Turkey Time- Almost Here

Edited from 2008

Thanksgiving turkeys are one of my favorite frugal finds. A little prior planning this month provides us with some cheap eating for months!

About this time each year, I start looking for good Thanksgiving grocery sales, especially on turkey. I usually try to buy three or four turkeys at the best price possible. Last year I bought five turkeys at around 33 cents a pound!

A large turkey can be cheaper and have more meat then several chickens. I try to buy the largest I can find. Birds over twenty pounds will have a greater meat to bone ratio. After roasting the bird, I freeze the meat in meal sized portions.  I figure one large turkey can feed my family for about twelve meals. If I've paid less then $10.00 for the turkey, it is an unbeatable deal for poultry!

I try to do a little planning ahead in order to take advantage of the turkey deals. Usually stores require you to buy a minimum (usually $30 or $40) to take advantage of their turkey deals.I plan to do as little of grocery shopping as possible in the weeks before Thanksgiving. I'm trying to just live off our pantry so that I have a long list to use when I stock up on turkey. It is a good time to stock up on the other items that our also on sale at Thanksgiving.

If you live local, please share the best prices you have found for turkey. I've found that Walmart is the worse place to buy  turkey at Thanksgiving because they never have sales. I've had the best success at Weiss and Food Lion. Some places will match competitors prices, but I haven't found that method worth it. Somehow they always seem to find a loop hole!

I know that to some, a 20 pound turkey can look rather daunting! So many readers have shared their success with the slow cook method I shared last year. So in future weeks, I plan to repost my mom's easy method for roasting a turkey. Since a huge turkey is only a good deal if you eat it, I'll also share some of our favorite ways to eat leftover turkey.