How do I roast two things that need different temps at the same time?
November 26, 2015 10:27 AM   Subscribe

I need to cook a Field Roast Hazelnut Cranberry Roast En Croute, a whole turkey breast and a couple turkey legs in the same oven, to come out at the same time. They need different temperatures. How do I make it work?

The Field Roast instructions say to bake it at 400 F for 1 hour and 10 minutes. One factor of this roast is that it has a pastry crust that needs to brown. Their non-pastry-crusted roasts seem to have a more flexible cooking regime, as long as the internal temp gets to 160 F and you don't overcook it and dry it out.

The Internet consensus on the turkey legs apperas to be about 90 minutes at 350 F.

For the turkey breast I've seen 325 F for close to 2 hours. I've also seen 350 F for an hour, then check every 15 minutes until internal temp hits 165 F, about 1 hour 30 minutes or so total time. One recipe said to preheat the oven to 450 F, then turn it down to 350 F as soon as you put the turkey in, to aid in browning.

So how would you compromise? I'm assuming I can;t just cook the turkey at 400 for a shorter time, can I? I'm assuming the Field Roast needs 400 to properly brown the crust. Can I compromise at 375 and adjust the cooking times and still have the pastry roas and the turkey come out OK?
posted by under_petticoat_rule to Food & Drink (6 answers total)
 
Cook all according to Field Roast instructions and monitor the breast and leg by measuring internal temps. I regularly roast turkey at 400+ and it turns out great.
posted by quince at 10:33 AM on November 26, 2015 [1 favorite]


I cook everything at 200c. not sure what that is for you. I do that no matter what the directions say (unless its slow cooking for hours at 160), when I have more than one thing that maybe needs a lower temp then I place foil on top. So yes, I think you can compromise! I'm sure others will have more specific advice!
posted by flink at 10:33 AM on November 26, 2015


Best answer: Here's what I would do – no promises that it's best.

Set up the oven so that there's room for the turkey on the bottom rack, and for the field roast on the top rack.

Put the turkey breast in at 325 on the top rack. After 30 minutes, turn the temperature up to 350, put the turkey legs in on the top rack, and put a piece of aluminum foil over the breast to keep it from drying out. (If you're basting, remove the foil, baste, and then put it back. After another 20 minutes, turn the temperature up to 400. Move the turkey legs and breast to the bottom rack and, if the legs are getting brown, cover them with foil too. Put the field roast in on the top rack.

After another half hour, check the internal temperature of the turkey pieces. If they're done, remove them and keep them warm.

I usually roast whole turkey at 350°F and turn it up to 400° for the last 30-45 minutes to brown the skin.
posted by brianogilvie at 10:36 AM on November 26, 2015


350 and 375 are virtually indistinguishable in cooking terms, so I wouldn't worry about those differences much, other than a slightly lower time for the thing that was supposed to be at 325. I would roast everything at 350. Then, once I took out the turkey, I would jack the heat way up and brown the field roast at 450 or so for just a few minutes.
posted by jacquilynne at 11:09 AM on November 26, 2015 [1 favorite]


I would cook everything at 400F. If the breast/legs start to get too brown, cover with alfoil. Baste more often than usual. Take stuff out as it's internal temp hits 165C.
posted by kjs4 at 5:03 PM on November 26, 2015


Response by poster: Thanks everyone! I cooked the turkey for an hour at 350 (I put a pan of stuffing in for a half hour of that) then upped the temp to 400 and put the field roast in and started checking the turkey temp every 20 minutes. The turkey took a little longer than expected, and both things finished at the same time. While the turkey rested I put the stuffing back in uncovered for 15 minutes to crisp up on top. Everything came out beautifully!

Thanks for the replies, it really helped my cooking confidence.
posted by under_petticoat_rule at 8:46 PM on November 26, 2015 [1 favorite]


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