When Your Turkey Reaches This Internal Temperature, It's Officially Done

If you ever plan on cooking a turkey in your lifetime (perhaps for Thanksgiving?), there's one important piece of information you'll need to know: the internal temperature that a turkey needs to reach in order to safely be consumed. This is typically the most intimidating step for those who are newer to cooking poultry, but in practice it's actually pretty easy to get the proper turkey temperature sorted. And it's important to get it right: Not to freak you out too much, but the difference between fully cooked turkey and under-done turkey could be food-borne illness instead of a delicious meal, and no one wants to be known as the person who gave their loved ones food poisoning. Yikes.

But don't fret just yet. The easiest way to tell if a turkey is done is to use a meat thermometer, which will give you the exact reading to the degree of your turkey's internal temperature. (Even if it looks fully cooked on the outside, you should still check to be sure that the inside got the heat it needed to kill off any bad bacteria.) Below, we break down everything you need to know to be sure your bird is cooked all the way through, so that the only post-feast tummy aches are due to eating too much, not to mishandling your food. Here's everything you need to know about temperature when cooking turkey.

At What Temperature Should You Cook a Turkey?

Roasting your turkey in the oven? Set it to 325°F. That's the temperature recommended by both the turkey experts at Butterball and the CDC.

You can check out the helpful calculators on Butterball's website or this table from the CDC to find out exactly how long you should cook your turkey depending on its size and whether or not it's stuffed.

At What Internal Temperature Is a Turkey Done?

The USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service recommends that your turkey reach an internal temperature of at least 165°F during cooking to be safely consumed. This is based on the fact that risky bacteria and salmonella cannot withstand temperatures of 160°F for more than 30 seconds.

Butterball's experts recommend checking the turkey 30-60 minutes before the estimated finish time, then about every 15 minutes after that. If you have an oven-safe thermometer, you can stick it into the thickest part of the thigh and leave it there for the entire time the turkey is cooking.

In Which Part of the Turkey Should You Check the Temperature?

The CDC recommends taking the temperature in three different places on the bird to make sure it's totally done and safe to eat. Using a meat thermometer and avoiding touching the bone, take readings in these three places:

The CDC recommends all three places reach at least 165°F before you remove your turkey from the oven. If you stuffed your turkey, you should also insert a food thermometer into the center of the stuffing and ensure that reaches 165°F, too, per the CDC. Then let it rest for 20 minutes before removing the stuffing and carving the bird.

— Additional reporting by Haley Lyndes

Susannah Chen is a former PS contributor.

Haley Lyndes was an assistant editor for PS Shopping where she found and tested the best home, beauty, and fashion products. She is a graduate of Northern Vermont University and has nearly five years of experience in both written and broadcast journalism.