Aga Turkey – The Perfect Way to Cook a Turkey in The Aga

Aga Turkey

Wait a minute this isn’t charity business, ok, why not read on and see as we express that the core of our work as a housing charity  is hearth and home. Cooking a Turkey in the Aga is a popular google query lets see if we can help, it’s often one of the difficult things about Christmas if you have this kind of cooker.  However what we are asking here is if you can afford an Aga and the turkey you cook in it, you also spare a thought for those who need help at Christmas whether they are homeless or many of our clients who need help and support to hold down a tenancy. As charity we need your thoughts, voluntary work and gifts to continue our work. Help us put a smile on the face of our tenants.

Jonathan,  Deputy CEO – Zetetick – a unique housing charity

Your Aga Turkey needs to be at room temperature

Always remember when doing your ago turkey that times for cooking a turkey are from room temperature, if you leave it too long in the fridge it can take longer to cook and the middle may not get done leaving the spectre of food poisoning…be warned!

Taken it out of the refrigerator and leave in a cool room for several hours before cooking. Better still I keep mine outside or in the garage, wrapped three times and netted over (just incase of cats etc)

Aga turkey Roasting Times

The internal temperature of raw poultry should rise from room temperature to 60°C within 4 hours at the start of cooking. With a cooking slow method this is very important, which is why you heat the turkey initially in the roasting oven.

All cooking times are approximate.

“The Traditional Aga Christmas” (Louise Walker)

Fast method for Aga turkey (2,3 and 4 oven Aga cookers)

Rub liberally with butter or goose fat, place on streaky bacon etc. Place in the Aga roasting tin, on a grill rack if liked. Hang from the lowest set of runners in the Roasting Oven for one hour until nicely browned, then tent loosely with foil.

The TOTAL fast method roasting times for Aga Turkey are:

8-12 lbs / 3.6-5.4Kg – 1¾- 2 hours

12-16 lbs / 5.4-7.25Kg – 2- 2½ hours

16-20 lbs / 7.25-9.0Kg – 2½ -3 hours

20-24 lbs / 9-10.8Kg – 3-3½ hours

24–28 lbs / 10.8–12.6Kg – 3½ – 4 hours

Medium Method for Aga Turkey (3 and 4 oven Aga cookers only)

Rub liberally with fat. Place in the Turkey in an Aga roasting tin, on a grill rack if liked. Hang from the lowest set of runners in the Roasting Oven for up to one hour until nicely browned, then tent loosely with foil. After the first hour in the Roasting Oven, transfer the turkey to the Baking Oven to finish cooking, for the following

ADDITIONAL times for aga turkey:

8-12 lbs / 3.6-5.4Kg – 1½ – 2½ hours

12-16 lbs / 5.4-7.25Kg – 2½ – 3½ hours

16-20 lbs / 7.25-9.0Kg – 3½ – 4½ hours

20-24 lbs / 9-10.8Kg – 4½ – 5½ hours

24–28 lbs / 10.8–12.6Kg – 5½ – 6½ hours

Slow Method  for Aga Turkey(2, 3 and 4 oven Aga cookers)

Rub liberally with butter. Place in the Aga roasting tin without a grill rack, add a small cup of water. Roast on the floor of the Roasting Oven for up to one hour and as soon as it starts to brown, tent loosely with foil. After the first hour in the Roasting Oven, transfer the turkey to the Simmering Oven to finish cooking, for the following

ADDITIONAL times for Aga turkey:

8-12 lbs / 3.6-5.4Kg – 3-5 hours

12-16 lbs / 5.4-7.25Kg – 5 – 7½ hours

16-20 lbs / 7.25-9.0Kg – 7½ – 10 hours

20-24 lbs / 9-10.8Kg – 10 – 12½ hours

24–28 lbs / 10.8–12.6Kg – 12½ – 15 hours

The difficulty I have always found as an Aga owner is not the cooking of the Turkey, there are multiple ways to do that, it is cooking everything else if you have the smaller Aga, as there is no room in the oven.

The answer is Turkey tastes best not fresh from the oven but left for an hour or more on the side, allowing the juices to rise back into the meat.  And giving your Aga time to reheat and for you to get the potatoes and extras to be cooked.  Roast potatoes can be part cooked/parboiled the day before, put in the fridge and then and crisped up in oil or goose fat on the day, add a few sprigs of rosemary for something different.  Pan based stuffings can also be cooked whilst the bird is ‘resting’ as can your vegetables, bread sauce, gravy etc.

Hope this Aga Turkey advice has been useful, if it has please:

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