How Long Does It Take To Cook A 20lb Turkey In The Oven. 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. For whole unstuffed turkeys in oven cooking bags cook at 350 f 176 7 c for the following approximate times.
Lift turkey onto platter and let stand for 15 minutes before carving. If you re baking it at 325 f the lowest temperature the usda recommends you ll need to bake a 20 lb turkey in the oven for 4 to 5 hours if it s unstuffed and 4 to 5 hours if it s stuffed. For a 20 pound turkey settle in for the afternoon.
It really is as simple as that.
Your turkey is done when the temperature with a meat thermometer is 180 f in thigh and 170 f in breast or stuffing. 24 to 30 pound turkey cooking time stuffed. Toward the end of cooking time your recipe might instruct you to cut the string you ve used to tie drumsticks together and remove the foil covering the breast. The general rule is 15 to 20 minutes per pound of turkey when cooking an unstuffed turkey.
