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Before You Raise Turkeys - Terminologies and Interesting Facts You Should Know When Raising Turkeys

Ideally, before you raise turkeys, it is helpful that you know the terminologies and interesting facts about turkeys so that you wouldn't be thrown off guard when you read any related materials about turkeys. Raising turkeys on a small farm can be fun and profitable because they can be rotated like any other cash crop on your property. If you have a few acres that you could rotate pastured turkeys on, this could be a good side business for the small farmer.

Here are some terminologies to broaden your horizon when you raise turkeys:

Tom
Adult male turkey

Hen
Adult female turkey

Poult
Young one of turkey

Snood or Dew bill
The fleshy protuberance near the base of the beck

Caruncles
The fleshy protuberance on the head and neck usually pink or red in color which appear from about 5th week of age

Dewlap
A large flap skin seen immediately below the chin

Bread
A tuft of hair attached to the skin of the upper chest region

Strut
Mating behavior of male turkey

Shooting the red
The development of caruncles and this is supposed to indicate the most difficult time in the life of young turkey

Debeaking
Poults should be debeaked to control feather picking and cannibalism. Debeaking can be done at day old or 3-5 weeks of age. Remove the beak at about one half the distance from nostril to the tip of the beak.

Desnooding
Removal of the snood or dewbill is to prevent the head injuries from picking and fighting. At the day old the snood can be removed by shumbnail or finger pressure. At 3 weeks of age it can be cut off close to the head with sharp scissors.

Detoeing or toe clipping
Clipping is done at day old by removing the tip of the toe just to the inside of the outer most toe pad including the entire toenail.

When most people think of a turkey they think of Thanksgiving dinner. While most who raise turkeys raise them for eating, some keep turkeys as a pet. And some do both, keep some as a pet while eating the others. There are many different breeds of turkeys, however there are two varieties, domestic and wild. The wild turkey lives and breeds in the wild and some are kept as pets. It can fly and is said to be smarter than the domestic.

The domestic turkey are the type eaten on thanksgiving and they cannot fly. The domestic and wild turkeys are physically different. Domestic turkeys are much larger than the wild turkeys. Wild turkeys have brown tipped tails, while the domestic is white. A wild turkey is much faster than the domestic turkey. The fastest wild turkey can run up to 35 mph, while a full grown domestic turkeys pace is a slow walk (females are a little faster because they weigh less than the male). Wild Turkeys have better eyesight and hearing than domestic turkeys. Only male turkeys gobble, female turkeys make a clucking sound but cannot gobble. Only the male turkey can fan his tail feathers, females cannot.

The turkeys crop is also called the craw. When turkeys feed they swallow lots of food which is stored in their crop. They then go to a safe place to loaf and process the food. Before you raise turkeys too, you need to know that turkeys don't have teeth, but they grind their food (even hard seeds and nuts like acorns) in their second stomach, the gizzard. This is the muscular stomach below the crop which is the glandular stomach. Look for the gizzard in the giblet bag.

All commercial turkeys produced today are the white broad breasted turkey breed. This breed was first used for commercial turkey production in the late 1950's. By the late 1960's the majority of the industry used this turkey breed.

The cost of raising a turkey is affected by many factors, including buildings, equipment, labor, feed costs, and interest on loans. Feed costs amount to almost two thirds of the cost of raising a turkey. Geographic location, degree of automation, and size of the farm all contribute to differences in the costs of raising turkeys.

About the Author

Andrew Grey is the author of "The Essential Beginners Guide To Raising Turkeys". If you would like to learn more tips on how to raise turkeys and avoid the costly mistakes. Learning the right path to start to raise turkeys is vital for new turkey owners.

Turkey the Old-Fashioned Way

There are lots of delicious ways to prepare and serve turkey. It may well be deep-fried, brined, poached, grilled...to mention just a few techniques of preparation. This post, nonetheless, will focus strictly on suggestions and tactics for preparing best turkey the old-fashioned way -- oven roasted.

Fundamental Method for Roasting a Turkey...

1. The safest method for thawing a frozen turkey is by permitting the turkey to thaw within the refrigerator. Be certain to plan ahead...it'll take approximately 3 days for a 20 pound turkey to defrost.

2. Everybody wants to prepare sufficient turkey for the number of guests they serve, and generally desire to have some turkey left over. To decide the correct turkey size which will be needed, see the section below entitled 'How Significantly Turkey is Sufficient?'

three. Cooking time will differ depending on whether the turkey was purchased fresh or frozen. Calculate approximate cooking time in a 350F (175C) oven based on the following: 20 minutes per pound for a defrosted turkey, and 10 to 15 minutes per pound for fresh.

four. A turkey will cook much more evenly if it isn't densely stuffed. As an alternative, flavor might be added by loosely filling the cavity with aromatic vegetables and/or fruit -- carrots, celery, onions, apples, oranges, kumquats or garlic. Carefully tucking fresh herbs underneath the breast skin will also add flavor.

five. Before roasting, coat the outside of the turkey with vegetable or olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

6. For even roasting, it's greatest to truss the turkey, and particularly so if roasting stuffed poultry. (See 'How to Truss a Turkey' below.)

7. Set the turkey on a rack in a big roasting pan to promote maximum air and heat circulation and to make sure that it cooks evenly. To yield moister, juicier white meat, place the turkey 'breast-down' on the rack. This technique will stop the turkey breast from overcooking and becoming dry.

8. Set the roasting pan on the lowest rack of the oven to keep the turkey away from the leading, which is the hottest component of the oven.

9. Once the turkey is cooking inside the oven, resist the temptation to 'peek' inside by opening the oven door. Opening and closing the oven door will trigger the temperature to fluctuate, which will only increase the likelihood of a dry turkey. Steer clear of opening the oven door until approximately 45 minutes before the turkey expected to be accomplished.

10. Soon after checking for doneness (see 'When is the Turkey Carried out?' guidelines below), remove roasting pan from the oven, tent the turkey with foil and let it 'rest' for approximately 15 minutes just before carving (see suggestions on 'How to Carve a Turkey' below). If extra time is required to prepare gravy, heat up side dishes, etc., the turkey could be allowed to sit at room temperature (covered) for up to an hour without losing too significantly heat.

11. Refrigerate any leftover turkey inside 2 to 3 hours of preparation. Store in airtight, shallow containers to permit adequate circulation of cool air; date and label the containers. Turkey may be safely stored refrigerated for approximately 5 days and frozen for up to 4 months.

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Just how much Turkey is Enough?

On average, to present 2 servings of turkey for each guest (and allowing for leftovers), the suggested weights are as follows:

10 pound turkey for 6 people
12 pound turkey for 8 individuals
15 pound turkey for 10 folks
18 pound turkey for 12 folks
21 pound turkey for 14 people
24 pound turkey for 16 people

- If you will be serving more than 16 guests (a suggested turkey size of more than 24 pounds), acquire two turkeys that equal the total suggested weights.

- If the recommended turkey size is less than 12 pounds, you may wish to buy a turkey breast to roast.

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The way to Truss a Turkey...

To 'truss' indicates to secure poultry or meat into a compact shape. Trussing will ensure even roasting. The following method is suggested when roasting poultry, especially a stuffed turkey.

1. To truss with string, take a piece of butcher's string about three times the length of the turkey. Place the turkey on its back, tail end nearest to you. Slide the string underneath to ensure that it really is cradling the turkey inside the center of its back.

two. Gently pull the string up the sides...then around the wings. Pull the strings toward you, close to the breast, to ensure that the wings are held against the body.

3. Cross the strings at the base of the breast, then wrap each and every string around the end of a drumstick.

four. Tie the ends of the string together, cinching it tightly to ensure that the legs cross.

five. Finally, lift the turkey so that the tail end is up and wrap the string around the tail. Tie the string, pulling tightly so that the cavity is covered by the tail.

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When is the Turkey Done?

<> You will wish to test your instant-read or conventional meat thermometer some days just before preparing the turkey to ensure it is correctly calibrated. Place the thermometer in a pot of boiling water. It really should register 212F (100C) -- water's boiling point at sea level. If the reading doesn't reach the desired temperature, you'll wish to buy a brand new thermometer.

<> Maintain a careful eye on the thermometer during the last half hour of cooking given that the internal temperature might rise rapidly toward the end.

<> Employing a meat thermometer, test for doneness in the thickest, meatiest parts of the turkey:

Test the widest section of the breast near the wing joint; the temperature really should be 165F (73C).

Test the legs at the leading of the thigh, near the hip joint; the temperature need to be 180 (82C).

If cooking a stuffed turkey, figure out the internal temperature of the stuffing also; it need to be a minimum of 165F (73C).

<> If employing an instant-read thermometer, insert it deep enough to reach the heat sensor (the indentation about two-inches from the tip).

<> Also examine the juices and oils at the bottom of the pan that are released throughout cooking. If they have a pinkish tinge, continue roasting; if they're clear, the turkey is most likely carried out. (Attempt to insert the thermometer as infrequently as possible, to stop the juices from escaping.)

<> Another way of checking for doneness would be to move the leg up and down. The looser it becomes, the closer it really is to becoming done.

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The best way to Carve a Turkey...

To carve a turkey, it is crucial that you use a sharp carving knife and a great, heavy-weight fork. The following instructions will make carving a turkey practically effortless.

1. Begin by cutting by means of the skin where the leg meets the breast. Pull the leg away from the body with the fork and continue to cut down, close to the body, to find the joint where the thigh meets the body. Pull the leg out further and slice right via the joint to remove the leg and thigh.

2. Location the leg skin-side down and locate the line at the joint where the thigh and also the drumstick meet. Holding your knife along this line of the thigh, you are able to slice quickly by means of the joint. Should you hit resistance, adjust your angle and attempt again. Cut down via the line and separate the thigh from the drumstick. Repeat this procedure with the other leg.

3. Remove the wishbone (really the collarbone) from the turkey. Removing the bone will avoid it from splintering whenever you carve the breast meat.

four. Next, run your knife via the skin along 1 side of the breastbone. Then cut down along the ribs, pulling the meat gently away from the bones in 1 big piece, leaving behind as little meat as probable.

5. Whenever you reach the wing joint, cut through it and continue to eliminate the breast from the body. Repeat with the other side.

6. Finally, remove the wings and slice the breast meat prior to serving. (For even, appealing slices, cut the meat against the grain.)

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So, there you've it...every thing you need to know about successfully roasting a turkey.

As you can see, preparing a turkey by adhering to the methods above just isn't at all challenging. The little amount of effort you invest is going to be well rewarded when the final product reaches the serving table and your guests rave about how totally marvelous it really is. Just keep in mind 1 factor: serving a juicy, flavorful roasted turkey doesn't need to be reserved solely for the holiday season -- it is great anytime of the year.

About the Author

How many times have you wished you could know more about cooking? Visit cooking101.org and see the top cooking advice and tips on the internet <a href="http://cooking101.org/how-to-grill-or-bbq-a-turkey/">free turkey barbeque grill recipes</a>.