Thaw turkey; wash inside and out with running water and dry it off. Salt generously inside and rub butter or margarine all over the outside. Salt it thoroughly all over. Place rack on bottom of enamel roast pan. Put bird on rack breast up and cover entirely with heavy foil. Tuck it down around bird not over the edge of the pan. Do all this after supper on the day before you plan to serve the turkey. By the time the bird is ready for the oven it is bedtime. Set the oven at 275 to 300 F - No Higher -. Allow 30 minutes per pound of weight up to 6 hours for bird up to 12 pounds. If the bird is larger, allow 7 or 8 hours. Put the turkey in the oven, set your alram clock, and go to bed. When the clock goes off, turn off the oven, leave the door shut and go back to sleep - about 2 hours before serving, remove foil and brown. Use drippings for basting and gravy.
but she actually does it a little different. She cooks her bird at 450 to 500 degrees for 1 hour and then turns the temperature down to 250 to 275 degrees. The first hour of cooking at the higher temperature is counted in the 1/2 hour per lb. Of bird cooking time. (Nancy)
