Resting the turkey

[Courtney555]

I'm watching the food network. Jamie's Christmas dinner thing.

I usually do a goose which comes out and rests for anything up to an hour while the rest of the bits finish up in the oven. It's covered with foil and a towel. It's lukewarm at best, but lovely and juicy.

This year I'm having to do a turkey, so I've watched how Jamie does his, he does a pretty good job at first look.

What he does do, however, is cook the turkey first, completely independently and then leaves it to rest (again under foil and a towel) for two hours?! I understand his concept of then leaving the oven totally free, a really juicy rested bird...but how is it not stone cold. He claims it's still "warm to the touch" but really? Does this not render the crispy skin all soggy as well?

Has anyone done his method before and found its actually ok and not stone cold with limp skin? I know you'll pour hot gravy over, but cold meat just isn't great. And it's never as juicy when you have to reheat it up from cold.

Thank you in advance...

Unfortunately it does make the skin go soggy, but it does keep warm if it's under a sealed tent of foil. Not sure what the solution is with the skin!

It looked soggy and floppy skin wise as he was carving it...

I used to put a layer of foil over it, then lie a couple of double oven gloves over. They're very effective insulation.

These days I do all the turkey parts separately, so the skin is cooked alone as crackling.

I did wonder about crackling the skin separately.

Do you remove before leaving to rest, or after the 2hrs rest? Or would you say it doesn't matter...

I do this and the skin doesn't go floppy, and it stays very hot..

But I wrap it in a couple of layers of foil. As airtight as possible. Then I put two very heavy bath towels round it. All the way round. And put it out the way.

I triple wrap my turkey crown in foil and it's left standing for about 3 hours. It's always stayed hot.

Yes I wrap it in good quality foil and then cocoon it in beach towels!! It definitely stays hot. And when it resting out of the way you've got lots more space to crack on with the rest of the dinner.

@Bluntness100

How long have you left it for like that and it's still been hot?

Yes, wrap in foil and then the 'turkey towel'. Make sure to tuck under the roasting tray.

I've left it some considerable time, at least a couple of hours and more.

But it is heavily wrapped so the heat doesn't escape, and it's still piping hot when unwrap it. I do use fuck off big heavy bath towels, and as a pp said, " cocoon" it. It's surpisring how hot it remains.

I've only ever left for an hour and a bit and it was fine. Nice tight foil and then towels. We don't eat the skins to I've never been worried about crispy skin. I find Jamie very reliable. Making his gravy this weekend.

That's great to hear. It's going to be so much easier with the oven totally free.

Jamie half arsed covers his with foil and lays a tea towel over the top... Which I just can't accept will keep anything hot two hours later.

The cocooning and getting big bath towels around the whole thing makes much more sense. I'm amazed the skin stays crisp though, I shall be delighted if it does!

I'd guess that I leave it 2 hours to rest? It's always still hot. I don't care about crispy skin though, so that's not something I've considered. Maybe you could take the breasts off the bird and pop under a grill to crisp up the skin again??

Not sure why you'd need to rest for so long - I just rest it while the spuds are roasting and we have our starters - so about 1:15 tops

Chef's blow torch comes in handy to crisp up skin just before carving. Just don't hold it too close to the skin.... gives dh the evil eye

One last question...

If you completely mummify in foil and thick towels, do you slightly undercook the turkey, as presumably it then carries on cooking under all those layers? I wouldn't want it to over cook and become tough and dry as a result.

(This is turning into quite a science!)

I leave ours for about an hour - wrapped in foil with a couple of tea towels on top. Plenty of time to roast the spuds nice and crispy, cook veg and make the gravy.

Resting it upside down is even better if you can - juices drain into the breast, not out of it. Tricky to turn a very hot, big turkey over, though.

I cook it for the full time, then wrap it in foil. I then put it in a plastic storage box stuffed with hay and drive for 3 hours to my mother’s house, where someone else is cooking the rest in a far too small oven. 4-5 hou4s later it is still hot, juicy and tender!