Last year, during Milk Street Radio’s annual Thanksgiving episode, Christopher Kimball and Jet Tila received a shocking call. A man named Primus from Wilmington, Delaware claimed he could cook a whole turkey in a mere 45 minutes—he hadn’t done this just once, or even twice, but for “the last five or six years.” And these weren’t petite birds, but ones that were “above 15 [pounds]. Usually...about 18.”

"Every year I host Thanksgiving dinner for our family and friends—25 to 30 people—so we make three turkeys and one Tofurky,” he told Chris and Jet. “I heard about this method that I've been using for several years called '[the] high-heat method.' So, I've been turning the oven on to 450 or 500 degrees.”

“So, I put the turkey in a regular basting pot with a rack in it,” he continued “And I put about two inches of water. And so, the water is almost touching the bird in the rack. And I put it in for like 45 minutes. And then I just do temperature checks. It works out perfectly. The bird comes out really, really well.”

“I'm never speechless but I'm close,” said Chris, adding it was “like an episode of The Twilight Zone.”

“Man, you got us,” he told the caller. “We're going to test this and call you back.” And test it we did.

Test 1: A whole turkey, un-brined and un-spatchcocked

We took a 14-pound turkey, removed the giblets, and set it on the counter at room temperature for 1 hour. We then stuffed a head of garlic and a few sprigs of rosemary into the cavity and placed the bird on a bed of aromatic vegetables inside a roasting pan, along with 2 cups of water.

The oven was preheated to 500°F using the convection setting and allowed to heat for the full hour the turkey rested. The internal temp of the bird was 38°F when it went into the oven. The oven temperature exceeded 500°F.

Oven-proof probe thermometers were inserted into the thickest parts of both the breast and the thigh to monitor the temperature throughout the roasting process, aiming for an internal temperature of 165°F in both areas. Two digital timers were set for accuracy.

After 46 minutes, the temperature of the thigh meat had risen to 99°F; the breast was 96°F. After an hour and 18 minutes, the thighs were at 137°F, after an hour and 33 minutes, they hit 152°F. After 1 hour and 48 minutes of roasting time, the thighs and breast finally reached 165°F.

Conclusion: It is impossible to roast a whole turkey to 165°F in 45 minutes using a home oven heated to 500℉ on the convection setting.

Test 2 - Dry Brined & Spatchcocked Turkey

We decided to try it again, pulling out a few tricks to speed the cooking along.

We spatchcocked another 14-pound turkey the night before we intended to roast it, dry brining it with kosher salt (1 teaspoon in the interior cavity, 1 tablespoon on the meat side) in the fridge. The next day, the turkey was placed on a bed of aromatics in a roasting pan along with 2 cups of water and left to stand for two hours—one hour longer than the whole turkey—at room temperature. The interior temp was 44°F just before roasting.

The oven was set to 550°F on the convection setting—the highest and hottest temperature possible—and preheated for 1 hour. An oven-safe probe thermometer was inserted in the thickest part of the breast. After 54 minutes of roasting time, the internal temp was 120°F.

All told, the spatchcocked turkey took an hour and 25 minutes to reach an internal temp of 165°F. The legs were noticeably overcooked and dry on the spatchcocked bird but, due to the dry brining, the breast stayed juicy and moist.

Conclusion: We really tried here and did everything within our power to speed up the cooking: spatchcocking, dry brining, and bringing the bird to a higher temperature before roasting. But it still took nearly double the professed 45-minute cooking time. Dry leg meat aside, this would likely be over-taxing on a home oven, and the temp is too high for the oven to be used for any side dishes in the meantime.

In short: We can’t recommend the method, but it was nice to believe such a thing was possible. Perhaps a visit to Primus’ Thanksgiving dinner is in order—what’s one more guest amongst 30?

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Claire Lower

Claire Lower is the Digital Editor for Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street, with over a decade of experience as a food writer and recipe developer. Claire began writing about food (and drinks) during the blogging boom in the late 2000s, eventually leaving her job as a lab technician to pursue writing full-time. After freelancing for publications such as Serious Eats, Yahoo Food, xoJane and Cherry Bombe Magazine, she eventually landed at Lifehacker, where she served as the Senior Food Editor for nearly eight years. Claire lives in Portland, Oregon with a very friendly dog and very mean cat. When not in the kitchen (or at her laptop), you can find her deadlifting at the gym, fly fishing or trying to master figure drawing at her local art studio.