Saving Money on Buying a Turkey

By

boxergirl76

My mom buys 6 or 8 additional turkeys every year when they go on sale. She gets our family together several months out of the year and we have a turkey feast and family reunion. We all love having a "Thanksgiving Dinner" in July and it is a cheap way for Mom to feed us all.

By

hibbardg

When my sister in law isn't around to pick the bones for me, I like to buy just the breast. More meat, less bones. For 20 cents or so more I think it is a better deal, not so much to mess around with.

By anna (Guest Post)

To T&T Grandma Thank- you so much for the great idea. Best one by far. I'm definitely going to do this. Thanks again & Happy holidays

By Deeda from Seattle (Guest Post)

I think turkeys bigger than 22 lbs or so don't give you any more meat--the cavity is just larger, and you tend to get a bazillion tough tendons on the drums. I like large turkeys about 17-21 lbs--lots of meat, not just an empty cavity! Small ones are nice, too.

For the past two years, I've used Safeway.com's "2-hr turkey" recipe that was developed by Sunset magazine--it's excellent. You can get the recipe online or at the store free. You basically grease the turkey, leave it empty(no dressing, sorry) and put it into a 475 degree oven--sounds crazy but it is juicy and saves tons of my time! I used to baste every 20 min for about 6 hrs! Crazy use of my time.

I change their recipe a bit, as I use a mix of butter(I like the taste) w/ their recommended olive oil, and I use more spices than just salt n' pepper. You tend to have to microwave the hindquarter joint (drum/thigh) for a few extra minutes (3-5) as it's a tiny bit pink.

Also, sometimes huge packs of drums (very tendony) go on sale for around 79cents all year, I season them, layer them in my large crock pot, pour a cup of water on top, and cook them on low all night. The next morning our house smells great, and once cool enough, the meat slips from bone, tendons (yuck)/cartilage, and skin. I pack up this dark meat (I like it better than white) and freeze it, along w/ the great broth. I use it for bunches of recipes or sandwiches(hot turkey sands w/ mashed and gravy, anyone?), but our family favorite is homemade turkey pot pies. Some finely chopped onion, peas/carrots/potatoes, turkey meat, and white sauce made from a butter roux and lots of pepper and salt, put into small individual dishes w/ it's own pie crust and baked...yum!

By

nadkins

After we are done with the turkey, I boil the carcass. Cool and strain out the bones. Place the stock into the fridge overnight, the fat will rise to the top. Skim off the fat and put the stock into freezer bags. Now you have turkey broth to add to dishes or start soup with throughout the winter months.