For an unstuffed turkey, you’re looking at roughly 15 minutes per pound. So a twelve-pounder? That’s about three hours. Easy math, right? Wrong. Because a twelve-pound bird at 15 minutes is different from a twenty-pounder at 15 minutes.
Remember: the deeper the bird, the slower the middle cooks. A bigger turkey doesn’t just take longer; it takes exponentially longer. For a turkey over 16 pounds, lean closer to 18 minutes per pound. Trust me on this.
And if you’re stuffing that cavity? Add five minutes per pound. That stuffing is basically a cold, wet sponge inside a hot bird—it steals heat. Don’t poison your guests by cooking the stuffing to a safe temperature while the breast dries out.
