Thanksgiving Internet Challenge: How Do You Cook a 25-pound Turkey in the Microwave?

asked my mom long it would take to microwave a 25lb turkey and then received this voicemail pic.twitter.com/csDnddr083

— Kenzie Knigin (@kenzieknigin) November 16, 2018

Ask your parents how to cook a 25 pound turkey in a microwave. pic.twitter.com/6jtVTOobGb

— Carlos Fernandez (@thlifeofcharles) November 15, 2018

Y’all.. my mom legit thinks I’m cooking a 25 pound turkey in the microwave I’m crying😂😂 #25lbturkeychallenge pic.twitter.com/FVAyN7sN4w

— Lindsay Kerr (@lindsaykerrr) November 15, 2018

In an Internet challenge gone viral, Twitter seems aflutter with adult children asking their mothers how best to cook a 25-pound frozen turkey in a microwave – much to many horrified parental responses.

As Thanksgiving approaches, adults are either pranking their mothers with what some cooks consider a shocking question – or legitimately inquiring as to how to use a microwave for a traditionally oven-roasted bird.

Whether genuine or done in jest, many Twitter-ites are getting a big kick out of the seemingly innocuous query.

As Yahoo reports, seemingly first-time Thanksgiving cooks are shocking their mothers and grandmothers with typically common-sense questions:

KatyHarp4 wrote on Twitter: "I texted my grandma the whole turkey text thing and she called me IMMEDIATELY and said "oh honey you can't cook a turkey in the microwave . Bring it over and I'll cook it for you" and like that's why we don't deserve grandparents ok ."

One snarky mother replied to her daughter, @Jehanbintalix, planning a Friendsgiving dinner with her law school peers, to "go buy some tin foil. Put it in the microwave. Then go buy a pre-cooked one so you can feed the fire department."

"Honestly my mom wins the "how long does it take to microwave a turkey challenge," posted Jehan.

Carlos Fernandez claims he's tried to heat up the bird "for like 2 hours and still nothing."

Incredulous, his mother tweets: "25lb turkey in the microwave?" She then asks if he's using a microwaveable baking bag, ultimately advising he buy a cooked chicken, adding: "It's not about the gathering. It's what you serve. Love you. Keep it simple" and the most obvious of all: "Make sure it's fully cooked before you serve it. You can get sick."

"Am I gonna get salmon and ella," replies Carlos @thlifeofcharles after posting a photo of a raw turkey in a baking bag in a microwave.

Instead of providing cooking directions, one mother went right for the jugular, telling daughter Christina Leonardo @chriiistina12: "One thing that came to my mind was who the hell is going to marry you."

Using some profanity to get her point across, another mother told her daughter Kenzie Knigin @kenziknigin on voice mail that a 25-pound turkey would feed between 30-to-35 people and that she hoped her daughter was kidding. Then she hung up.

Some folks claim to have cooked decent-tasting whole turkeys in the microwave, as Mashable writer Brian Koerber did. Inevitably speaking to college students who may lack an oven or oven-based cooking skills, he suggests using a small, thawed 12-pound turkey, microwaveable oven bags, a microwave-safe plate and a meat thermometer to ensure doneness and spices.

After cleaning, removing the giblets and seasoning the bird, he bagged it, then cooked his turkey at 50 percent power for 10 minutes per pound, but did not specify whether the microwave should be a convection oven. He turned the hot turkey every 15 minutes, tested it for doneness at 165 degrees and ensured the juices run clear, not pink.

After 2 hours of cooking, he unstuck the turkey from the bag, let it rest for 20 minutes, took a bite and gave it a thumbs-up:

"I wouldn't say it looks the most appetizing, but it's a little crispy."

A word of caution for all microwave turkey cooks: The Centers for Disease Control reports that it and "public health and regulatory officials in several states are investigating a multistate outbreak of multidrug-resistant Salmonella infections linked to raw turkey products. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS) is monitoring the outbreak."

Most notably, CBS News reports that Jennie-O Turkey has recalled 91,000 pounds of raw turkey on Friday in an ongoing salmonella outbreak that has killed one person and made 164 people ill in 35 states this year.

One-pound packages of Jennie-O turkey and potentially other similar products from other companies could be named as the investigation continues. The Centers for Disease Control maintains a map of states most affected by the outbreak strain of salmonella.

Among the tips for safe cooking: it's important to wash hands after handling raw turkey.

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