turkey seems to be cooking too fast

gary

I am cooking a 13 1/4 pound bird at 300 degrees...after 1 1/2 hours, it reads 152 degrees in the breast. This is MUCH faster than I anticipated...can anyone else share cooking time experiences with me??? I have only used the large green egg a couple of time before today.

RRP

gary, this might sound like the blind leading the blind, but my gut feeling is the tip of your probe is touching or close to the bone OR you have inserted it clear through the breast and it is exposed inside...remove and replace. The other thing is most sources say to insert the probe in the thigh not the breast, but hey, what do I know, I'm confused myself!

Tim M

gary,[p]Are you cooking indirect?? I use a layer of firebricks with a drip pan on them and the birds over the drip pan. Normally a 8-10 lb breast will take 3 hr at 325-350. I go to 160-165 deg in the breast. Make sure the tip is centered and not touching bone. [p]Tim

MickeyT

gary,[p]
I'm in the exact same spot. 12 lbs. bird reading 159 in the breast.................Yikes

gary

Tim M,

I'm using the vertical rack, as recommended in the Big Green Egg manual...it's sitting in a pie pan to catch drippings.

gary

RRP,
I thought of that and put another thermometer in the other side of the breast...same reading.

Tim M

<p />gary,[p]Try to avoid using the BGE manual that came with the Egg. It has many flaws and will guide you dead wrong 98% of the time. Ask and learn here and ignore that book. It was written many years ago and new methods have greatly outdated that manual.[p]The drip pan alone is a bare minimum if its just a piece of metal. I often use a double boiler type drip pan which has water in it. This does better at shielding the heat of the fire away from the food better than does a pizza pan alone. I prefer 3 firebricks as pictured here. This is my rig for tonight. I was dry testing the fit and my wife is unwrapping the birds as I type this. Your bird might be done a bit early. I figure these two will take 2.5-3 hr at 350 deg.[p]More pictures later.[p]Tim

gary

Tim M,
Thanks...a picture is truly worth a thousand words...is that grate for a big egg? looks bigger than mine (I have a large egg). I have found the manual to be VERY unreliable...thanks for the help.

Tim M

<p />gary,
Yes, its a large. I have a small and a large and find the combo very nice. Good luck.[p]Tim