What Are Turkey Giblets And How Do You Use Them?

Tossing those giblets in the trash? Read this before you make your final decision.

When you've stuffed or cooked a turkey in years past, were you surprised to find a bag of unidentified poultry parts hanging out in the cavity? What’s in that bag? It’s turkey giblets. Today’s cooks buying a grocery store turkey often use giblets in recipes like Giblet Gravy or homemade stock. But if you're unfamiliar with the offal, those edible internal parts, it's time to learn. Here, learn from Bill Nolan, a Butterball Turkey Talk-Line supervisor and retired chef, to discover what giblets are and expert tips for using them in recipes.

Meet The Expert

Bill Nolan is a Butterball Turkey Talk-Line supervisor and retired chef.

What Are Turkey Giblets?

Giblets are the offal meat of the turkey. Offal is the organ meat of poultry and other animals. In turkeys, giblets are the heart, gizzards, and liver. In other poultry, like ducks, the offal meat is prized for creating products like foie gras or paté.

Giblets may seem like a turkey secret, but they don’t have to be unapproachable. In fact, many Southern cooks use giblets for a variety of dishes, especially at Thanksgiving, and offal meats find their way into many classic Southern dishes year-round.

How Do You Pronounce Giblet?

It may help to know how to say giblet when talking about them. When you serve up giblet gravy, you would announce the side by rhyming the word with “niblet.” Giblets is pronounced with a soft G sound, like a giraffe.

How Should You Prepare Giblets?

To get to the, err, heart of giblets, we asked Nolan, who knows all about turkeys and their giblets. The Butterfly Turkey Talk-Line hotline is a valued holiday tradition where cooks call in and get advice on everything from still-frozen turkeys to, you guessed it, giblets.

Preparing or cooking giblets doesn’t have to be intimidating. There’s a variety of methods to use. You can cut them up and simmer with a mix of veggies, garlic, and bacon, or you can flour-dredge and fry them like you might prepare traditional liver.

Chopping and adding them into sauces is another option. Consider using them wherever you might use any other offal like liver or heart to add texture, protein, and rich flavor. “When cooking giblets for gravy or stuffing, you can simply roast them in the pan with your turkey or simmer them in water with some celery and onions to make a giblet stock. Then, chop the giblets and use in your gravy or stuffing," Nolan said. Many people will include the turkey neck with the giblets for more meat and extra flavor.

Do You Cook The Giblets In The Turkey?

Many people remove the giblets before cooking the turkey so they can be used in other dishes. Nolan had reassuring advice for cooks who don’t know giblets are in the turkey cavity or forget to remove them before roasting. When you cook your turkey, it is perfectly fine to let the giblet bag cook inside (on purpose or accidentally).

Nolan explained how giblets are included and if you have to remove them: “You can if you’d like, but it’s not necessary. The giblets in Butterball turkeys come in an oven-safe paper bag that allows the giblets to be cooked with the turkey, no problem. Forgetting to remove the giblet bag from the turkey prior to cooking is one of the biggest giblet questions we get here at the Butterball Turkey Talk-Line. We always reassure people that the giblet bag is oven-safe, and there’s no harm in leaving it in the turkey while it cooks," Nolan said.

If you have a different brand of turkey and the giblets are in a plastic bag inside of it, forgetting to remove the giblets could be a problem. If the bag has been altered or melted by the heat, you shouldn't use the turkey or giblets because harmful chemicals may have leached into the food.

What Do Giblets Taste Like?

Pinpointing the taste of giblets can vary based on how you prepare them. When eaten alone, they’ll mostly taste like dark poultry meat, a little gamey with a slight metallic taste. "Giblets can add complexity and depth to a dish, with an earthy taste," Nolan said. If they’re coated in flour and fried, the taste changes.

What’s Included In Giblet Packs Now?

Turkey giblet bags aren't the same as they were decades ago. "Giblets" once described all poultry offal—the feet, wing tips, head, gobbler red cockscomb, and the neck. Today’s giblet bags are simpler. “Butterball includes the turkey heart, gizzard, and liver in its giblet bag. In the past, some manufacturers included the lungs and/or kidneys as well," said Nolan. However, other turkey companies differ, so some packs may be short a part or two. If something is going to be left out, it's most often the gizzard.

Can You Buy A Turkey Without Giblets?

If you don’t like the idea of giblets being tucked up inside your turkey, you do have options. Nolan explained that all Butterball turkeys do have giblets included, except for the Ready to Roast line of turkeys. If a turkey has giblets, that packaging will often clarify that. If it doesn't say either way, you should assume the turkey does have at least some giblets.

Can You Buy Giblets Without A Turkey?

On the inverse, if you make giblet gravy and love it at Thanksgiving, but don’t want to buy a 20-pound bird, you can buy giblets on their own. Ask your butcher or check the offal section of your store’s poultry department. The turkey giblets should be available near the poultry and soup bones.

Are The Giblets In Your Turkey From That Specific Turkey?

If you buy your turkey at a farmers’ market or directly from a farm, the answer is most likely yes. At a big box, warehouse, or grocery store, the giblets could actually be from another turkey because of how poultry is processed.

Are There Precautions To Take When Preparing Giblets?

Giblets should be treated like you would approach any raw poultry. Make sure to use a separate cutting board and utensils when prepping them, and wash your hands before touching any other food products or surfaces. Cooking giblets to 165°F is also crucial.

How Should You Store Giblets?

If you don’t use the giblets that come with your turkey, you can store them in the refrigerator in airtight packaging for one or two days. They can also be frozen in airtight packaging. Thaw frozen giblets by putting them in the refrigerator, microwave, or under cold water.

Recipes That Use Giblets

Put that bonus bag of flavor tucked inside your bird to good use with these recipes that call for giblets.

• Overnight Giblet Gravy

• Homemade Turkey Stock

• Chicken-Fried Chicken Gizzards

Related: It's Not A Southern Thanksgiving Without These 10 Dishes, According To Our Readers