Eeek can't open my pre-cooked turkey -- please help!

[Anonymous]

Thank you everyone! It was too late to submerge the turkey in the water while it was still in the plastic, so I put it in the oven basically frozen, but tented with aluminum foil (saw it online). Then I checked every half hour and as soon as it thawed enough, I removed the plastic bag in the rear (i.e., not leg) cavity and stuffed in whatever herbs I could. Then the turkey thawed still further, and I stuffed more herbs into the leg opening. Looks better now...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You NEED to fully defrost before cooking. Submerge, in plastic bag, in cool water. If the legs are too stiff to open the cavity, it’s also too frozen to cook.

It is NOT POSSIBLE to cook a frozen, non-thawed turkey properly. Either the inside will be raw, or the outside will be overcooked (and your guests will be starving with dinner at 9pm).

OP said it's already cooked inside

This is OP. Yes it was both frozen (solid as a rock) and pre-cooked (the plastic wrapping said "fully cooked").

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thank you everyone! It was too late to submerge the turkey in the water while it was still in the plastic, so I put it in the oven basically frozen, but tented with aluminum foil (saw it online). Then I checked every half hour and as soon as it thawed enough, I removed the plastic bag in the rear (i.e., not leg) cavity and stuffed in whatever herbs I could. Then the turkey thawed still further, and I stuffed more herbs into the leg opening. Looks better now...

you are scaring me a bit bc I also got a balducci's turkey but didn't notice a plastic bag in any cavity -- do you mean by the neck?

[Anonymous]

Eeek?
Ok grandma.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Eeek?
Ok grandma.

There are times I really mourn the inability to downvote posts on this forum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Eeek?
Ok grandma.

There are times I really mourn the inability to downvote posts on this forum.

NP. It doesn’t even make sense as an “insult.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Eeek?
Ok grandma.

What a stupid "insult". It's much more likely that the person who can't be bothered with actually cooking, and ordered a pre cooked turkey, is under 50.

[Anonymous]

As someone who worked in a restaurant and had to do food safety classes, there's so much here that's just a bad idea. Yes, even with a precooked turkey.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Eeek?
Ok grandma.

What a stupid "insult". It's much more likely that the person who can't be bothered with actually cooking, and ordered a pre cooked turkey, is under 50.

Haha the post was so dumb that it made me laugh

This is OP and I'm in my 30s. I don't care whether that PP thinks I'm uncool.

Appreciate everyone who tried to help out! After some extra cooking time, turkey was actually pretty good and everyone liked it. Just took longer than we planned for and needed some creativity by DH.

Got some good tips from PPs if we do this again next year. Kinda felt like amateur hour this time, ha.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Eeek?
Ok grandma.

What a stupid "insult". It's much more likely that the person who can't be bothered with actually cooking, and ordered a pre cooked turkey, is under 50.

I see adults of all ages picking up these dinners. Spending a whole day cooking is not my idea of a fun Thanksgiving.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As someone who worked in a restaurant and had to do food safety classes, there's so much here that's just a bad idea. Yes, even with a precooked turkey.

NP and agreed: this was one cringe after another.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thank you everyone! It was too late to submerge the turkey in the water while it was still in the plastic, so I put it in the oven basically frozen, but tented with aluminum foil (saw it online). Then I checked every half hour and as soon as it thawed enough, I removed the plastic bag in the rear (i.e., not leg) cavity and stuffed in whatever herbs I could. Then the turkey thawed still further, and I stuffed more herbs into the leg opening. Looks better now...

Next time just cook it yourself as that sounds like more effort than just making it yourself.

[Anonymous]

You put it in the oven wrapped in plastic?

It sounds like you have it under control now. I buy precooked meatballs that are frozen. Next time, put it in the fridge a fe days earlier. Don’t thaw it on the counter.

[Anonymous]

This happened to me with a Balducci’s “ready to cook” Turkey 5 years ago. We used a blow dryer to melt the ice and get the baggie if herbs out.

Today I cooked a fresh Balducci’s turkey that I prepped myself and it was delicious- although the Tuesday pick-up process was a confusing mess. I am used to Thanksgiving at Balducci’s being a well oiled machine. On Tuesday no one knew what was going on and I had to wait forever only to get a Turkey a pound smaller than I ordered.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Eeek?
Ok grandma.

What a stupid "insult". It's much more likely that the person who can't be bothered with actually cooking, and ordered a pre cooked turkey, is under 50.

I see adults of all ages picking up these dinners. Spending a whole day cooking is not my idea of a fun Thanksgiving.

We did a pre-cooked turkey and sides from Balducci’s the year my son was 8 days old on Thanksgiving.