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large blue flame coming up to turkey breast area

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Dr Drew
Dr Drew Posts: 11
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
Doing mad max turkey for Christmas. Prior to putting turkey in temp raised to 650. I cooled down to 200 and put the turkey in. Upside down place setter and grate used. Large blue flame coming up now. Mostly right far corner. I am taking the turkey out and shutting it down for a few minutes to see if it goes out. Any one had this problem?
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  • Dr Drew
    Dr Drew Posts: 11
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    Shut down for 3 minutes worked to put it out. Damage: right far side of the turkey is very brwon after only 20 min. I tented the bird with foil. I don't understand why the flame was so high and the temp is only reading 200 degrees. Any ideas?
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  • thegrillster
    thegrillster Posts: 348
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    did you use any type of liquid fire starter?

    Have you checked you thermometer calibration?
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  • civil eggineer
    civil eggineer Posts: 1,547
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    It could be your dome thermometer is too close to the turkey giving you a false temp reading. When I cook turkeys that are large for my egg with little space surrounding the bird, I can get false dome temp readings. My time is coming as I am cooking a 16.5 lb bird in my medium this morning. Try to orientate the cavity so the therm has a little elbow room.
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  • Wise One
    Wise One Posts: 2,645
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    A blue flame is a very hot flame (as far as flames go)which seems to be inconsistent with your low temperature. I wonder if you had some type of strange wood that gave off something different. Typically the initial flames are quite yellow indicating a large amount of soot present.
    I like to use a plate setter or some type of flame barrier when cooking whole poultry because the grease from the skin can cause flareups and I typically want it stay undisturbed for a relatively long period of time. That being said, I have had turkeys that obviously got flame-licked (black not brown) that turned out delicious even if not a thing of beauty. Try inserting a single sheet of foil under the turkey. It will keep the flames from hitting it but should provide plenty of room fro the smoke to get to the bird. Good luck.
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  • Frank from Houma
    Frank from Houma Posts: 5,755
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    Three possibilities

    1) Dome thermometer needs calibration

    2) Dome thermometer is in the turkey or maybe real close to the turkey

    3) You didn't mention if you have a drip pan - turkey fat hitting lump and flaring up

    Correct the issue and you will still have a nice bird
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  • Susan Egglaine
    Susan Egglaine Posts: 2,437
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    Sounds like some mighty good moon shine might have been spilled :laugh: :laugh:
    Good luck ;)
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  • Dr Drew
    Dr Drew Posts: 11
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    Problem solved: Thermometer wasn't working properly. Feel dumb. I put a different thermometer in the dome and measured over 500 degrees. Seared the turkey like a steak. I have to have it ready by 2, so I put it in the oven at 325. I think it will be fine, just a little brown skin in some areas.

    Thank you for the great advice. I appreciate this forum and the quick replies (and on Christmas morning!)
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  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
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    the flame is a phenomenon that occurs when you have a lot of new lump and or a hot fire that got choked down quickly.

    you can get rid of the flame by opening the dome (it will flashback). this gives it the oxygen it was looking for and it generally clears the deck, meaning it won't happen again.

    or you can choke it down like you did. moral of the story is there is no benefit to cranking her wide open if you want a lower temp. it doesn't establish the fire. in fact, it makes a big fire, then tries to clamp that fire down and to make it act like a small one.
    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
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