You can safely force thaw your bird the restaurant way - in a large bowl in the sink, under a drizzle of cold running water. Would take about an hour for an 11lb bird. Only worth doing if you forgot to thaw it in fridge for a day, cuz it wastes a lot of water.
I've always used a roasting bag and a wire rack (your V-rack is fine) in the pan. The trick is simply to poke a couple of small holes in the bag under the turkey, so excess fat will drip out. The bag will still puff out from the bird as it gets hot and steamy in there. Since the bag keeps heat and moisture in, the turkey cooks more thoroughly and a bit faster.
Absolutely - don't stuff it; waste of time and the stuffing just gets loaded with fatty grease.
The oil and salt rub method is classic French technique for a brown skin. Or, just rub it with a lemon half and sprinkle sugar lightly.
For the last half hour of weight-estimated cooking time of 3:15 @ 350F, slice or scissor the bag open to expose the skin to direct heat, turn the oven up another 25-50 degrees. Nice and crispy, that way.
Once the legs are loose at the hip joint, jam an icepick or kebab skewer deep into the thigh or breast and let the juice run onto a white paper towel; if there is no pink or red on the wet towel, the turkey is done.
Another protip....let-it-rest-let-it-rest-let-it-rest.....If you carve into a piping hot turkey, all the boiling hot juice within the muscle fibres will run out and your meat will be dry. The turkey continues to cook out of the oven for a good 20 minutes...so don't let any know-it-all, moochy relative/guest fuck up all your work by stabbing into it too soon. This goes for any meat or poultry. LET IT REST!
