Creating old-fashioned Thanksgiving feast is a piece of pie

You can jazz it up, go trendy with gourmet side dishes and grilled, fried or otherwise frilly turkeys, but for Thanksgiving dinner, tradition often rules the day.

Here are the basics for putting a traditional feast on the table.

The Turkey

Before you roast, you might need to thaw. Thaw the bird slowly in the refrigerator. Allow one day in the refrigerator for every five pounds of turkey, then add an extra day.

If you must thaw at the last minute, submerge the bird in a sink of cold water. Allow 30 minutes per pound for thawing. Change water every 30 minutes to keep it cool enough to prevent bacterial growth.

All turkey – including turkey breasts – roasts at 325 degrees. Time is the only variable. Use a per-pound chart to help you plan the timing of your other dinner dishes. But for perfect meat, use a meat thermometer.

If you use a traditional thermometer that goes into the oven with the bird, place it in the thickest part of the thigh, not touching the bone. If you use an instant-read thermometer, remove the meat from the oven before you test the temperature, either in the thigh or in the thickest part of the breast. The thigh should register 180 degrees, the breast meat 170. (Note: All meat is safe above 165 degrees; experts recommend higher temperatures for palatability.)

To roast: Place the bird breast up on a flat rack in a pan no more than 2 inches deep. Deeper pans interfere with browning the meat. Brush with oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper.

To baste or not to baste: Studies show basting doesn’t make the meat juicier, but does make for an evenly browned and crisp skin. However, opening the door periodically to baste lengthens the cooking time, which dries the meat.

Don’t stuff the meat: To get the stuffing to a safe 165 degrees requires overcooking the breast meat. Avoid dry breast meat by draping a piece of foil loosely over the breast after it is about two-thirds cooked.

For easier carving: Allow the turkey to stand after roasting for 15 or 20 minutes. Transfer it to the serving platter, and use pan juices to make the gravy.

Frozen turkey: It’s safe to eat a turkey that has been frozen since last year. If it has been stored in a deep freezer (not the refrigerator freezer), it’s good for up to two years.

To keep leftovers: Refrigerate them within two hours of the turkey coming out of the oven. Turkey leftovers, stuffing and gravy can be refrigerated safely for three days, frozen up to six months.

Gravy

The overriding concern of a gravy maker is to make a lump-free mixture. There are other concerns as well, including flavor and thickness.

Remove the bird from the roasting rack and the rack from the pan. Put the residual hot fat into a large glass measuring cup. Scrape the brown bits loose with a spoon, leaving them in the pan. (These will add color and flavor to the final gravy.)

Place the pan on a low fire – usually lengthwise over front and back burners. Stir equal amounts of turkey fat and flour into the pan (the proportion of ingredients is about 2 tablespoons each of fat and flour to 1 cup of liquid).

You always have more fat than you need for gravy. By pouring the drippings into a glass measuring cup, you can see exactly how much you use in gravy makings. If there seem to be two layers in the measuring cup, the top is fat and the bottom is broth; the broth can be used along with giblet broth in the gravy mixture. Discard excess fat or save it for another purpose.

Stir fat and flour so the fat coats all the flour particles and eliminates lumps. Add a teaspoon of salt and stir with a whisk. (A spoon works, but a whisk breaks up lumps better.)

The liquid usually is stock from boiling the giblets (the neck, heart and gizzards but not the liver), but canned chicken broth or even water will do. Add it gradually to the hot flour mixture, stirring constantly, or it will seize up into a clump. Keep adding liquid, a little at a time and keep stirring. The gravy will loosen and resemble a sauce. Be sure to let the gravy boil for a few minutes, stirring (or whisking) constantly to prevent scorching.

The gravy will thicken upon standing. Make it thinner than you want so it’s the perfect consistency when it comes to the table.

Stuffing

Homemade dressing is a cinch to make, and a cinch to make delicious using your own seasonings, liquids and other additions.

Stack six pieces of good-quality sandwich bread (whole wheat or white). Use a serrated knife to cut 1/2-inch cubes. For every six slices of regular, supermarket-purchased bread, you will get roughly 5 cups of bread cubes. Ten cups of dressing will serve about 15 people.

Health professionals say the safest way to prepare dressing is not to stuff the bird, but to bake dressing separately. Connoisseurs agree; a stuffed bird takes longer to cook and increases the chance that the breast meat will dry out.