I'm planning to make Mad Max' Thanksgiving Turkey but dinner is an hour drive away, please help.

mattk330

I've made this before and it was just amazing.  I've been requested to bring a bird for Thanksgiving this year.  Here is my quandary:  Thanksgiving dinner is an hour drive away (noontime Thanksgiving dinner).  I plan to cook this at home on my BGE.  How do I pull this off?  By the time I make the gravy, get in the car and drive there, the bird could be cold as ice.  What do I do?  I thought about pulling out the roasting pan an hour early (swapping it for a fresh pan with just some hot water or the broth to finish out the cook) and making the gravy while the bird finishes up on the BGE.  Does this sound crazy?  Am I going to miss the best drippings?  How do I transport?  Should I wrap the bird (and roaster) in aluminum foil and/or place it in a warm cooler to transport?  Will it turn to mush?

Thoughts????  Please help! 

Raymont

Your noon meal time is the biggest quandary for me, but if your willing to get up very early you could do it by: Do it all at your house/BGE. Cover bird/pan with foil and put in a cooler. Put towel on top. When you get to destination, put bird in oven to reheat just a little (30 min). reheat gravy on stove. Serve.

mattk330

Thanks, Raymont.  Makes sense.  I was hoping not to have to reheat the bird but that is probably the safest bet.  Also, regarding noontime dinner, you don't know my mother-in-law.  She has her way of doing things.     Pray for me....

jtcBoynton

Preheat the cooler - it will keep the bird substantially warmer during transport.

Raymont

Or you could cook it all the day before, slice and then just reheat. I really don't think the quality would diminish and it would make Thanksgiving day much less stressful. 

nolaegghead

Cook the bird, put it in a cooler and drive for an hour.  It will only be cold as ice if you put ice in the coooler.

jonnymack

I'd cook the bird, pour yourself a nice glass of Irish whiskey. Drink said Irish whiskey whilst bird is cooking. Claim to be too drunk to drive. Eat turkey in comfort of home. Finish with glass of Irish whiskey.

Photo Egg

mattk330 said:

Thanks, Raymont.  Makes sense.  I was hoping not to have to reheat the bird but that is probably the safest bet.  Also, regarding noontime dinner, you don't know my mother-in-law.  She has her way of doing things.     Pray for me....

Tell your MIL you ran out of propane.lol

Darby_Crenshaw

Wife wanted thrkey the other day. Then, after cooking it, she was into the wine by the fire more. 

Took it off the BGE at 6:00 and didnt carve until 8:00. It was uncovered because I didn't plan on a two hour wait 

Interior of the breast was still warm. 

I don't recommend two hours. But i also wouldn't recommend a cooler. The skin will soften up

my mother used to simply cover the turkey with a couple clean tea towels, or kitchen towels. It would certainly stay hot for an hour, because she'd ise that time to cook other stuff in the oven. Foil will cause it to rise in temp. You just want a flat line slowly tending downward, temp wise

nuthin new here. Put it on a platter and cover with clean dish towels, and get there in a ln hour

fishlessman

i let my turkey sit out uncovered about 45 minutes and its still warm enough to serve. putting a hot turkey in a cooler is going to overcook it. i would tell the MIL to get in the car and drive an hour

nolaegghead

I didn't suggest foiling it.  Any steam from the turkey will condense on the walls of the cooler.  The skin is the price you pay for not eating it right away.  

Alternatively you could undercook it, foil it and let it keep cooking on the road.  Or what stike said - loosely cover with a light towel.

tfhanson

fishlessman said:

i let my turkey sit out uncovered about 45 minutes and its still warm enough to serve. putting a hot turkey in a cooler is going to overcook it. i would tell the MIL to get in the car and drive an hour

+1 Tell your MIL if she wants you to cook the bird on the BGE, it will be served at your house.  Stand up and be a man. No room here for wimps.

mattk330

tfhanson said:

+1 Tell your MIL if she wants you to cook the bird on the BGE, it will be served at your house.  Stand up and be a man. No room here for wimps.

You guys are harsh!  

mvnole

Did my first BGE turkey last year. Planned on a six hour cook.  Three and a half hours later, turkey was done.  Wrapped it in foil and put it in the cooler.  Stayed warm until we ate.  Family said it was the best ever. (Thanks BGE). An hour in the cooler should be fine.  

bigchef1995

Take turkey off 5 degrees or so before it reaches your desired temp and rap with foil and place in cooler. Will still be smoking hot when you get there... SMOKE ON!

UCFFAN

Done this many times... course I'm in Florida! I use good quality cooler. Pull the birds off. Foil it and into the cooler it goes with couple of heavy towels top and bottom to wrap him up. Will stay warm a long time. If your liking a nice crisp skin texture ... you give this up for the long ride over the river and through the woods. But when you unwrap and carve it comes out just like coming of the the Egg. Do two like this very year for my company. (I brine .... usually Alton Brown recipe) Cheery, Apple, or Orange wood. Good Luck!!