Thanksgiving is two weeks out — when do you actually buy the turkey, fresh or frozen?
Turkey is climbing the search charts tonight and it hit me that Thanksgiving is only two weeks away. I always freeze up on the timing: buy a frozen bird now and thaw it for days, or gamble on finding a fresh one the week of? Last year my store was picked over by Tuesday. I have a 15-pound bird in mind and a normal fridge. For people who host every year: when do you buy, and how do you actually plan the thaw so it isn't still icy on Thursday morning?
1 answer
- Buy frozen this weekend, start thawing Monday
Rule of thumb is 24 hours of fridge thawing for every 4 to 5 pounds, so a 15-pound bird needs a solid 3 to 4 days. That means buying frozen this weekend and moving it to the fridge Monday morning for a Thursday dinner. Fresh is nicer but only if your store actually has your size left — by Tuesday of Thanksgiving week the good sizes are gone and you're picking through the 22-pounders. Frozen now is the low-stress move.