Damsel wrote:

>> St. Julia (Child) had an idea in "The Way to Cook" that might be useful
>> for the purpose of a critter this size. It involves taking out the
>> backbone and flattening it, also known as spatchcocking. (This may
>> require a chainsaw in your case, and you'd need to make sure that the
>> roasting pan would accommodate the flattened carcass.) I'd roast it a
>> couple of hours to brown the skin and start cooking, and then finish
>> roasting the bird on top of a bed of stuffing. You'd still get the
>> juices into the stuffing, BUT the flatter bed of stuffing would get up to
>> temp faster than if it were in a ball inside the turkey cavity. If the
>> stuffing isn't up to temp by the time the turkey is done, you can remove
>> the turkey and leave the stuffing in the oven until it does get to 160?.
>> The backbone can go in the pot with the neck and giblets to make broth
>> for the gravy.
>
> He absolutely will not spatchcock it. This is all for the "wow"
> effect.

There's a "turkey gadget" that is essentially a bent pipe meant to go all
the way through the cavity of a stuffed turkey, conducting heat to the
interior of the stuffing so it cooks from both the inside and the outside.
After trying it out, America's Test Kitchen gave it a (very surprised)
thumbs-up.

At any rate, reading the other posts in this thread, I would cast a wary eye
indeed on the turkey and stuffing cooked by your roommate. I fear for your
health. MAYBE it'll turn out fine, but better safe than VERY sorry.

Bob