Cooking A Turkey Per Pound. By the time the thigh reaches 180 f the breast will necessarily be much higher. A stuffed turkey will take up to 30 minutes more than one that is unstuffed.
The general rule for cooking a turkey is 20 minutes per pound but that can vary depending on whether or not your turkey recipe calls for a stuffed or unstuffed bird. Along with turkey cooking time per pound it is also a good idea to make use of a meat thermometer to know if it is cooked to perfection. By the time the thigh reaches 180 f the breast will necessarily be much higher.
Since roasting a stuffed turkey is no longer considered food safe not to mention doing so dries out the turkey meat it s best to stick to this method and bake one of these crowd pleasing stuffing recipes in a separate dish.
This will ensure that the meat is not under or over cooked. The breast should be cooked to 165 f and the thigh to 180 f. If you are stuffing the turkey stuff it loosely allowing about to cup stuffing per pound of turkey. Juices will run clear when the turkey is done.
