Cooking a turkey for the Thanksgiving meal can be overwhelming. Butterball Turkey hotline has been assisting home chefs for over 30 years.
And in that time, you can imagine that they have had some pretty interesting questions.
Related Reading: 10 Crazy Questions Asked at the Butterball Hotline
If you need that hotline, it’s open on Thanksgiving, call 1-800-288-8372 from 6am-6pm and normal hours are from 9am-7pm daily. Butterball has also added the option of texting. Now through Thanksgiving, you can text the Butterball Turkey Talk-Line experts 24/7 at 844-877-3456.
But before you call or text, take a look at some of the most frequently asked questions.
1.How do I thaw a Turkey?
On the Butterball Facebook page, they posted a video on how to thaw your turkey. They designated November 16th as National Thaw Day but don’t worry if your turkey isn’t thawed yet, here are the steps below.
2. What can I do to prevent a dry turkey?
Check the date – make sure your frozen turkey was purchased within 2 years or make sure your fresh turkey is not beyond the sell-by-date as both of these factors could impact the quality of your turkey.
Storing turkey – make sure to keep your frozen turkey in a deep freeze rather than a frost free refrigerator as freezer burn could result in a dry turkey. In addition, make sure the packaging does not have any tears or holes.
Thaw properly – how you thaw your turkey can make a big impact. There are a couple of different ways to do so.
Cooking process – cooking at a high temperature and too long can result in a dry turkey. Butterball has a variety of ways to cook a turkey, visit their How To section to learn about different cooking methods.
3. What type of thermometer is best for cooking a turkey?Â
There are a variety of different meat thermometers and they range in price. The most important factor when choosing is accuracy. Test your thermometer before using in your turkey to ensure it gives you an accurate temperature read to reduce the risk of over or under cooking. When checking for doneness, always use a properly calibrated meat thermometer which should read at least 165o in the breast and 180o in the thigh.
4. What are giblets?Â
Giblets are the heart, liver and gizzard of the turkey. These parts should be removed from the turkey cavity before cooking but can be used to make rich, flavorful gravy.
5.Are Butterball turkeys gluten free? Â
All of the Butterball products are gluten free except for Butterball Stuffed Turkey (bread stuffing) and Butterball Frozen Meatballs. For our products that are packaged with gravy packets, the gravy packets are gluten free as well. The gravy contains rice flour instead of wheat flour and the modified food starch is corn based.
6. Do Butterball products have MSG? Â
Butterball, LLC does not add MSG to any of its products. According to USDA regulations, MSG must be listed in the ingredient statement if it is add to food products.
7. How do I determine what size turkey to buy?Â
Check out the Butterball calculator to determine the Butterball® Turkey size range to purchase for your holiday meal.
