How to Thaw a Turkey – learn how to thaw your Thanksgiving turkey – all the information you need in one place to get your frozen turkey ready to cook for a small group or a crowd!

How to Thaw a Turkey 101

You will want to save this one!

It never fails, every year I have to dust off the cobwebs in my brain to remember all the details of properly thawing a turkey before Thanksgiving.  The tricky part is that every turkey is a different size depending on how many people we are hosting, sometimes I buy the turkey early and I have lots of time, sometimes I wait until the last minute and have very little time, and sometimes I just need a small turkey breast.  It’s hard to remember what to do in all of those different situations!  So…. we have just what you need!  All the information in one place for thawing a turkey in any situation!

How Much Turkey Per Person

A good rule of thumb is to buy about one pound of turkey for every person that you will be serving.  So if you have 15 people coming to dinner, you would want to buy a 15 pound turkey from the grocery store.  If you want to have leftovers (yes, please!) then you will want to add in about another 1/2 pound per person.  You might only need a small turkey breast if you are cooking for only a few people.

If you need any help with the calculations you can checkout this handy turkey calculator.

How to Thaw A Turkey in the Refrigerator

This will be the slowest way to thaw your turkey, make sure you have enough time.  You will want to allow about 24 hours for every 5 pounds of turkey.  So if your turkey is 15 pounds that will take about 3 days.

1. Keep the frozen bird in the original packaging.
2. Place your turkey breast side up in a roasting pan or rimmed baking sheet to prevent any turkey juices from getting all over your fridge.
3. Once the turkey is thawed in the fridge it can continue to stay there for up to 2 days before cooking – this is one perk to thawing in the fridge!

How to Thaw a Turkey: Cold-Water Method (Water Bath)

This might be the best way, it is definitely a quicker thawing method and probably the one that I use most often.  You will want to allow for about 30 minutes for every pound of turkey.  So if your turkey is 15 pounds that will take 7.5 hours.

1. Keep the turkey in the outside wrapping.
2. Place the wrapped turkey breast side down in a kitchen sink, bucket, or cooler large to hold enough cold water to completely submerge the bird once water is added.
3. Fill your sink, bucket, or cooler with COLD tap water (40 degrees F. or colder!) and make sure you change the water every 30 minutes (or half hour).
4. Once the turkey thaws you will want to immediately cook the turkey  – remember as soon as the thawing process begins bacteria that was present before freezing will begin to grow again so cooking your thawed turkey immediately is very important.

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO THAW A TURKEY – QUICK GUIDE ON THAW TIMES

Turkey Weight	Thawing Time (Refrigerator)	Thawing Time (Cold Water)
Up to 12 lbs	1-3 days	2-6 hours
12-16 lbs	3-4 days	6-8 hours
16-20 lbs	4-5 days	8-10 hours
20-24 lbs	5-6 days	10-12 hours

How to Know if Your Turkey is Thawed

You will want to put your hand inside the bird to see if there are any ice crystals on the inside.  You can also poke around the large meat portions with a fork to make sure that there aren’t any frozen parts.  If it is too hard to poke then it is still partially frozen.

How to Thaw a Turkey Breast

You will want to follow the same thawing instructions above and calculate thaw times based on the size of your turkey breast.  The thaw times should be pretty short overall since a turkey breast is typically a smaller size than a full turkey.

A FEW FAQs

• Can I thaw a turkey at room temperature?  No!  Do not leave your turkey out a room temperature.  It should always be in a fridge or in water until you are ready to prep it for cooking.
• Can I still cook the turkey if it is partially frozen? Yes, but it will affect your cook times and will take longer. The exception here is deep frying – NEVER deep fry a turkey unless it is 100% thaw.
• How long can a turkey be kept in the freezer before thawing and cooking? If the fully frozen turkey is kept frozen and unopened (in the original wrapping) you could keep it for up to 2-3 years. For best quality it is recommended to eat within 1 year.
• How do I know if my turkey has gone bad?  Usually the skin starts to look a little slimy and it will have a “rotten egg” smell.
• Can I cook a frozen turkey: if your turkey is still a little frozen on Thanksgiving morning you CAN still cook it (unless you are deep frying it – then it HAS to be fully thawed) it will just take longer to cook so plan accordingly.

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