Stuffed and Roasted Bird

Ingredients

This technique card does not require a separate ingredient list.

Instructions

1. To prepare a whole bird for cooking, rinse bird well on the outside, as well as inside body and neck cavities. Pat the bird dry with paper towels. If desired, rub salt inside the body cavity.
2. For an unstuffed bird, place quartered onions and celery in the body cavity, if desired. Pull the neck skin to the back and fasten with a small skewer. If a band of skin crosses the tail, tuck drumsticks under the band. If there is no band, tie the drumsticks securely to the tail. Twist the wing tips under the back.
3. For a stuffed bird, do not stuff until just before cooking. To stuff, spoon some of the stuffing loosely into the neck cavity; fasten the neck skin as for an unstuffed bird. Lightly spoon stuffing into the body cavity. (Put any remaining stuffing into a casserole and refrigerate. Bake the stuffing in a 325° oven for 40 to 45 minutes or in a 375° oven for 20 to 30 minutes.) Secure the drumsticks and wings as for an unstuffed bird.
4. Place the unstuffed or stuffed bird, breast side up, on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Except when cooking a domestic duckling or goose, brush the bird with cooking oil or melted margarine or butter. (Prick the skin of a duckling or goose well all over to allow fat to drain during roasting.) If using a meat thermometer, insert it into the center of one of the inside thigh muscles. The bulb should not touch the bone.
5. Cover Cornish game hen, quail, squab, and turkey with foil, leaving an air space between the bird and the foil. Press the foil lightly at the ends of the drumsticks and the neck. Leave all other birds uncovered.
6. Roast in an uncovered pan for the time given in the chart on pages 328-329. Baste occasionally with pan drippings, if desired. When the bird is two-thirds done, cut the band of skin or string between the drumsticks so the thighs will cook more evenly. Except when cooking quail, uncover bird for the last 45 minutes of cooking. (Leave quail covered for the entire cooking time.)
7. Continue roasting until the meat thermometer registers 180° to 185°. At this time, the drumsticks should move easily in their sockets and thickest parts of the drumsticks should feel very soft when pressed.
8. When the bird is done, remove it from oven and cover it with foil. Let large birds stand for 15 to 20 minutes before carving.
9. Be sure to store leftover poultry and stuffing separately as soon as possible.