You CAN Microwave a Turkey

It’s flying around the internets – the microwave turkey challenge! Folks are texting their parents and asking if they can microwave their turkey this Thanksgiving. Just search #25lbTurkeyChallenge on your favorite social media platforms and prepare to pee your pants. The responses are hilarious. We also laughed, but were also intrigued. As frequent “nailed it” challengers, we decided to see if we could indeed cook a turkey in the microwave. We documented the process in this video and put the directions below.

Microwave Turkey Instructions

• Purchase a small turkey 7-9 pounds (25 pounds is a bit over zealous). Bonus points: support local farmers by purchasing at your local farmers market.
•  You must defrost in advance. It takes about 24 hour to defrost a 5-pound turkey in the refrigerator.
• Slather with butter and season however you like. We love to thrown on salt, pepper, and a combination, sage, rosemary, and thyme.
• Put bird in a microwave safe oven bag 
• Poke a few holes in the bag to allow the steam to release.
• Cook 7 minutes per pound. If your microwave doesn’t have a rotating table, be sure to manually rotate.
• Lastly, and most important, use meat thermometer to make sure the turkey is cooked to 165 degrees in breast and 180 degrees in thigh.

It may not be the preferred way to cook a turkey, but this technique can be great in a pinch. Have you tried it? How did it turn out?