Thanksgiving turkey prices down, dinner prices up

To feed a family of six, the classic thanksgiving turkey and fixings will run you about $70, dessert included.

If you tend to overspend on Thanksgiving, you might want to read how your budget for dinner stacks up against other families’.

More than 228 million turkeys are expected to be produced in 2015, down 4 percent from 2014. And indeed, that’s certainly a possibility, especially if you overcook it, which is easy to do.

There is a reason that so many of us don’t do our own taxes. For larger birds, a bit less is fine; they have a higher meat-to-bone ratio.

The safest way to thaw a frozen turkey is in the refrigerator. Tie the bag shut and refrigerate for 24 hours. “The salt is more of a pathway and a vehicle to trick the cells into absorbing more moisture than they normally hold”.

If you choose to roast the turkey after it brines, Brant Tesky, executive chef of Acadiana, says the simplest approach is often the best. For a longer one, consider backing down to 3/4 cup each. If the turkey is too big, an ice-filled cooler stored outside works, too. The turkey you donate will go to a local family. To do it, set the turkey on a platter, then rub a generous amount of kosher salt on all surfaces. This year’s survey totaled over $50 for the first time. Lower temperature to 325 degrees, basting every half hour or so with the butter/stock mixture until thermometer registers 180 degrees when inserted in thickest part of the thigh.

When each turkey comes out of the fryer, Medium Rare puts it into a pan and covers it with foil so participants can transport it home. It shields it from the heat of the oven so your breast ends up over cooking far before your legs are done. Some turkey farmers in particular were hit quite hard: 7.5 million birds either died from the disease or had to be killed to keep it from spreading. That allows the juices to redistribute inside the turkey before it’s cut into. “If that weren’t the case, you might be paying $50 to $60 for a Thanksgiving turkey”, White said.

After the turkey is pardoned, it is usually sent to a nearby farm to live out the rest of its days, which naturally aren’t very many.

In the mean time you can take the stuffing out and make the gravy… Onions, celery, carrots, garlic, herbs and peppercorns are a few of his favorites.

Fresh cranberries, 12 oz.: $2.29, down 5 cents. Here’s how to make the most of the extra roasting space. One woman was evidently so concerned about having turkeys that she brought four birds with her to Milwaukee from Buffalo in the 1830s.

Remove turkey from oven and tent with foil. When the bird goes in the oven, it goes on that bottom rack.

If you have questions about your Thanksgiving dinner, you can call the USDA Meat & Poultry Hotline at 888-MPHotline (888-674-6854) to talk to a food safety expert. Grilling will cook the outside and leave the inside frozen, smokers don’t use a high-enough temperature and microwaves won’t cook the frozen bird evenly. Pies and rolls are good.

Stop & Shop: At select locations, promotional prices start at 59¢ a pound for Stop & Shop frozen turkeys and 99¢ a pound for fresh turkeys, with a $25 purchase required. Hy-Vee, a grocery chain with operations in Sioux Falls, gives shoppers a free turkey when they buy a ham.