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IIn the test kitchen, we prefer to cook the stuffing, or dressing, separately. Cooking the stuffing inside the bird to a safe internal temperature takes too long: By the time the stuffing is safe to eat, the meat is overcooked. Instead we bake our dressing in a dish alongside the turkey, or while the turkey rests. The crisp crust is a bonus. Still, we recognize that every family has its own Thanksgiving traditions. If yours demands a stuffed bird, take the turkey out of the oven when the meat is done, scoop out the stuffing, and finish baking it in a dish while the turkey rests. Stuffing should reach a minimum temperature of 165 degrees.

Many stuffings call for stale bread, but we found that naturally stale bread won’t stand up to the liquid in the stuffing and will result in soggy bread. We oven-dry the bread so that it stays intact, and it’s able to soak up more of the liquid.

To make a stuffing outside the bird, brown the turkey wings on the stovetop and arrange them on top of the stuffing to get every last bit of turkey juice and fat to render. Once the stuffing is done, you can discard the wings.

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