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Turkey Set-up in the BGE

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Eager Egger
Eager Egger Posts: 236
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
I posted a day or so ago on cooking a 12 pound Turkey this Sunday. Got some great answers and a couple of good recipes. I just cannot make up my mind on how to set up the egg. JEEVES, who's opinion I certainly respect told me not to do the bird on a verticle holder. He felt it would let all the juices drain and be too dry. I have cooked some 4# chickens on a beer can vertically and they came out fine. So what set-up would y'all recommend? Plate setter, grill and pan on grill with turkey horizontal? Just looking for some more advice and Ideas. Cooking for one of our daughters, her husband and twin babiess, so we really want this to be a success. I know time and temp, seasoning etc., but set up is the issue. Promise to post a picture or two.
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  • EGGOMANIAC
    EGGOMANIAC Posts: 141
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    EagerEgger,[p]I've had great success using platesetter legs down then drip pan, then grill, then horizontal bird. [p]Big difference between chix n turkeys. By the time it reaches internal temp it would indeed be dried out-IMHO.
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  • BENTE
    BENTE Posts: 8,337
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    EagerEgger,
    if you are dead set on doing it vertical use a fosters can of beer and do a beer can turkey. use platesetter legs up. put the can on the platesetter and use the turkey legs like a tripod....[p]if not follow mad max's directions it works great..[p]
    happy eggin
    tb

    happy eggin

    TB

    Anderson S.C.

    "Life is too short to be diplomatic. A man's friends shouldn't mind what he does or says- and those who are not his friends, well, the hell with them. They don't count."

    Tyrus Raymond Cobb

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  • fishlessman
    fishlessman Posts: 32,749
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    EagerEgger,
    i stack a pizza stone on the grill, a pan with spacers under it on the stone, a grill on the pan then the bird. i use a 13.5 inch paella pan, but a turkey pan would work or a foil pan under a raised grill is an option. you want a space between the inderect stone and the pan to avoid burning the drippings. the mad max recipe is very thorough if you still have that one. this was a stuffed turkey done with that setup, for food safety, no one will recomend cooking a bird this way.
    [ul][li]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v225/fishlessman/100_1159.jpg[/ul]
    fukahwee maine

    you can lead a fish to water but you can not make him drink it
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  • Eager Egger
    Eager Egger Posts: 236
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    Thanks to all of you. I am going to lay the bird down on a grill over the plate setter with a drip pan underneath as suggested. Not going to risk drying it out. Will save the beer cans for chicken :-) One last question: What's a time estimate on the Turkey at 225 to 250 degrees?

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  • ChefDave
    ChefDave Posts: 142
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    fishlessman,
    Great looking turkey. What in the world did you stitch him up with. That's a neat looking gadget. I heard of staples but this takes the cake. Who carries the item?
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  • Eager Egger
    Eager Egger Posts: 236
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    CORRECTION! I meant to say 325 to 350 per Eggspert's recommendation.
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  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
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    EagerEgger,
    15 a pound for me. seems to cook faster than a regular oven
    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
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  • EGGOMANIAC
    EGGOMANIAC Posts: 141
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    EagerEgger,[p]If you haven't do check out Mad Max's bird directions. That's what I used and it was perfecto - including the gravy. I think it's 20 min per pound but too lazy to re-check:-)[p]Let us know how it goes!
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  • Jeeves
    Jeeves Posts: 461
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    EagerEgger,[p]Congrats - albeit, I love the egg because it retains so much moisture, I think that even though the turkey wasn't dried out, it may be more moist when horizontal.[p]How does one measure the amount of moistness - hmm, I guess you take a certain amount of mass and extract as much liquid as you can... Interesting - looking forward to the pics![p]-Jeeves
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  • KevinH
    KevinH Posts: 165
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    stike,[p]You're not kidding! I cooked a 17.5 lb. bird Mad Max style starting at 350 and slowly ramping down to 300 degrees. It only took 4 hours to reach 166 in the breast and 176 in the thigh. That's less than 14 minutes per pound.[p]I did ice the breasts before cooking, as many suggest. I'm convinced that is critical to getting the entire bird cooked evenly. It was terrific!
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  • Rick's Tropical Delight
    Rick's Tropical Delight Posts: 816
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    23nov06_2-011.jpg
    <p />EagerEgger,
    mad max method and setup all the way, mon ![p]<img src=http://my.erinet.com/~pnsonr/biggreenegg/17-18nov06-052.jpg>[p]always ice the breast ![p]<img src=http://my.erinet.com/~pnsonr/biggreenegg/17-18nov06-035.jpg&gt;

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  • Unknown
    Unknown
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    EagerEgger,[p]Lookin at the pics - I don't believe I used the grill/grid![p]Eggomaniac
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  • ChefDave
    ChefDave Posts: 142
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    Rick's Tropical Delight,
    Pleas refresh my memory as to why you ice the breasts.When and how long?
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  • KevinH
    KevinH Posts: 165
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    Letts-Do-It,[p]Immediately before putting the turkey into the egg, put an ice pack on the breasts for 20 minutes. This procedure slows down the cooking of the breasts, so they are still tender and juicy at the point where the legs and thighs are fully cooked.
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  • ChefDave
    ChefDave Posts: 142
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    KevinH,
    Prior to using the egg, I have for many many years cooked my turkey (22-26#'s) upside down. I have the breast on the bottom and you can't believe how moist the breast was. The bird didn't look pretty but I would tell everyone...are you taking a picture of the bird or eating it....
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  • EggspertMN
    EggspertMN Posts: 93
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    EagerEgger,
    I agree with most of the posters here.[p]Plate setter, legs up, drip pan, grill, turkey horizontal. I try to keep dome temp about 350. gets a nice crispy skin all around. put a couple hunks of apple or cherry in the fire.[p]What ever you do, learn from what you've done. it doesn't make any difference if you use the same method as me, or another one. we are all saying what works for us. do what you think works for you. So, when you're done with your first bird, think about it. what did you like, or not like? what would you change the next time? then think about this the next time and the next. pretty soon, you'll have some thing that YOU like, and you can repeat it. don't be afraid to make a mistake. (realy can't make one) Just learn from what you're doing, and continue to improve it until you have something that is the way you like it. [p]It would be eay to say that what I do is the best, or Max, or thirdeye, or anyone else. All of us are good, and so are you. When folks come to my house to eat, I cook what I like, the way I like it, mostly cuz I want to show off a little. It is always good to have a place to start, so use what you learn here, and then apply it, and learn from that. pretty soon, you'll be tellin us how to do it.[p]cheers
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  • JD McGee
    JD McGee Posts: 250
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    EagerEgger,[p]I was just talking with "Chip"...one of the staff at Sutter Home & Hearth (BGE Dealer) this afternoon about this very same subject. He recommends using your favorite rub and aromatics and then filling the cavity of the (horizontal...breast up) bird with white wine as full as you can get it. Sounded like a good idea.[p]JD

    Wine Country "Q" Competition BBQ Team Pacific Northwest BBQ Association's 2011 "Team Of The Year" www.winecountryq.com
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  • Rick's Tropical Delight
    Rick's Tropical Delight Posts: 816
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    Letts-Do-It,
    i usually take a picture, then eat it
    *wink*
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