My turkey is thawing in the refrigerator. Today I am making sweet potato casserole and cranberry sauce. Tomorrow I just have to roast the turkey and bake the casserole and rolls.

What is the “best” way to cook your Thanksgiving turkey?

Here’s a fun video that very quickly shows the steps for preparing a turkey.

The roasting instructions in the video are the standard method, and are the same that you’ll find on the turkey package. Here is another tutorial with similar instructions.

The only way I’ve ever roasted a turkey is very high heat for the first 30 minutes of cook time, then lowering the temperature to 350 to continue, like these from Alton Brown. (I haven’t tried brining the turkey, nor do I put all those aromatics inside like he does. It’s an interesting idea, but it’s a little too late for this year.)

As I was searching for instructions to share with you on that method, I discovered something else. I found that  you can also roast a turkey at high heat for a much shorter cook time. I’m a little scared to try this method.

I’ve also eaten, but never made myself, deep-fried turkey. Wow, it is delicious, but requires special equipment. The oil is a big expense too. I found this recipe from Paula Deen. This method would have the advantage of not tying up the oven with the turkey.