Trial Run First Smoked Turkey tomorrow: Seeking advice!

HeathCave

So I am doing my first smoked turkey tomorrow as a trial run before Thanksgiving on the egg. I have some questions for the eggsperienced...

Notables:

About 7-8lb turkey (still thawing, I'm praying it is thawed by morning...I put it in the fridge frozen yesterday evening)

Skipping the brine this first go...SWMBO likes dry turkey anyway

Injecting with butter/chicken broth/creole seasoning/hot sauce

Rubbing with some Dizzy Pig Raging River Rub today at the Ceramic Grill Store. (I live fairly close and stopped by to see the AR setup in person)

Plan to cook at around 300-325 temp using OO

LBGE with indirect platesetter setup

I am going to use some pecan and cherry wood chunks...but how much of each?

Should I turn the turkey at all?

Baste at all?

IT 165?

Anything else I should be asking/doing, but I'm not realizing it??

Thanks in advance for the pointers! 

grege345

If you don't care about presentation you just rub, spatch, and cook direct till about 160 breast 175 thigh. This works best for me. Otherwise I can't get temps right between breast and thigh.

tybish

You will not want to use too much smoke. A little goes a long ways on a bird.

blind99

check when IT is 120, may not need to turn, i don't baste.  agree careful with the smoke, esp at lower temps.  i'll post my turkeys later tonight.

Mickey

First where do you get a 8lb turkey? I like 12/13 lbs spatchcocked direct raised on adj rig and never turn. Cherry/pecan chips a large single handful. I cook at about 375/400.

Mattman3969

+1 on what @mickey said. I would go light handed on the pecan. Do about a 75/25 mix with cherry. Pecan has good flavors but in my experience will turn the bird way dark if too much is used

HeathCave

Ha @Mickey...I got it at Tom Thumb! There were bigger ones but I didn't want any leftovers really since the dinner I'll be cooking the "real" turkey for is only a couple weeks away (early Thanksgiving get together). I didn't want to be tired of turkey already by that day. (Is that possible with smoked turkey though??)

I only have chunks of pecan and cherry...one chunk each? Soak before? Or no?

I've never spatchcocked any bird yet. That is one of my next things to do though some time soon. For this bird, I think presentation will be important to everyone else, so I figured I would stick with a "traditional looking turkey".

For 8lbs at around 300-325..how long should I expect it to take? 3-4 hours?

Mickey

NO TO SOAK ~:> I just wish I could find that small of a bird. Can't help with time. Mine takes 75 to 90 min. Is your chunks about the size of half your fist? Then one of each is what I would do. Lots of smoke is not your friend here.

HeathCave

@Mickey, yeah that's about the size of the chunks. I'll go one of each. 

Thx everyone. If I can remember to slow down, I'll grab some pics along the way. I always get caught up in the cook and forget to get the pics! 

HeathCave

Turkey's on! Think I have enough probes?? Lol. I got em. Might as well use em.

jcaspary

Turkeys generally run 12-15 minutes per pound on the Egg. As others have said a little smoke goes a long way in a bird.

westernbbq

Be sure to get yourself an instead read (preferably digital) thermometer.  It'll cost you $5-$10 bucks and is the best possible investment you can make- when it comes to cooking poultry just right. Thigh and breast temp guide on BGE website is perfect.

 

ANd it's gotta be thawed completely, otherwise bad issues lurk-= I speak from experience my friend!

 

 

grege345

Thighs toward the back. It will help to get the thigh temp higher than breast. Let us know how it turns out.

HeathCave

Thanks @grege345, I rotated it for the last hour. One side was not cooking as well as the other anyway. 

Here's a couple final pics. It's not plated very well...sorry. I gotta work on my plating skills! The skin looks a little darker in the picture than it really was. But, judging by the skin, I was fearful cutting into it that it was going to be dry. 

It ended up a lot more moist than I thought it would be. It was looking pretty dry. I let it rest (tented) for about 35-40 minutes. When I started carving, juice rushed out (which was a welcome sight). But, it dried out fairly quickly once it was cut. 

The taste was amazing. A good amount of smoke, but not too much. (Thanks to @Mickey and all for the smoke warning). I used one chunk of pecan and one chunk of cherry. Seems like just enough. 

We had some friends over for a "pre-Thanksgiving" meal and they loved it. We even sent some home with them. 

Thanks for all the help!

Total cook time: 3.5 hrs hovering around 275-300

Mickey

Looks good

grege345

Gotta love a practice run that comes out that good. Any plans to do anything different for the big day?

djh3

I am doing one for our Thanksgiving. but I'm going just a bit of a different route. We will be camping so no egg. I plan to cook a 10lb breast, and have a pair of thighs and legs separate. Thinking I will fabricate a drip pan out of heavy gauge alum foil and put breast in V rack. Nestle the leg and thigh in under breast and put the probe in the breast. 275-300 range with some pecan and using Weber roasted garlic and herb spice as a rub. 

  this way it will be all cooked and we can transport and warm in oven at camper.