How much turkey per person

Adjusting for your crowd

The 1 pound rule assumes a typical holiday dinner with several sides. Allow a little less if many of your guests are children or light eaters, and a little more for big eaters or a small number of sides. Turkeys under about 8 lb are hard to find, so for four or fewer people consider a bone-in turkey breast, which needs about ¾ lb per person, or a boneless turkey roast at about ½ lb per person.

Feeding a big crowd

Above about 20 lb, turkeys cook less evenly and get heavy to lift. For 20 or more guests, two 12 to 14 lb turkeys cook faster and more evenly than one giant one, and you get four drumsticks instead of two. If your oven only fits one, roast one and smoke the other: the smoked turkey calculator works out the timing.

Making leftovers go further

Carve all the meat off the bones within 2 hours of serving and refrigerate it in shallow containers. It keeps 3 to 4 days in the fridge, or 2 to 6 months in the freezer. Leftover turkey works in any of our leftover roast chicken recipes, and the carcass makes good stock.