Can I roast a still frozen turkey at 325 degrees until done, as suggested elsewhere on line?

Joanne Stuart
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5 Comments

Jenny O. November 25, 2015
You "can" but it will wind up dry and maybe with a strange texture. If you store it in the fridge (not freezer) starting now you should wind up with a defrosted bird by tomorrow. Take it out a few hours before cooking and let it sit on the counter to get closer to room temp.
 
steph November 25, 2015
Having seen too many friends' messups from the roasting-while-frozen technique, I never bothered to try it. For several years I always had a frozen solid turkey on Thursday morning that I defrosted by setting on a rack in the bath tub and running cold water over it . Was really fast and worked like a charm. Though the recommendation of putting it in a container of water that is changed out ever 30 minutes would probably waste way less water (with the added bonus of diminishing the chances of an overflowed bath tub - oops)
 
Susan W. November 25, 2015
If for some reason you can't soak the bird in cold water (it works perfectly) as Kensington suggested, you can cook them from frozen. According to the USDA, it's perfectly safe. The Kitchn just put out an article about how exactly to do it. For some reason, my Kindle won't let me copy and paste the link. If you Google "cooking turkey from frozen the kitchn" you'll pull it up.
 
Kenzi W. November 25, 2015
There still should be time to defrost, depending on the size of your bird, which is what we would recommend: Soak the bird in cold water, changing the water every 30 minutes. It should take about 30 minutes per pound.
 
Kenzi W. November 25, 2015
To address the cooking from frozen part, we have read that it's possible—but will take about 50% longer than cooking from fresh. If you can, though, defrost! Start now!
 
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