How to Properly Carve a Turkey [Video]

Thanksgiving is coming up, and if the presentation of your last few turkeys has been less than stellar, it's probably a good idea to brush up on proper turkey carving method. Here's the easiest way to do it.

There are a number of different ways to carve a turkey, but you can't go wrong with this method from kitchen hacker extraordinaire Alton Brown. Follow along with the video above, and go through these steps:

1. Take the turkey out of the oven and let it cool before you start carving. It'll be easier to carve if it isn't straight out of the oven. Also, carve it before you take it to the dining room. Tradition may say "carve at the table", but it'll be a lot easier?not to mention less messy?to carve it in the kitchen on a cutting board.
2. Cut a straight line from the bird's sternum all the way down to the bottom of the turkey. Then, disconnect that breast from the thigh by cutting through the skin in between, and you should be able to remove the breast completely and slice it up at your leisure.
3. Next, pull back the drumsticks and find the joint. All you need to do is cut the joint connecting it to the thigh and it should slide right off. If you find yourself sawing it like a Christmas tree, you're probably cutting the bone instead. Move down to the joint and cut it apart there. If you're having trouble, see the video below for more tips on finding the joints.
4. Flip the turkey over and cut the wings off just like you did the drumstick. Pull it away from the body and cut through the joint. Again, if you're putting a low of elbow grease behind it, you're probably too close to the bone.
5. Next, cut off the thigh. This is similar to cutting the breast, in the sense that most of it is attached to the rest of the body, so get as much meat off as you can. Then, as you reach the end, pull apart the joint like you did for the other pieces and cut through it. If there's only one thing I'd disagree with in the above video, it's never to cut toward yourself?but that's because I've learned that the hard way.
6. Before you slice the thigh, you'll need to take out the bone. The easiest way to do this is to turn the thigh over and slice it out with your knife. Cut along the sides of the bone to remove it from the thigh, then start slicing.
7. When you slice the thigh and breastmeat, slice against the grain for maximum tenderness. And remember?the thicker you slice, the longer the pieces will stay warm, so it's okay to go against the more traditional "thin slice" method here. Stick everything on a platter and serve.

Alternatively, if you prefer to slice the breast lengthwise, you can skip the first step, remove the thigh, drumstick, and wing as described above, then slice the breast right off the bird itself (as demonstrated in the video to the left). It'll give you larger, thinner slices (perfect for those post-Thanksgiving turkey sandwiches). Plus, dark meat will stay moist a bit longer than white meat, so if your turkey's in danger of being a bit on the dry side, this'll help you keep the breastmeat moist as long as possible by cutting it last.

Got any of your own turkey carving tips? Share them with us in the comments.

Crash Course is a series of guides to life skills everyone should know but you may have been afraid to ask. Do you have an everyday problem you wish someone had taught you to solve? Let us know at tips+crashcourse@lifehacker.com.

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