Mad Max's turkey recipe -- YUM!

Eggtuary

I did Mad Max's turkey this weekend. I cooked a 21 pounder for about 6 hours, with temps ranging between 325 and 340. The taste was excellent, particularly the gravy.[p]I struggled a bit, though, with getting the dark meat done at the same time as the breast. I did the ice bag treatment for 20 minutes, but I still ended up with breast meat at 166F to 168F before most of the dark meat was done. I decided to sacrifice the undercooked dark meat so that I didn't wind up with terribly dry white meat. I was surprised at how moist the breast meat was, considering that it was a few degrees overcooked.[p]So, what do I need to do differently? Should the ice bag be left on longer than 20 minutes? Do I need to rotate that pan during the cook? Not all the dark meat was undercooked, so maybe rotating would help get all of it up to temp at the same time.[p]All in all, I'm pleased with my results for my "trial run." I think this will be a big hit at Thanksgiving![p]Thanks,
Mike Stone

mad max beyond eggdome

Eggtuary,
i think i might have rotated the bird in the roasting pan once during my cook last year. . ..i also baste a lot (like once ever 20 - 25 minutes, pulling the juices from both the cavity and the bottom of the pan to squirt all over the turkey. . .also, did you 'tent' the turkey at all? .. .i usually end up tenting the bird for about 2 - 3 hours to keep the breast skin from browning too much. .that might also add to keeping the breast moist. . .but you could certainly do the ice bag for a little longer next time to insure that the breast and legs come out done at the same time. ..[p]glad you enjoyed it though, and that it all worked out for you. ..

AZRP

Eggtuary,
In order to get the dark meat done when the breast is 160 or so, I let the legs flop free. By not tying them or using the supplied plastic holder, the legs will stick out allowing the heat more access to the thighs. This has worked great for me, I think I picked up that trick from a Good Eats episode. -RP

Unknown

Eggtuary,[p]I had trouble finding Max's recipe in the archives. Any chance you could pass it along, or point me in the right direction? Thx.[p]Beefer

mad max beyond eggdome

AZRP,
i also usually let the legs flop free. .. or at least i'll pull out that plastic holder, and retie the legs, but much further apart than would otherwise be with the holder. . .i never thought of this helping the thighs get done faster, but i agree with you about the heat getting to them. . .[p]thanks

mad max beyond eggdome

Beefer,
here you go. ...its no on the bge recipe page, but it is on the naked whiz site. ...[p]http://www.nakedwhiz.com/madmaxturkey.htm
[ul][li]http://www.nakedwhiz.com/madmaxturkey.htm[/ul]

The Naked Whiz

mad max beyond eggdome,
It can be found either on my recipes page, or since it is such a classic, you can also find a link to it on my new and improved Information Central web page:[p]TNW
[ul][li]Link To Information Central[/ul]

mad max beyond eggdome

The Naked Whiz,
WOW, to be lumped with elder ward's and trex's methods, i am truly humbled and honored. .. [p]thanks whiz!![p]btw. . .you coming to hotlanta this week??

UnConundrum

Max, I'm sure glad you're talking about a turkey.....

mad max beyond eggdome

UnConundrum,
huh??? who was talking about turkeys??? . . LOL[p]btw. . .read that really interesting post about the french plastic bag cooking, etc. . .pretty cool. . .

UnConundrum

Max,
Excuse me !!!! I use American plastic bags
Seems like it's really catching on with the professional chefs, and having tried it, I can see why. Think about sous-viding a couple dozen shortribs, and then freezing them right in the bag they cooked in. Any time you want shortribs, just defrost, and throw on the egg for a few minutes

Eggtuary

mad max beyond eggdome,
Yes, I tented with foil for a few hours per your directions. Like I said, the breast was still reasonably moist, but I'm guessing it would have been even better if I could have pulled at 160F.[p]Actually, when I look at the photos on Naked Whiz's site that accompany your recipe, I see that you did rotate the bird at some point. I guess I should have picked up on that, but I was working off printed directions, so the pictures came out fairly small.[p]Thanks again for sharing your great recipe with us. I'm going to have a lot of well-fed family members this Thanksgiving!

Unknown

MMBE, TNW[p]Thx a lot guys.[p]Beefer

fishlessman

Eggtuary,
i havent read max's directions for a while, but there are a few extra things that will help with getting the dark meat done along eith the ice trick.
1. aim the legs toward the rear of the cooker, its usually hotter there.
2. increase the space between the pan and the bird to increase the hot air flow
3. add hot broth into the cavity of the bird instead of cold, it starts the dark meat cooking faster.