Introduction

Thanksgiving is a time for gathering with family, eating delicious food and watching football. But it can also be stressful if you’re tasked with cooking the turkey. The good news is that roasting a turkey doesn’t have to be difficult. Follow these simple steps and you’ll be enjoying your own beautifully cooked turkey in no time!

Set your oven to 375 degrees F.

You can’t cook a turkey without first being sure that your oven is at the right temperature. If you’re using a convection oven, set it to 325 degrees F; if not, use 375 degrees F.

Let the turkey thaw for 2-3 days.

In order to ensure that your turkey is cooked to perfection and not undercooked or over-cooked, it’s important that you let it thaw for a few days before cooking. You can leave the turkey in the refrigerator overnight and then cook it on Thanksgiving Day, but if there isn’t enough room in your fridge then we recommend using an ice water bath method instead.

• Don’t put the turkey directly into cold water–this will cause its outer layer (the skin) to become brittle and crack when placed in hot oil during frying or roasting later on. Instead, place it in a container with a lid or cover loosely with foil so that air can circulate around all sides of the meat while it defrosts slowly over time rather than all at once due to rapid temperature change between frozen state vs room temperature temperatures when placed directly into warm liquid contained within another vessel like this one here

Rinse the turkey with cold water and pat dry with paper towels.

Rinsing and patting the turkey dry are important steps to ensure that your turkey won’t stick to your roasting pan. After rinsing it in cold water, pat the bird dry with paper towels before placing it in your roasting pan. This will also help remove any bacteria that may be on the skin of your bird, which could cause food poisoning if not removed prior to cooking.

Rinsing and patting dry should take less than 10 minutes if you’re working quickly; however, if there is any excess moisture left on either side of the turkey after this process has been completed (and especially if you notice any redness or irritation around its eyes), consider letting it rest for another 15 minutes before proceeding with cooking so as not to risk burning yourself later on when handling hot items like pans filled with boiling water!

Stuff the cavity of the bird with vegetables and aromatics like onions, celery, carrots and lemons.

Stuffing the cavity of the turkey with vegetables and aromatics like onions, celery, carrots and lemons will help to baste your bird as it cooks. The veggies will also add flavor to the turkey.

Rub kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper on the skin of the turkey, inside and out.

• Rub kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper on the skin of the turkey, inside and out.
• Kosher salt is better than regular salt because it is larger and does not dissolve as quickly. This means that you can get a good amount of flavor into your meat without having to worry about it dissolving before it makes contact with your food. Also, because there are no additives or anti-caking agents in kosher salt (and most other types), there’s less chance for burning when cooking at high temperatures–something that can happen with regular table salt if you don’t use just enough water during marination time.*
• *Freshly ground black pepper has more flavor than pre-ground varieties because they have been crushed right before grinding instead of being stored in warehouses where they lose their aromatic oils over time.*

Place a roasting rack in a large roasting pan and place the turkey on top of it.

Place a roasting rack in a large roasting pan and place the turkey on top of it.

Make sure that the turkey is stable, not touching any sides of the pan, and does not tip over when you move it.

Add at least 1 cup of chicken broth or water into the bottom of your roasting pan.

Place at least 1 cup of chicken broth or water into the bottom of your roasting pan. The liquid will help keep the turkey moist as it cooks, preventing it from drying out. It can also help prevent burning on the skin, which is especially important if you’re cooking a dark-skinned bird like an organic free-range turkey or a kosher turkey (which has been salted). A small amount of liquid helps keep any drippings from sticking to your roasting pan so that they don’t burn and stick to its surface instead.

Bake your turkey for 20 minutes per pound at 375 degrees F, basting every 20 minutes with any juices that collect in the bottom of your roasting pan with a pastry brush until golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of thigh registers 165 degrees F. Remove from oven when done, cover loosely with foil and let rest for 20 minutes before carving.

• Bake your turkey for 20 minutes per pound at 375 degrees F, basting every 20 minutes with any juices that collect in the bottom of your roasting pan with a pastry brush until golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of thigh registers 165 degrees F.
• Remove from oven when done, cover loosely with foil and let rest for 20 minutes before carving.

Conclusion

Now that you know how long it takes to cook a 10 pound turkey, you can plan accordingly. You’ll want to make sure your oven is preheated and ready before starting this process. Also remember that the temperature of your bird should be at least 165 degrees F before serving so make sure it gets checked every 20 minutes with an instant-read thermometer during baking time!