It did not occur to me until quite recently that some people purchase pre-cooked turkeys to serve on Thanksgiving.
As a lover of all things Popeyes, I was immediately intrigued.
I dont think they have been fried for about 8 years, they continued.
Before that someone else may have produced them for a few years.
When we did fry them, you didnt get as much or any of the juices.
)The instructions on the packaging are simple:
Preheat conventional oven to 350F.
Remove all packaging, reserving juices.
Place turkey on a rack in a large roasting pan and pour juices into pan.
Cover with aluminum foil, forming a tight seal around the edges of the pan.
Reheat on lower rack in oven for 1 1/2 hours.
Let stand for 20 minutes before carving.
It wasnt the most aesthetically pleasing turkey Ive ever cooked.
In spite of all of that, it was stillpretty good.
I was surprised to find MSG was not listed as one of the ingredients.
(I am very pale with a low tolerance for heat and I was not overwhelmed.)
(More on that gravy in a moment.)
The gravy, when prepared as written on the shrink-wrapped plastic, has a very noticeable, flour-forward flavor.
Luckily, this is very easily fixed.
It tasted much better with these adjustments.
Slowly incorporate the liquid ingredients while whisking, and continue to whisk until the mixture reaches a boil.
Let boil for 5 minutes until thick.
Serve immediately over turkey and mashed potatoes.
Soshouldyou buy a pre-cooked turkey from Popeyes?
(Though you do save a lot of time in the seasoning department.)
Plus, you might always moisten any dry portions with gravy.
That gravy is incredible.
Updated on Nov. 10, 2021 at 1:45 p.m.
ET to add information about how the turkeys are processed.
We did not update the headline, which is fine the way it is.
