Prep for a 16 to 20 lb turkey
Prep
Brine the turkey as described in the Holiday Poultry Brine post.
Preheat oven to 450° (preferably checking with a good oven thermometer). I have an oven with a convection fan and I turn that on.
Stuff light-to-moderate with desired stuffing – my preference is cornbread stuffing with additions of at least onion and celery. For the broth use turkey broth, not chicken broth.
Set the turkey into a greased roasting rack breast-side down on top of a turkey lifter (http://www.the-perfect-turkey.com/how-to-turn-a-roasting-turkey.html). and place into the oven.
Turn the oven temperature down to 300° and monitor the temperature. If the temperature hasn’t dropped down to around 300° after about 20 min, open the oven door for a minute or so to get the temperature down.
After around 2/3 of the cooking time (around 2 ½ hours for a 16-18 lb turkey), take the turkey out of the oven and turn it over, breast-side up. Be really careful not to burn yourself – the turkey is both heavy and very hot. I get help with lifting it using the turkey lifter and then use oven mitts and clean, easily washed dish towels to flip the turkey over.
Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the breast. I have an electronic thermometer that lets me monitor temperature from a display outside of the oven. This is also a good time to add any root vegetables (potatoes, carrots, onions, turnips) to the bottom of the roasting pan.
Return the turkey to the oven and monitor the temperature until the turkey meat registers 150 to 155° Take the turkey out of the oven to rest for at least 45 min before carving.
Ignore the recommended temperatures printed on meat thermometers for poultry. Older ones print that 180° is necessary for poultry meat despite the fact that the USDA recommendation has been 165° since 2006. Newer meat thermometers do print 165, which is certainly better, but still won’t give you the moistest turkey. As long as you let the turkey rest after cooking, 150° will give you a perfectly safe and much moister bird. See the following for a detailed explanation: