Carving the Perfect Turkey

It’s finally time to pull that fat, juicy turkey out of the oven. You place the turkey on the counter and bask in your fine cooking, and then you pause: how do you carve a turkey?! Here are a few tips:

Start with a leg. Either grab the leg with one hand and cut it away with the other, or if you have a carving fork, stick it into the turkey for leverage and then cut. Probe the area before you cut—you are looking for the joint that connects the leg to the turkey.

Cut through the joint. This should be fairly easy; if it’s not, you may be cutting through bone.

Cut off the wing. Do this the same way you cut off the leg.

Now it’s time to carve the breast. Stick your carving fork into the top of the turkey. Then, use the knife and slice downward in a slanting motion. Start with small slices—they will gradually get bigger as you move toward the center of the turkey. Lay the slices on a plate. Serve them quickly or try dripping gravy on top of the finished slices to maintain the heat.

Repeat steps 1-4 on the other side of the turkey.

Feast!