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During a small appliance testing session, I encountered a procedure that claimed to steam a whole chicken in less than an hour. I was skeptical, since oven-roasted chicken takes at least that long, while steaming seems like a more gentle cooking process — or so I thought. Sure enough, the chicken I steamed was tender and cooked well after its hour-long spa treatment.
Read more: The Best Thanksgiving Meal Kits of 2025 for a Stress-Free Holiday
I wondered… could this method be applied to Thanksgiving? turkey? The deep caramelized skin is part of the centerpiece appeal of a holiday turkey. However, oven time is precious during typical Thanksgiving dinner preparations, given all the tasks that may be needed. I was definitely curious enough to look into it.
I tried it: steamed turkey
I started with a fresh KellyBronze turkey.
A search for “steamed turkey” will certainly yield many methods, although the most common recipes use steaming to reduce roasting time, not replace it entirely. So you can have it all: precious Thanksgiving prep moments and juicy turkey skin to boot.
Armed with Kelly Bronze Turkeys — a heritage breed whose natural ripeness and marbling are the best insurance against disappointing Thanksgiving birds — took a 12-pound turkey from raw to golden brown in about 90 minutes total cooking time, far less than the 2.5 to 3 hours a traditional bird typically needs in the oven.
Here’s how it works.
Why does steaming a turkey work?
Steaming is powerful and the turkey can start roasting before it goes into the oven.
It turns out that steaming isn’t as gentle a process as I once thought, as I’ve only ever used it for vegetables or delicate, parchment-covered fish. There’s a reason — a scientific reason no less — that steam delivers on the promise of quick cooking.
According to Bite Scized Education, Water vapor It contains more heat energy than boiling water itself. During the transition from liquid to gas, steam can transform food more efficiently than dry heat in an oven or direct contact with boiling water. In short, it is one of the fastest cooking methods. It is not at all gentle, despite its association with delicate fish and dumplings, but is cruel in its almost invisible strength.
What you’ll need to steam a turkey
The big bet is the only real investment you will need to make for this method.
The biggest challenge with steaming a turkey is the infrastructure, as you need a pot large enough to hold the entire turkey without touching the sides or bottom. Since the goal is for steam to rise from the water, you want to avoid direct heat contact between the bowl and the bird.
If you’ve ever gone to Fried turkey methodYou probably already have something the right size, or large Broth Or a lobster pot with a lid will likely suffice. (My largest daily pot—a sturdy pasta model—took one look at my modest-sized turkey and boiled it.) The good news is that this doesn’t need to be a heavy-duty pot, since the pot itself isn’t the cooking mechanism, just the means of delivering the steam.
A rack that keeps the turkey off the bottom of the pot is also necessary, but since it’s basically impossible to find a rectangular rack to place inside a round pot, this can easily be accomplished with a bunch of crumpled up aluminum foil. (This was also satisfying in a poetic sense. The turkey also seemed very comfortable with this arrangement.)
The aluminum foil keeps the turkey above the bottom of the pot.
Steamed turkey method
Most recipes require no more than 30 minutes of steaming, to begin the cooking process before finishing in the oven. A few inches of water are added to the bottom of the pot, along with the aluminum foil and turkey “nest,” before placing the pot on the stove.
Once the water begins to boil, reduce the heat to enough to maintain steam, and cover the pot. No seasoning or coating is needed at this stage.
After 30 minutes of steaming, the bird went from something raw to something that looked cooked, albeit pale. Once the lid is removed from the steam bath, the turkey will cool enough in just a few minutes to handle.
My KellyBronze, roasts in half the time it normally takes.
Even by myself, I was able to move it around using tongs at both ends to support the turkey in a traditional shape Roasting rack To rotate it in the oven. At this stage, any seasoning, oil or butter glaze or glaze can be applied to the skin. (Again, points for KellyBronze – the natural fat content makes any of this essentially unnecessary.)
The turkey then spent just under an hour in a 375-degree oven to reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit — and the turkey’s internal temperature will continue to rise to the ideal 165 degrees Fahrenheit once it’s out of the oven — with a Thanksgiving-worthy golden brown skin.
For more Thanksgiving tips, see How to properly defrost frozen birds And avoid these 13 errors For a smoother Thanksgiving.