Turkey engineering
Trussing. I know it's supposed to help the bird cook evenly, but it's always seemed counter-intuitive to me. Since dark meat takes longer than white, wouldn't exposing more surface area of the legs/thighs to heat/hot air be beneficial? In other words, isn't forming them into a compact, dense mass with the breast just compounding the problem? Trussing creates that iconic turkey shape...but not sure it enchances cooking. Perhaps it would be better to let the legs splay wantonly...stuff the cavity - with onions/apples/lemons/herbs/whatever - for flavor and also to mediate hot air hitting inside of breast (not a big stuffing-in-bird fan, but you could do that instead) and finally, simply tuck the wings under, protected with foil if necessary. This is pretty much how I roast chickens, and the disparity between white/dark timing for turkey seems even greater. Did I miss that day in Turkey Thermodynamics 101, or does this make sense?
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