Page 200 - Turkey Book from Meathead

8| Spread the remaining rub on top of the skin. If you run out, rub the exterior with olive oil or vegetable oil and sprinkle it gently with a little black pepper, sage, and thyme. Then sprinkle salt on the skin to help it crisp.
9| Do not tie the legs together. Most turkeys come with an armature holding the tops of the drums together. And most cookbooks tell you to tie them up if they didn't come that way. This just doesn't make sense. Here's why:
Dark meat is safest and tastes best at about 170 to 175°F, but if you tie the drums together you pin the thighs tight against the body of the bird and they'll take longer to cook. Also, the skin in the crotch won’t brown. So if you remove the bird when the breasts are 160°F, the thighs will also be about 160°F. But if you let their freak flag fly, heat will infiltrate them from all sides and, because they are thinner than the breasts, they will be at 170°F when the breasts hit 160°F.
Some chefs tell you to put ice bags on the breasts before cooking in order to chill them so that the thighs will have a head start. One New York Times expert whom we normally worship even uses Ace bandages to hold the icebags in place so the poor turkey looks like it was up all night drinking Wild Turkey. Just let the thighs free so hot air can surround them. That will do the job just fine, thank you.
If there is any rub left, toss it in the gravy.
!DRIB TAHT KOOC S'TEL !YLLANIF