Don’t Cook a Turkey in a Pan
After years of hosting, cooking, and writing about Thanksgiving dinner, I have to confess: I’ve never used a turkey roaster. I don’t have a frying pan big enough to cook a turkey or a rack to set it on. I roast my birds on a wire rack above the pan and the bird never suffers. In fact, the bird is better for it.
The pits are deep enough. When you put a turkey inside, the sides rise around the lower body, blocking the flow of heat and air. You still get crispy skin on top of the bird, but the skin underneath is loose, pale, and wobbly. According to Meathead Goldwyn of AmazingRibs.com , when cooking poultry (be it chicken or turkey), wire racks and frying pans are the two main sources of spotted bird skin:
I’ve always wondered how many chefs recommend tying your feet. You want dark meat to cook more than white meat. If you tie up your legs, you are essentially pulling them in to become part of the body’s thermal mass, and the legs won’t cook as much and you’ll end up with overcooked breasts. If you let the legs fly, you will improve the air circulation around them and they will heat up faster and cook more. Even Thomas Keller – all these guys – they always tie up the bird and put it in these braziers. You have to raise it above the pan so warm air can pass underneath and brown the underside. I never cook poultry in a brazier. I cook it on the grate above the broiler, but not in the broiler.
He even has a diagram illustrating the problem, which he kindly shared with me via email:
Luckily, there is a very simple solution to this problem: just take a grate. Take a rack and place it on a baking sheet with sides. Lifting the bird up and away from the skin-protecting boards or the pan will ensure that there is sufficient airflow, which will increase the amount of crispy, golden skin.