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Is the green button on this frozen young turkey breast a thermometer? should it be removed before being cooked in a slow cooker? How can I remove it? Thanks enter image description here

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    Just out of interest, does anyone else see that as a light blue button, rather than green?
    – gidds
    Jun 20, 2022 at 9:56
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    @gidds: oh no, here we go again :) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_dress. In this case, however, it is obviously blue :)
    – WoJ
    Jun 20, 2022 at 10:11
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    I wasn't intending to get into all the deep matters of colour perception or linguistics :-) But this has reasonable colour references (the turkey, the metal pot), and a quick check in an image editor confirms that the button is all on the blue side of cyan, so the question title confused me, and I'm relieved to find I'm not alone!
    – gidds
    Jun 20, 2022 at 10:17
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    It could be a language thing, there are languages that don't have such a clear distinction between green and blue.
    – luator
    Jun 20, 2022 at 11:31

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That looks to me like a pop-out turkey thermometer, yes; it's basically a spring-loaded plunger that's stuck to itself with a food-safe adhesive that, at a certain temperature, unsticks, which means the spring built into it can 'pop out' the little button to give the cook an indication that the turkey breast has reached a safe internal temperature.

However, I would nonetheless recommend that you remove it, for the following reasons:

  • These thermometers are typically calibrated for use in an oven, with the turkey being roasted; the different cooking environment of a slow cooker might effect how the heat spreads through the bird and make the thermometer's reading less useful.
  • The temperature these thermometers are set to pop at, even under ideal conditions in an oven for roasting, is often significantly higher than even the FDA standard temperature for safe poultry and generally results in what most would consider a dry, overcooked bird (at least for the breast meat). The more advanced wisdom is to bring your turkey to a lower internal temperature - around 160-165F or 71-74C, check using a meat thermometer, ideally an instant-read one - and make sure it stays there a little while, generally by resting the meat after you take it out of the oven.
  • If you can get it out easily without mangling the breast before cooking, it's one less thing to have to remember later; if it's stuck in there, though, it might be easier to take out later once the meat is cooked.
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  • Thanks. Is it safe and healthy to be cooked in water or vapor in slow cooker?can it contaminate turkey in high mostroious temperature? How can I remove it?
    – Tim
    Jun 20, 2022 at 0:38
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    The whole dealie is designed to go in the oven, it's perfectly safe to leave it in and cook with it there, it's just not terribly useful as a thermometer. To remove it you should just be able to pull it out; be gentle but firm, to avoid damaging the meat or skin unnecessarily, use a bit of paper towel to improve your grip if necessary, and if it seems really stuck you can leave it until after the turkey's cooked, at which point it should be easier.
    – Blargant
    Jun 20, 2022 at 0:45
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    I'm sure it's safe @Tim, but do you want a piece of plastic immersed in your food for hours if you can avoid it? Those are generally easy to get out.
    – GdD
    Jun 20, 2022 at 12:46

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