Turkey Roaster Suggestions?

[kadevha]

For the past few years my mother-in-law has made the turkey for Thanksgiving. Since she is having surgery the week of Thanksgiving, I will have to make it myself

Comments

[frkyjenn]

You mean an aluminum pan isn't a proper pan for roasting a turkey? It's all I've ever used. I don't want to have to wash or store a big pan that I'll only use on occasion.

[verygwen]

So much this, especially if you're never going to use it for anything else.

Otherwise, I suggest just getting a nice, heavy metal roasting pan. I think mine is Cuisinart. Do not get a nonstick coated one.

[kadevha]

Well, by "proper" it was more along the lines of something not so flimsy.

[piperki]

I just put mine on a cookie sheet so it doesn't flop around when I'm taking it out of the oven. I have a roasting pan but it's not big enough for a turkey. I do a whole turkey once a year, tops...although I have the storage space now, I didn't in the past and probably won't in the future!

I don't use a rack for turkey because of the cheezy pan but if I wanted to simulate a rack I'd just used crumpled aluminum foil.

[athinker]

This time of year you can find them super cheap, I think mine was something like $9.99 with the rack and flipper thing-a-ma-bobs. I like the rack because I roast mine upside-down half the time a la America's Test Kitchen, but I'm not sure it makes that much of a difference. I agree that it is a beast to store and I've got a rather large kitchen. It lives on my back porch most of the year.

[scarletgestalt]

I like using the rack to keep the turkey out of the drippings, and it often comes with the roasting pan.

I have the Calphalon Classic hard anodized roasting pan, which gets mixed reviews on Amazon - but I really like it; my mom and MIL have been impressed with it as well. It is a pain in the neck to clean but very sturdy.

[lunanoir]

That's funny, because I came to recommend anything BUT anodized aluminum. I had one for the last five years and haaaaated it, could never get it clean, everything stuck to it, etc.

I just replaced it with a cuisunart everyday stainless one and couldn't have been happier to toss that calphalon one in the trash.

[lapenn]

I bought a cheap, basic one from Sears or something, and it worked really well the one time I roasted turkey. If you're not a regular roaster, I don't think you need anything too fancy.

[loolica]

You can criss-cross carrots and celery stalks in lieu of a baking rack. They also add flavour.

[interactiveleaf]

I add potatoes to the celery and carrots, myself. Or if I'm out of veggies I'll stick wadded-up balls of aluminum foil under the bird; whatever keeps it off the bottom of the pan is fine.