook it?

[OhdDarlingClementine]

Immediately thought of turning to MN for this!

Tesco fresh turkey bought on Sunday. Use by tomorrow. Been careful to shout tell DC not to leave fridge door open.

DH taken it out of wrapper to prep and a gradual gamey smell hit kitchen. It didn't hit immediately. DH said it felt a bit slimy, felt better after washing. Soaked in salt a bit. Skin colour looks normal.

He's now put it in oven with orange and lemon slices under the skin, butter, sage, garlic, salt, salt, pepper. Insists after all that prep he's not chucking it!

Can't remember ever having such a strong smelling turkey before. Smell dissipated after washing so DH thinks it was due to plastic wrapper.

I'm a veggie so won't be eating it anyway but don't want DC ill.

Good lord, of course you can’t eat it!

You can but I hope you have plenty of loo roll.

Poultry is one thing I don't take chances with.

It will be the wrapping. If the smell has gone away now or isn’t as strong then it’s fine. If it was off the smell would not go away.

90% certain it'll be the plastic.

Noooo don't eat it slimy smelly meat is not good.

And yiubarebt supoosed to wash it. Hes just spread the bacteria all over the kitchen now

Don't risk it! A&E will be a nightmare on Christmas Day!

It may well have been the plastic. But personally given the choice between missing out on a bit of turkey one year or the chance of a dodgy tummy I’d not risk it!

Individually sealed chicken breasts often whiff a bit when first opened, one supermarket puts a note on the pack saying it may happen. It dissipates within a few minutes.

Poultry shouldn't be washed apparently. I agree with the poster that said you wouldn't be able to wash the smell away if it was off, but I still wouldn't eat it!!

I am phobic about vomiting though so I am very over cautious with food generally.

Last year there was a huge scandal with Tesco's selling loads of gone off turkeys, it was all over the news.

There is no way I would let children eat it, adults can take their chances, but poultry poisoning is awful.

Kitchen has been thoroughly anti baced. Don't usually wash meat but Google said to try it.

It doesn't smell any worse now that it's been in the oven for 20 mins and heated up a bit. Would expect it to?

It's a spicy kind of smell, animally, not sure how to describe it. Not eggs or rotten.

No way! Don't risk it

Never wash meat. If you Google use something like the food standards agency site. If you are ill it may well be from the cross contamination.

I cooked off chicken once. The smell got and worse as it was cooking! If it smells fine now I’d eat it.

It'll be the gas they used to package it. If it's cooked through it will be fine. Also why would you go to A&E if you had food poisoning?! Why would you move 2ft away from the loo?!

It’s fine if the smell went away when you remove the packaging. Plastic can stink sometimes take on and concentrate smells.

Mine had a slight whiff when I opened the packaging.
After I'd stuffed and covered it in bacon, the smell was much fainter. When I showed it in the oven this morning, the smell had totally gone.
I didn't know about the gas they use to pack them, it must have been that!

I've had a few whiffy whole chickens, it smells quite different to an actual gone off chicken which I can only describe as...an acidic smell?? I find the chicken can be slimy too, but I'm not sure about turkey sorry, I'd be a bit nervous as although fridge may be closed it's common at Christmas for the temp to rise with frequent opening, over filling etc.

Quite a few people on twitter saying they have stinky supermarket turkeys.

Someone on Facebook took their gone off turkey back to Tesco yesterday and apparently the person on customer service says they'd had lots returned and think it's a dodgy batch

That's what happened last year, Hezz, you'd think they'd learn....

My dad's a butcher and says if after washing in salt the smell had gone it'll be reet. Let us know...

The smell would floor you if it was off, would hang around the kitchen worse that a sprouty smell! I'd eat it 😁

Tesco were all over Twitter for this yesterday; there was bad bunch. And if you've stuffed it with that much stuff, it's probably masking the smell as opposed to not smelling anymore.

I wouldn't be eating it. It was slimy, if it was the plastic, it wouldn't be. I've eaten off turkey before because I thought that game-y smell would turn rotten if it was off... it didn't; that is the smell of off turkey. After four days of throwing up everything I ate; I wouldn't risk it again.

Do you know anyone who has a spare crown? People around here seem to prep for about four Christmases so a quick group text might uncover a spare turkey or crown somewhere.

We have a side of beef we bought for tomorrow and half of yesterday's cooked ham so not a problem really to bin it.

DH and older DC insist they're going to eat it. Littlest DS is a turkey lover so very annoyed that I've told him he'll have to have some veggie sausages with me. DH will eat some when it's taken out about an hour before DC do so can see if he runs to loo!

Just put out a local Facebook post to see if anyone else noticed their Turkey was rather fragrant. Local Tesco is in village and is primary store for locals so if it was a bad batch there's got to be someone else affected.

Have they survived so far?!