Not only is fried turkey mouthwateringly delicious, it is also particularly highly-demanded during the holiday season. Cooking an entire turkey on the day can be a long and tedious process. So, it may prove to be efficient to cook ahead of time, store it, and reheat fried turkey the day you want to serve it.
This way, you serve everyone what they love and absolutely must have (fried turkey), and you also free up your time to tend to other, more time consuming and enjoyable tasks the holiday season calls for.
Before we get to how you can reheat fried turkey to have it taste freshly cooked, let’s look into how you can store deep fried turkey so you can reheat it later more easily and efficiently.
In order to prevent yourself or any of your guests from contracting any food-borne illnesses, you should carve up any cooked poultry that is not served fresh (within 2 hours of cooking) prior to storing it.
How to Store
The first step to store fried turkey so it can be reheated later is to:
- Carve turkey from the bone
The breast meat should be sliced, whereas the wings and legs of the turkey should be left whole to reheat later.
The next steps to store fried turkey are as follows:
- The carved turkey should be placed into airtight containers to preserve freshness for as long as possible
- Refrigerate turkey
Refrigerate the turkey separately, while simultaneously refrigerating the trimmings and side dishes.
Make sure that fried turkey isn’t left in room temperature for more than a couple of hours, or even kept in the oven after it’s been freshly cooked or reheated. This is also done to prevent any food-borne illnesses later.
Reheat Fried Turkey in the Oven
- Take out the stored fried turkey around 2 hours before you want to serve it
- Let the refrigerated turkey cool down in room temperature to optimize reheating and prevent any loss of moisture
To prevent overcooking or drying of meat, reheat fried turkey at low temperatures:
- Pre heat the oven between 230° and 250° Fahrenheit
- Reheat fried turkey for about 30 minutes in the oven
The duration may vary depending on the size of your fried turkey.
- Use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature of reheated fried turkey
- For an accurate reading of internal temperature, stick the thermometer into the turkey leg and turkey slices
- If the thermometer shows an internal temperature of 165° Fahrenheit, your turkey is optimally reheated
Make sure all slices and parts of the turkey show this same internal temperature to ensure you reheat fried turkey evenly.
- Pull the reheated turkey out of your oven
For best results, reheat fried turkey and serve straight out of the oven while it is still fresh and crispy. In case you have to, keep the reheated turkey warm in the oven at a low temperature for a maximum of two hours until serving time.
If you’re left with extra turkey after, refrigerate immediately.
While you can also choose to reheat using a microwave, the loss of crispiness is probably not worth it.
Next Thanksgiving, try this method to reheat fried turkey using an oven to ensure you can save up on lots of time that you can then spend on other festivities the holiday season demands.