Does Butterball’s New Cook-From-Frozen Whole Turkey Really Work?
No need to freak out if you don’t thaw this bird before Thanksgiving.
Photo courtesy of Butterball
We’ve all been there: Prepping and planning every savory and sweet dish for Thanksgiving dinner as best we can, only to realize when the big day finally arrives that we forgot to thaw the turkey. Or maybe you’re new to this whole hosting business but are intimidated by the nuances of brining, roasting and basting the main course to achieve that picture-worthy brown exterior with a perfectly cooked interior. In either case, Butterball’s latest Turkey Day time-saver might be the bird for you this year.
The iconic poultry brand is known for endeavors to take the stress and consternation out of roasting turkeys. That includes its famous Butterball Turkey Talk-Line (1-800-BUTTERBALL), which has employed knowledgeable cooks to field phone calls since 1981, and which in more recent years has expanded to text, social media and online chat. But today, the brand introduced a product that just might cut down on the usual barrage of panicked and perplexed holiday dinner chefs hitting them up for advice.
Photo courtesy of Butterball
The Butterball Cook from Frozen Premium Whole Turkey, which is hitting stores nationwide in time for Thanksgiving this year, is about as simple as turkey can get. The only prep this protein requires is to unwrap the (still frozen) turkey, put it in a pan, and pop it into your preheated oven. That’s it. No thawing, no pulling a bag of innards out, and no saltwater baths days ahead of time. Butterball says being able to cook this product from its frozen state addresses some of its most perennially popular questions to the Turkey Talk-Line: How and when to thaw the turkey.
The turkeys also come pre-brined and pre-seasoned, meaning the only ingredient required is a brush of oil over the skin, though the instructions do say you can sprinkle on your own herbs and spices if you wish. Five(ish) hours of no-fuss roasting later, and you’ve got a fully-cooked, golden-brown centerpiece to your feast.
How is that possible? Butterball’s announcement states that the turkeys (which are not pre-cooked in any way) are soaked in a “specially-formulated brine” which “ensures that the turkey remains moist throughout the roasting process, resulting in the same delicious, flavorful turkey that Butterball has brought to family tables for over 70 years.”
Adam Campbell-Schmitt
If this seems too good to be true, I actually received a nearly 12-pound Cook from Frozen turkey from Butterball in advance, and tried it out for myself. The first part of the prep was as easy as advertised: The plastic wrapping covering the turkey has a tearaway portion that splits the packaging open with no trouble. I placed it on a rack in a roasting pan as suggested, and to be honest, it felt a bit odd not having to truss any drumsticks or tuck any wings, as the whole thing was one solid unit from the brine, like a turkey stuffed inside a frozen water balloon.
While the outer wrapper boasts just “2 easy steps,” there’s a bit more to it than that. As suggested, I brushed on some vegetable oil (you can also use an oil-based cooking spray), and slid it into my pre-heated, 350-degree Fahrenheit oven. After four hours, again as the full instructions suggested, I tented some aluminum foil over the breast and began taking temperature readings.
Adam Campbell-Schmitt
At almost exactly five hours (to the minute), my probe thermometer read the recommended 170 degrees F in the thigh portion, so I pulled the turkey out to rest for the suggested 20 to 30 minutes. The results were lovely color on the skin, and well-seasoned meat (which is to say salted, but not a ton of other flavor) that was still moist in the breast and just on the side of done in the dark meat sections. It was definitely a solid showing for such a low-lift effort.
Adam Campbell-Schmitt
Butterball informed me that the turkeys range in size from 10 to 14 pounds. Cooking times will vary by size and individual oven, and the packaging states as much. So while this was certainly one of the easiest turkeys I’ve ever cooked, if you’re a complete novice, the only tricky part will be knowing just how to properly probe the breast and thigh with a meat thermometer (yes, you will need one) to make sure each section is adequately cooked.
The Butterball Cook from Frozen Premium Whole Turkey will be available at supermarkets nationwide including all Harris Teeter, Lowes Foods, and Publix locations, as well as select Walmart and Kroger stores, which also included Fred Meyer, Fry’s, and Ralph’s. Prices will vary by weight. To find it near you, Butterball has a product locator page to help you out.
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