Why You Should Buy Your Turkey Right Now

While everyone else is frantically searching through the cavernous cases of frozen turkey two days before Thanksgiving, you can be resting comfortably at home, hot toddy in hand.

Indeed, there’s no need to twist yourself into a turkey conundrum this year. Purchase your Thanksgiving Day main course today, and you’ll save yourself a lot of hassle, stress, money, and several frantic dashes around town to find a suitable centerpiece.

Frozen turkeys can be purchased weeks, even months in advance. A savvy shopper might take advantage of post-holiday sales on leftover turkeys. (Note to self for this year.) If stored properly throughout the year, a frozen turkey is suitable for next year’s Thanksgiving or holiday meals.

Right now, many grocery stores may be offering discounted prices to entice customers to buy early. However, you can expect to pay full price starting next week and certainly the week of Thanksgiving.

Check circulars for coupons or discount cards, too. Some stores offer discount cards on turkeys or dollars-off deals for your entire grocery shopping trip (e.g. save $10 on totals over $75).

Most grocery stores have been stockpiling turkeys these last few weeks in anticipation of a great turkey rush. That means, if you buy now, you have the pick of the litter. If you wait, you may be picking between an 8-pound runt or a 20-pound behemoth.

Fretting over turkeys is entirely unnecessary if you plan ahead. After all, frozen turkeys do require a lengthy thawing process. If you wait too long—and, say, are forced to buy the 20-pound bird that requires more than 48 hours of thawing time—you may put yourself into a pickle.

Turkeys are incredibly easy to cook, but they do require time in advance for thawing, brining, or flavoring. If you wait too long, you slash the amount of your prep time you have, which may leave you with a less-than-ideal turkey for your table.

If you aren’t a fan of frozen turkey—fresh turkeys do have a bit of an edge in terms of flavor—you need to secure your order for a fresh turkey today, too. Many local butchers and grocery stores begin accepting orders for Thanksgiving turkeys after Labor Day. In other words, you’re late.

Don’t leave your fresh Thanksgiving turkey to chance. Call your store, butcher, or local turkey farmer and get your name on the list today.

Then, pick up your turkey a day or two before you plan to cook it. Unlike frozen turkey, fresh turkey has a short shelf life, so don’t get it any sooner than you need it.