You don’t want anyone to be disappointed with an unfamiliar main dish.

Bake turkey upside down. Add half the onions, the remaining 6 garlic cloves and the bay leaves. Rub mixture all over turkey, including inside body cavity. Refrigerate at least overnight and up to 24 hours, to allow seasoning to penetrate meat.

Web 9 thanksgiving recipes that put a twist on tradition. There is comfort in eating a traditional thanksgiving meal year after year. Start roasting it in a hot oven to encourage browning, then turn down the heat and roast the bird until the internal temperature reaches 165°f.

The ideal temperature for cooking turkeys is between 325 and 350 degrees. Here’s what you need to know: Web by cooking it upside down, the juices and fat will drip down into the breast meat, resulting in a moister, more tender turkey.

Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet and wrap in plastic. This is the opposite of the way most recipes tell you to cook it. Plus, since the dark meat is closer to the heat source, it cooks faster than it does with the traditional method.

For 50 years, my mother was in charge of the turkey. Wash out the turkey with water, then pat the turkey dry with paper towels. Web it takes the same amount of time to reheat a spatchcocked turkey as it does to roast in the first place, 45 minutes to an hour.

Tuck the legs and wings back underneath the bird before putting it in the oven. Rinse turkey thoroughly and pat dry with paper towels. Take the turkey out of the oven when the thigh meat reaches 165 degrees f.