How Long to Cook a 20 Lb Stuffed Turkey June 2023 El Reno Ok

Table of Contents

Introduction

We’ve all heard the old saying “You’re doing it wrong,” but you’re not going to hear that from me. I’m here to help you cook your 20 lb stuffed turkey for 15 hours at 325 degrees. It’s easy, it’s delicious, and it turns out great every time! So grab a pen and paper (or just bookmark this page) and let’s get cooking with the instructions below:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. You should allow at least 30 minutes for your oven to preheat, and if you can use convection bake, that’s even better–it will help ensure that your turkey is cooked through evenly.

Place stuffed turkey in a roasting pan.

When it’s time to cook your turkey, place the stuffed bird in a roasting pan. Don’t stuff the turkey–just use stuffing as you would with any other meal. The best method is to simply put it in the cavity of your bird and let it bake that way!

You’ll also want to make sure that you’re using a roasting rack instead of anything else (like an aluminum foil baking sheet), because this will allow air flow around all sides of your meat so that it cooks evenly and doesn’t get soggy from sitting in its own juices or fat for too long.

Remove giblet packet and neck.

Remove the giblet packet and neck from the turkey. The giblet packet contains liver, heart and gizzard, which you can discard or save for making gravy.
If you are not going to save the neck for making gravy (which is delicious), cut it off at its base next to your hand on one side of the turkey’s breast bone.

Place stuffing and gravy in separate dishes and set aside.

Gravy can be made ahead of time and reheated in the microwave or on the stovetop.
Stuffing can be made ahead of time and reheated in the microwave or on the stovetop.

If you choose to cook your stuffing inside your turkey, follow these steps:

Place turkey breast-side down in roasting pan.

Place turkey breast-side down in roasting pan, or on a rack set in a shallow roasting pan.

Remove giblet packet and neck from cavity, if present. Stuff neck cavity with dressing; cover breast with bacon strips, overlapping slightly to form an even layer across entire surface of bird (this will help keep the skin from drying out).

Stuff neck cavity with dressing.

Stuff the neck cavity with dressing. Stuffing should be moist, but not runny. Pack it in with a spoon so that there are no air pockets and then use your fingers to push the stuffing down into the cavity. Make sure you don’t pack too much or else your turkey will burn when cooking!

Cover breast with bacon strips.

You may want to cover the breast with bacon strips.

The bacon will prevent the breast from drying out, and you can use it as a side dish if you’re feeling like something extra. Bacon is a good source of protein, sodium and cholesterol (in moderation).

Insert meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh, being careful not to touch bone or fat.

Insert the thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh, being careful not to touch bone or fat. The turkey is done when its internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

You can cook your 20 lb turkey for 15 hours at 325 degrees

Average cooking times for turkeys are anywhere from 12 to 16 hours. You may have heard that you should cook a 20 lb turkey for 15 hours at 325 degrees, but this is only true if your turkey is stuffed with bread stuffing and has no skin or fat on it. If you’re using another type of stuffing (such as cornbread) or if there’s a layer of fat under the skin, then your cooking time will be longer than 15 hours.

The best way to determine how long your 20 lb stuffed turkey needs to cook is by calculating its internal temperature at regular intervals until it reaches 180 degrees Fahrenheit inside–this means that all parts of the meat have reached an adequate level of doneness without overcooking any part too much!