A trapped turkey is a thing!
Setting the temperature higher than 500 degrees can engage your oven’s locking mechanism
It’s a nightmarish situation. Your family and friends are all gathered at your home for Thanksgiving or Christmas—and they’re all hungry. The turkey is taking longer than anticipated, so you boost the temperature as high as it will go. That’s when it happens. Your turkey is trapped. The door to the oven locks because it switches into the self-cleaning mode. Now, what do you do?
HOW TO FREE YOUR TURKEY
- Turn off the oven to allow the internal temperature to cool. In most cases, once the oven temperature falls to a safe level, the door will unlock and the turkey can be taken out.
- If all else fails, switch the circuit breaker off that controls power to the oven. That will turn the oven off and allow it to cool down. The cool-down might take up to 30 minutes. Once you switch the breaker back on, hit the cancel key on the oven and you should be able to resume cooking.
- Most chefs will recommend that you roast a turkey at 325° or 350° (depending on size of your bird). Fore best results, follow the directions included in the wrapper, or from your favorite cookbook. If you are using a food thermometer, leave the turkey in the oven until the thermometer registers 160°.
For help with a trapped turkey, Whirlpool, Amana, Maytag, and KitchenAid brand consumers can call Whirlpool Corporation Customer Care at 1-866-698-2538.