Buy about 1 pound of whole, bone-in turkey per person, or 1.5 pounds per person if you want leftovers, so 8 guests need an 8 to 12 pound bird and 12 guests need a 12 to 18 pound bird.
One pound each feeds the table. A pound and a half each feeds the table and Friday's sandwiches.
Thanksgiving falls on Thursday, November 26 this year. The turkey is the one thing on the menu you cannot fix on the day. Buy too small and the platter empties early. Buy too big and it may not thaw in time.
The rule is short. Buy 1 pound of whole turkey per person. If you want leftovers, buy 1.5 pounds per person.
A whole turkey is sold with its bones, skin and often a bag of giblets. It also loses water as it roasts. Roughly half the weight on the label ends up as cooked meat on the plate, sometimes a bit less.
So 1 pound per person works out to somewhere around 6 to 8 ounces of cooked meat each. That is a full serving next to the sides. At 1.5 pounds each, there is enough left for sandwiches.
| Guests | Enough for dinner (1 lb each) | With leftovers (1.5 lb each) |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | 4 lb | 6 lb |
| 6 | 6 lb | 9 lb |
| 8 | 8 lb | 12 lb |
| 10 | 10 lb | 15 lb |
| 12 | 12 lb | 18 lb |
| 14 | 14 lb | 21 lb |
| 16 | 16 lb | 24 lb |
| 20 | 20 lb | 30 lb |
Two notes on the ends of the chart:
With fewer bones, you need less weight per person.
| Cut | Per person | For 6 people |
|---|---|---|
| Whole turkey, bone-in | 1 lb | 6 lb |
| Bone-in turkey breast | 3/4 lb | 4.5 lb |
| Boneless turkey breast | 1/2 lb | 3 lb |
Add half again to any of these if you want leftovers.
The pound-per-person rule assumes average adults and a normal spread of sides. Shift it when your table is not average:
A frozen turkey sets your schedule. In the refrigerator, allow about 24 hours of thawing for every 4 to 5 pounds.
| Turkey weight | Days in the refrigerator | Start thawing by (for Nov 26) |
|---|---|---|
| 8 to 12 lb | 2 to 3 days | Monday, Nov 23 |
| 12 to 16 lb | 3 to 4 days | Sunday, Nov 22 |
| 16 to 20 lb | 4 to 5 days | Saturday, Nov 21 |
| 20 to 24 lb | 5 to 6 days | Friday, Nov 20 |
If you are behind, thaw it in cold water instead. Keep the turkey in its wrapper, cover it with cold water, and change the water every 30 minutes. Allow about 30 minutes per pound, so a 12 pound bird takes around 6 hours. Cook it right after it thaws.
However you get there, the turkey is done when a thermometer reads 165°F in the thickest part of the breast and the inner thigh.
Buying the right size is arithmetic. Dividing it fairly at the table is judgment, and nobody carves with a scale next to the platter. Our guide to carving a turkey so everyone gets a fair share covers the knife work.
Most people are worse at this than they think. Ask someone to cut anything exactly in half by eye, and the "half" they hand over is often 45% or 55%. On a 12 pound bird, that kind of miss is more than a pound of turkey on the wrong plate.
You can test your own eye before the big day. Halfsies is a free daily game with a Wild West theme. Each day you cut three hand-drawn objects in half by eye, and a scale weighs both pieces. Each cut scores the lighter half divided by the heavier half, times 100, so three perfect cuts make 300. Weight follows the drawn area of the object, so a thin bone or handle counts for less than it looks.
On Thanksgiving Day the daily set is a feast day, and one of the three objects is a turkey leg. The in-game line is "A feast on the block. Carve it fair." You can play today's cuts in your browser with no download and pass the phone around while the bird rests.
Plan on 1 pound of whole, bone-in turkey per person. If you want leftovers, buy 1.5 pounds per person.
A 10 pound turkey is enough for dinner. For leftovers, buy a 15 pound turkey.
About half a pound of boneless breast per person, or three quarters of a pound if the breast is bone-in.
About 24 hours for every 4 to 5 pounds. A 16 pound turkey needs around 4 days, so for Thanksgiving on Thursday it should go into the refrigerator by Sunday.
For more than about 16 guests, two smaller turkeys are usually easier. They thaw sooner, cook faster and more evenly, and give you twice as many drumsticks.
Sized the bird? Now see if you can split something down the middle.