Most people only cook a turkey once or twice a year which inevitably turns the whole thing into a stressful experience, full of paranoia that the bird will turn out dry. But fear not! Our fail-safe turkey timeline will take you all the way from ordering through to what to do with the leftovers.

If you’re ordering a fresh turkey from your butcher or the supermarket, do it well in advance. As a guide, look for approximately 450g (15.8oz) of (whole, uncooked) turkey per person so, for example, a 4–5kg (8.8–11lb) bird will feed six to eight people. Buy the best you can afford and look for free-range, high welfare birds which are more ethical and will taste better too as they’ve had time and space to reach maturity.

It's also worth buying a whole bird instead of just the crown since you’ll get the bones for stock and giblets for gravy. If you're buying a frozen turkey, be aware it can lose a little moisture in the roasting process. But with careful cooking, it can be nearly as good quality as fresh. One last thing: whatever you buy, make sure it’s going to fit in your oven!

You checked that your oven is big enough when you ordered your turkey, now it’s time to make sure you’ve got a suitably-sized roasting tin too. Ideally it'll be one with a removable v-rack that will keep the bird slightly suspended and allow for more even cooking. If you don’t have one, a v-rack can be improvised with two pairs of chopsticks. A carving board with runnels (a groove around the edge to catch juices) is also a nice thing to have.

A good chore to get out of the way well before the big day is to sharpen all your kitchen knives so they’re on point for prep, but most especially your carving knife. A blunt blade will rip the turkey skin and tear the flesh to shreds.

An instant-read digital thermometer with a wide temperature range is hands down the one thing that will make a big difference between a perfectly juicy turkey and a sad, dry bird. Alternatively get a meat probe with a dial that’s easily readable through the oven door. A lot of turkeys come out dry is because recommendations are to cook poultry to at least 70°C (158°F). Leg meat is great at this temperature (it's best cooked to 74°C/165°F) but breast meat will be overdone (ideally it shouldn't get beyond 66°C/151°F). The best and most accurate way to tell when your turkey is ready is by internal temperature.

If you need to pick up your turkey, remember that it probably won’t be a quick trip to the shops. There will inevitably be queues out the butcher’s door so factor that in. If you’re defrosting a frozen bird, don’t assume overnight will be enough and allow a whole day. If it’s cold outside (2°C/36°F or less), you can save fridge space and do this outside using a large, lockable plastic box to protect from local wildlife.

This sounds terribly basic but making a list of timings and temperatures really does help. Allow 45 minutes per kilogram (2.2lb) for the turkey to roast but remember it's not the only thing that needs cooking – make sure there's oven space and time for all your side dishes. Work out what can be done in advance (peeling and par-boiling potatoes for example) and what needs to be done last minute (roasting).

Before you defrost your turkey or move onto other preparations, it’s a good idea to untruss it (untie any butcher's string holding the legs together). While keeping the legs tied together makes for a neat and picture-perfect bird, it doesn’t allow air to circulate around them and just exacerbates the main problem of turkey cooking – that the breast meat is done before the leg meat.

Brining is a sure-fire way to ensure moistness. Salt acts on the bird’s muscle fibres so they don’t contract so much during cooking which is what leads to dry, stringy meat. It also absorbs some of the water which keeps it juicy. Use a solution of 6–8% salt to water (by weight) and leave the turkey in it overnight. You can add flavourings like herbs or spices if you like but don’t add acid (alcohol or citrus) as these will “cook” the meat, making it dry.

However (and this is a big however), brining might banish the dreaded dryness, but the extra water absorbed can dilute the turkey’s flavour which is a shame if you’ve paid for a top-of-the-range gobbler. An alternative is dry brining which sounds technical but really just means salting. The meat will come out slightly less juicy but still tender and far more flavourful. To dry brine, use 1tsp of coarse salt per 500g (1.1lb) meat. You can rub it over the skin but for best results, carefully tease up the skin over the breast meat and rub the salt between skin and flesh.

Even if you don’t brine at all, you want to get rid of as much moisture as possible before roasting or you won’t get a lovely golden brown colour and crisp skin. Leave the turkey uncovered in the fridge overnight before you cook it. Unwrap, discard any plastic or paper and pat dry with paper towels. Leaving it uncovered helps the skin crisp up. If it’s going in the fridge rather than just sitting out in a cool kitchen, put it on a plate on the bottom shelf to avoid cross-contamination.

Stuffing the turkey cavity is another route straight to cardboard-y breast meat. By the time it’s cooked through, the bird will be overdone. Instead, make your stuffing into balls and add them to the roasting tray for the last half hour of cooking or make a whole, breadcrumb-topped dish and serve it separately. Inside the turkey, just put a few lemon slices, whole garlic cloves and sprigs of woody herbs, making sure there’s plenty of room for air to circulate.

Get the recipe for pecan stuffing here

We know half the joy of cooking a turkey is the way a whole bird looks when you bring it to the table. But, if you really want the most delicious meat possible, the best way to go is cooking the crown (the breast meat on the bone) and legs separately. You could even bone and stuff the legs, or braise them for really tender meat.

Alternatively spatchcocking (removing the turkey’s backbone and spreading it flat) means that the legs – the part that needs the most cooking – are more exposed than in a whole bird. They will therefore cook quicker without needing the extra time that dries out the breast. Two bonuses are more crispy skin as none of it is hidden underneath and a faster cooking time meaning no one has to get up super early. You can ask your butcher to spatchcock the bird for you. 

Take the turkey out of the fridge an hour before you start to cook to allow it to come to room temperature. Get your oven shelves where you want them and preheat to 220°C/428°F/gas mark 7 for at least 45 minutes. It should be good and hot before the turkey goes in. If you have a pizza steel or stone you could put that in too – laying the roasting tin on top will give a good blast of heat to the bottom to the bird, helping the legs cook faster.

If you are absolutely determined to cook a whole turkey (and who can blame you) you could try this one, weird trick to prevent overcooked breast meat. Renowned food scientist Harold McGee recommends putting ice packs on your turkey’s breast for about 15 minutes before putting it in the oven (use a pack of frozen peas if you don't have an ice pack). This means you begin cooking the leg and breast meat from different temperatures, allowing the breast to come up to temperature slower and ensuring it’s not overcooked.

Turkey skin already contains fat but a little extra doesn’t hurt. A herb butter gently rubbed under the breast skin is a lovely way to add flavour. Alternatively just rub all over with a little oil.

Alternatively, soak a muslin cloth in melted butter and wrap it tightly round the whole bird. This method (as recommended by the experts at the UK's Leiths School of Food and Wine) gives a beautifully even browning.

You could drape rashers of streaky bacon over the turkey breast. You'll forgo the turkey's crispy skin but gain crispy bacon which also helps protect the breast meat.

When it's time to start cooking, put the turkey in the hot oven and give it 20 minutes. This initial blast of heat helps brown and crisp the skin. Some chefs recommend starting cooler and raising the heat for the last part of the roasting time but we think it’s safer this way round as you don’t risk overcooking. After 20 minutes, turn the heat down to 160°C/325°F/gas mark 3 for the rest of the cooking time.

We recommend basting the bird every half hour or so. Basting doesn't actually keep things moist but it does help even browning. Use room temperature oil rather than the juices in the roasting tin which will only hasten the cooking. 

Find our complete guide to cooking turkey here

Giblets are the turkeys innards: the heart, liver and gizzard, usually supplied in a small bag along with the neck. We will grant you that they don't sound particularly appetising but they will make the most flavourful gravy. Don’t use the liver (it will make things bitter) but brown the heart, gizzard and neck then simmer gently with carrot, onion and celery. Pop in a bay leaf, some peppercorns and any herbs you have around. After an hour, strain and use the stock for gravy.

Start checking about 45 minutes before your turkey is due to be done. It's ready when you can piece the thickest part of the thigh with a skewer and the juices run clear, or when the thermometer reads 74°C (165°F) in the thickest part of the leg. Take it out of the oven, cover loosely with foil (too tight and you'll loose the crisp skin) and let it rest. It needs at least 30 minutes so the juices can redistribute themselves but can sit tight for up to an hour while you finish off your vegetables and accompaniments. 

To make the best-ever gravy, remove everything (juices and little browned bit of meat included) from the roasting tray, except for a couple of tablespoons of fat. Add to a saucepan on the hob, pour in a glass of wine and let it bubble gently, scraping at all those delicious roasted bits to get the flavour. In a separate saucepan, melt a knob of butter and add a tablespoon of flour. Cook for a minute then add the roasting tray juices and stir vigorously to avoid lumps. Add some giblet stock, simmer until thickened slightly and season to taste.

Get all your side dishes plated up, garnished and on the table. If you didn’t make your own cranberry sauce, it’s easy to jazz up a jar of the shop-bought stuff with fresh orange zest and a slug of port.

Now is the showstopper moment to parade the whole bird around and bask in the glory. Let everyone ooh and ah over the perfection of the glossy brown skin and be tantalised by the delicious aromas. Then, unless you’re an absolute expert with a carving knife, whisk it away again. No one needs to see you wrestle with a cooked turkey.

The secret to an elegant plateful of meat is to break the turkey down into its constituent parts. Remove the legs and wings – cut to the bone, twist slightly until you feel the joint pop out and slice the skin. Then cut downwards through the centre of the breast to the breastbone. Keep going, angling the knife slightly so it stays as close to the bone as possible until you have removed the breast. Repeat on the other side. Collect any juices that escape and add them to the gravy.

Find more secrets to carving a turkey here

It's best to carve just before serving, although if you’re lucky enough to have a warming drawer or spare oven, the meat will keep for half an hour or so at 55°C/131°F before it starts to dry out. If you’re worried it has gone a bit cold, just heat a little stock and pour it over the serving platter. But give people a generous amount of gravy and hot plates and you should be fine.

After the main feast has been enjoyed, there will probably be a generous amount of leftovers. You can make stock with the turkey bones and carcass which freezes beautifully if you don’t want to use it immediately. Simmer them with onion, carrot, celery, bay leaf, peppercorns and herbs for a couple of hours then strain and reduce. 

Discover more make-ahead meals perfect for your freezer here

A sandwich of leftover turkey meat is one of the great pleasures of any festive occasion (try this version with gravy mayo). But for something a bit different, you could use any extra meat in a casserole, noodle soup or, one of our favourites, a pie which also makes use of surplus vegetables.

Get the recipe for turkey pie with a roast potato topping here