December 23, 2006
FROM THE ARCHIVES: WAY TO WRECK AN APPETITE:
How to cook the perfect turkey (the scientific way): For most people, the key to preparing the perfect Christmas meal is cooking the turkey. University of Bristol physicist, Dr Peter Barham explains how applying scientific principles in the kitchen at Christmas can help you achieve the perfect festive fowl. (Dr Peter Barham, 12/23/05, Physorg)
Meat consists of muscle fibres, connective tissues and fats. The muscle fibres largely consist of two proteins, myosin and actin. When muscle fibres are heated above about 40�C the proteins start to denature, the resulting change of shape involves the proteins coiling up. This coiling process inevitably causes some contraction of the muscle.As meat is cooked, so heat flows in and more proteins are denatured. The denatured proteins shrink making the meat progressively tougher. Thus the longer you cook any meat the 'tougher' the muscle fibres will become.
The connective tissues (collagen, reticulin and elastin) that join the muscles to the bone and wrap around the muscle fibre bundles, are too tough for us to bite through (and remain largely indigestible) before they are heated. However, after prolonged heating to a temperature above 60�C the collagen triple helices are destroyed and tough collagen becomes soft gelatin. Accordingly there must be a compromise between overheating the muscle fibres and producing a tough product, and not heating enough to denature the collagen, which would again leave tough meat.
The remaining important components of meat are fats and water.
(Originally posted: 12/23/05)
All Right!
I get to be first!
Said professor sounds like Food Network's Alton Brown, without either the personality or the charisma.
My sainted mother, may she rest in peace, intuitevly cooked perfect turkeys. I, however, require a remote paging meat thermometer.
Anyway, rub butter all over the stuffed turkey, salt and pepper, place in pre-heated 450 degree oven and continue to baste with melted butter until the bird begins to brown.
Immediately reduce temp to 325 degrees and cover bird entirely with a flour sack dish towel. Saturate towel with melted butter, and continue to baste towel every 1/2 hour or so with pan drippings.
When the pager tells you the thigh temp has reached 165 degrees, remove the towel and continue basting until the bird is golden and temp approaches 170 degrees.
Remove from oven and rest, covered for 10-15 minutes. Temp in thigh should then be about 180 degrees.
If you're using one of the strange, giant breasted turkeys so popular today (I pay extra for "free range")you may want to place the thermometer in the breast and go for a final temp. of 170 degrees.
Merry Christmas to all who bother to read this comment.
Mike
Ah, the joys of deconstruction!
Posted by: ghostcat at December 24, 2005 12:08 AMAdd bourbon to the butter and dish towel.
No, rub sea salt, garlic then olive oil then butter over bird. Add marjoran, thyme, sage, pepper rosemary and slather all over
Cover drumsticks w/tin foil, melt 1 stick of butter and sop up w/cheese cloth, said cheese cloth goes on the bird, add lots of chicken stock, carrots, celery, onion and bay leafs to pan, cook at 325 and baste every 25 minutes.
Posted by: Sandy P at December 24, 2005 3:19 AMNo, no, no ...
Basting ist forboden ... it only dries the meat each time you open the oven and increases the cooking time. Do it this way: 1) Brine the turkey (and do not stuff); 2) Cook turkey (breast up) at 500º for 30 mins.; 3) Cover breast with aluminum foil and bake at 325º until meat thermometer in breast reads 161º.
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at December 24, 2005 4:51 AM
Wow, a turkey slugfest. Do what I do, get somebody else to cook it. Never ask how they're going to do it. Stay out of the way.
Posted by: AllenS at December 24, 2005 8:31 AMI'm just nuking some macaroni and cheese for lunch after that...
Posted by: John at December 24, 2005 9:52 AMBy enabling co-valence inibitors, we create triple-dense carbohydrates and thus, the inevitable...SUPER DONUT! --Homer Simpson
From an Intel Pentium III commercial a few Super Bowls back. They replace Homer's brain with a Pentium III chip, and he becomes a renowned Professor of Pastry Science.
Posted by: joe shropshire at December 24, 2005 6:13 PM