Serving stuffing at a meal is truly an opportunity for creativity. The ingredients and cooking methods for preparing stuffing -- or "dressing," as it is sometimes called -- are so diverse, just pondering the possibilities will make your mouth start to water. "Better Homes and Gardens" magazine online suggests that every stuffing recipe include a starch and a liquid, and for optimal success other flavors, like herbs and spices too. Pick your favorite of these techniques for this Thanksgiving, or try them all and keep stuffing birds all year round!
Traditional Stuffing Method
The traditional technique for stuffing a bird is to use 1/2 a cup of stuffing per pound of turkey and to push it into the body and neck cavities. Do not pack the stuffing tightly or it will heat too slowly. The turkey should then be cooked as usual, but be sure to check the temperature of the stuffing with the meat thermometer, so you know that both the meat and the stuffing are done.
Close the Cavity Method
Some cooks will want to secure the body cavity of the bird closed using the clamp that often is hooked into the legs of the turkey. A skewer can be used to hold the flap of skin over the neck cavity as well. Kitchen string can be used to wrap around the ends of the drumsticks against the skin along the tail, this will hold the body cavity closed to hold moisture.
Under the Skin
A method that has probably never occurred to most cooks is to place the stuffing in between the skin and the meat of the bird. This technique solves the problem of the stuffing cooking too slowly inside the turkey, and will keep the turkey meat juicier. Getting the stuffing under the skin can be accomplished with a delicate touch. Gently loosen the skin around the turkey's breast, legs, and thighs, and poke the stuffing under it one spoonful at a time. The only drawback to this method is that because there is limited space under the skin, you may end up with extra stuffing that will need to be baked in a separate dish anyway.
Don't Stuff at All
As suggested by Serious Eats' Alton Brown, you can always opt not to stuff the turkey at all. Cooking the stuffing in a separate dish (this is what technically makes stuffing into "dressing") has several advantages which can improve the stuffing and the turkey as well. When stuffed, a turkey will take longer to cook and therefore lose more moisture than a turkey cooked without stuffing. Also, when cooked inside a bird, stuffing has a tendency to heat unevenly, which can result in underdone stuffing---a danger because it has been soaked in the meat juices. So for simplicity, place the dressing in a baking dish and bake it alongside the turkey, using a meat thermometer to determine whether it is done.
Turducken
Another unusual method of stuffing a bird is to actually stuff three birds. This requires that you have a turkey, a duck and a chicken to cook, and it's a good idea to have a very large crowd to help you eat this monstrosity. Debone all three birds, then work the chicken inside the duck's deboned cavity, and then work the duck into the turkey's cavity. You can also stuff the chicken in the traditional manner first. Allow at least nine hours for cooking.
Tags: bird stuffing, body cavity, meat thermometer, method that, separate dish