You can spend hours cooking up the perfect turkey, but... if you don't know how to carve a turkey properly, you can easily ruin that perfect texture that you spent hours cultivating.

Whether you're having Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner at your house, or are the guest of honor (and therefore the designated turkey carver) at another person's house, you might feel a bit of pressure to look like a pro-- and end up with a nice result. It's a lot of responsibility! After all, taking apart a roasted turkey isn't necessarily an easy task-- you want to cut it in a way that will retain moisture and also easily portion out fairly for everyone.

Of course, before learning how to carve a turkey, you've got to have one cooked. Check out our How to Cook a Turkey Page for all the holiday turkey recipes under the sun, including:

• Roast turkey recipes
• Dry Brined Turkey
• Deep Fried Turkey
• Turkey Drumsticks
• Turkey Breasts

And more.

Before Carving Your Turkey

To get the best possible result, there are a few steps you should take before ever chopping into that turkey.

Check for doneness. If you've made the turkey yourself you're going to want to make sure it's done right. Remember: Check to make sure the internal temperature of your turkey in the thickest part of the meat is 165 degrees before pulling it out of the oven. Use a meat thermometer ( electronic meat thermometers like this one are generally the most accurate).

Let it Rest. Resting your turkey is a hugely important step in ending up with a perfect final result. You should never begin slicing your turkey until it's had at least 15 minutes to rest outside the oven. Why? Because resting makes for a moister bird-- as it sits, the juices settle back down into the meat instead of leaking out when you slice into it. Let it rest for 30 minutes for best results.

Turkey Carving Supplies Needed

The Right Knife. The most important tool in learning how to carve a turkey properly is, of course, your knife. You want a sharp carving knife and a fork to hold the turkey steady while you cut. A lot of people --especially those who aren't pros but want a good result-- go for an electric turkey carving knife. An electric knife will give you a good consistent result, especially if your knife skills aren't super strong.

That said, if you know what you're doing, the best thing to use for carving a turkey is a nice, sharp professional carving knife set. This will create much smoother slices than an electric knife, and the final result will be better. This option requires more skill, though, so choose accordingly.

The Right Cutting Surface. Some people slice the turkey right on the serving platter. This isn't a good idea as it can damage your nice carving knife-- not to mention what the knife can do to the china. Get out a large cutting board instead. From a health and safety standpoint you want plastic or Corian, neither of which are porous and therefore more resistant to bacteria. But you can also use a wooden board-- clean it well when you're done.

The Serving Platter. Besides the knife, fork, and cutting surface you'll want to have a serving plate large enough for the amount of meat you're planning to lay out. Keep some aluminum foil handy so you can cover up any part of the turkey that doesn't need to be sliced up right away. This will help keep it safe from pets or guests who love to pick.

How to Carve a Turkey:
Step by Step

Got all your turkey carving supplies ready? Read on for step by step instructions on how to carve a turkey properly-- and get the best result possible.

1. Separate the Thigh. Step one in carving a turkey is locating where the thigh connects to the body. Put the point of your carving knife into that joint to separate the thigh from the main part of the bird while holding the top of the leg (drumstick) with your free hand. Repeat this on the other side of the turkey. Note that a very tender turkey may release the thigh without the need of a knife, but using a knife instead of just ripping the leg from the joint makes for a prettier presentation.

2. Separate the Drumstick. Next, you want to divide the drumstick from the thigh (this makes nice portions for your dark meat lovers). Just cut through the obvious joint between the two. If you want you can slice the drumstick and thigh meat into neat, pretty slices-- but most people serve them up as tidy whole morsels. Do whatever works best for the presentation you're looking for.

3. Start on the Breast. The third step in how to carve a turkey is carving the turkey breast-- probably the most important part of the bird.

To carve the turkey breast you want to insert your knife near and parallel to the wing. When you're slicing the meat the knife moves from the front of the bird to the back. Move your knife each time slightly upward on the side of the turkey so that you've moving toward the middle of the breast. Note that slicing like this retains both some heat and moisture in the main part of the breast-- that's a good thing.

4. Serve and Stop. Stop when you have enough meat for one to two helpings per person. My suggestion? Leave the rest of the turkey whole for later. You can carve up the rest of the turkey for leftovers whenever you get the chance. For now, don't waste your time carving more turkey... it's time to eat!