Defrosting turkey, combining methods

Hi! You can leave it in the fridge for now to start the defrosting. If you were starting with a fully frozen bird on Thursday, you'd allow 30 minutes per pound to defrost in a cool-water bath (so 11 1/2 hours total!), but it shouldn't take quite that long—I'd approximate a little more than half as much time, but a lot depends on how cold your fridge is, air-flow around the turkey, etc. On Wednesday night and early Thursday morning, check on how the defrosting is going by feeling inside the cavity and using a thermometer. From a food-safety standpoint, once it is thawed you do then want to cook it pretty immediately. I hope this helps! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.