Turkey
The single best thing you can do to a turkey is stop cooking it as one piece. Breast wants 155°F; legs want 175°F. Ask your butcher to break the bird down and cook the parts separately — or take the whole bird and spatchcock it. Wild turkey is much leaner and needs brining.
Order holiday birds early — most shops cut off Thanksgiving orders weeks ahead.
Not sure where to start?
We'll fill in the standard turkey order — the 5 cuts most customers take, cut and wrapped the usual way. Nothing is locked in; change or remove anything after.
Or tell me how you eat
Answer a few quick questions — how many of you there are, how you cook — and I'll fill in the whole sheet with a reason beside every cut.
Off the outline
Fat, bones & odds
Tap any part of the animal to see the meat that comes out of it
How much meat will I actually take home?
Typical turkey: 10–24 lb hanging. Don't know it? A live weight of 14–30 lb hangs at about 10.9–23.4 lb.
Enter a hanging weight to see your estimate.
Breast
Huge lean white meat. Roast bone-in or roll it boneless.
Don't forget to ask for these
The parts most customers never mention — and most shops throw away if you don't.