Chicken and Turkey

Chicken is truly versatile. Almost any technique can be used to cook it, and because its flavor is relatively neutral, it adapts well to countless flavor combinations. However you prepare chicken and turkey, one secret to success remains: don’t overcook them. Most cooks follow recipes that call for cooking the bird to a temperature of 160°F or higher for fear of salmonella. But in fact, a whole chicken or turkey is done when the innermost part—where the thigh joint lodges in the back—reaches 140°F. The salmonella organism dies at a temperature of 137°F, and since the bacteria is found not in the meat, but only on the surface and in the cavity, both of which become much hotter than 137°F by the time the chicken is cooked to an internal temperature of 140°F, there is no need to overcook the chicken. If you are cooking chicken parts, they are done when the breast and thigh meat bounce back to the touch. When you cut the thigh away from the breast of a roast chicken or turkey, the thigh meat near the joint should still be pink or have red streaks. The meat is only undercooked when it is shiny and translucent looking.