Trauma Stories
Learn from the traumas of others.
We’ve all had them or heard of them. Those Thanksgiving traumas that can happen when you don’t cook a JENNIE-O® OVEN READY™ TURKEY. Read others’ stories or share your own.
- Crispy Turkey
- 12.19.08—We had a house full of people, and we played card games ...
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- 12.19.08—We had a house full of people, and we played card games while waiting for the turkey to cook. I guess we played too long. When I checked on the turkey, it was burnt to a crisp. Someone had accidently turned up the heat! We salvaged some of the meat—thank goodness we had lots of really good side dishes to go with it.
—Dee
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- Mom to the Rescue
- 12.18.08—Attempting to cook my first turkey, I overlooked the thawing...
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- 12.18.08—Attempting to cook my first turkey, I overlooked the thawing process. When the time was up to slice into it, the bird was still raw. Fortunately, my mother anticipated the possibly ruined holiday and had cooked her own turkey. She promptly went home and got the turkey, thus saving the day!
—Evelyn
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- Too Good to Resist
- 12.17.08—The table was set in the dining room, the family was seated...
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- 12.17.08—The table was set in the dining room, the family was seated, and the turkey was out of the oven and resting on the kitchen table. I was just setting the mashed potatoes on the dining room table when there was a loud crash from the kitchen. Our German Shepherd had decided the turkey looked and smelled too good to resist!
—Sharon
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- Not Allowed to Cook
- 12.16.08—My first turkey was a disaster. It was burnt on the outside...
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- 12.16.08—My first turkey was a disaster. It was burnt on the outside and raw on the inside. I still can’t figure out how I managed to do that! It was absolutely horrible to have no turkey, only side dishes. I'm not allowed to cook the turkey—or anything else, for that matter—ever again.
—Dana
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- Drop. Rinse. Serve.
- 12.15.08—An acquaintance roasted a turkey and while trying to remove it ...
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- 12.15.08—An acquaintance roasted a turkey and while trying to remove it from the oven dropped it on the floor. She proceeded to pick it up, rinse it off and serve it to her guests. That’s when I decided it was time to go home to eat my own freshly roasted turkey!
—Bill
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- Turkey Bubbles
- 12.11.08—One year my grandson, who was 4 at the time...
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- 12.11.08—One year my grandson, who was 4 at the time, offered to help me wash the turkey. I put the turkey in the sink, walked out of the kitchen for a moment and, upon returning, saw the sink was over-flowing with bubbles. Yes, he had put dish soap on the turkey to clean it!
—Debbie
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- Frozen Solid
- 12.9.08—I thought the turkey would thaw faster than it would...
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- 12.9.08—I thought the turkey would thaw faster than it would, but the day came and the bird was still frozen solid! I had to keep running water over it and chipping at the inside to get the giblets out. What a hassle!
—Patricia
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- Something Smells Funny
- 12.7.08—We removed one frozen packet of innards, but...
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- 12.7.08—We removed one frozen packet of innards, but who new there were two in this bird?! Couldn't figure out why it was smelling a little funny. How embarrassing!
—Charles
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- Looks Are Deceiving
- 12.9.08—The first year I made a turkey dinner at my house...
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- 12.9.08—The first year I made a turkey dinner at my house, I had taken the turkey out of the freezer the day before to thaw. After several hours in the oven, the outside of the turkey looked beautiful. But when we went to cut it, the inside was still frozen. Thankfully I had also prepared a ham!
—Kate
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- Push Start
- 12.8.08—I put the turkey in the oven to cook and walked down to my elderly parents’ house...
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- 12.8.08—I put the turkey in the oven to cook and walked down to my elderly parents’ house to visit them. After several hours, I returned home and checked the turkey. Boy, was I surprised the turkey hadn’t cooked at all! When I had set the oven temperature, I had forgotten to push start. We ended up eating bologna for that Thanksgiving meal.
—Diane
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