Holiday Turkey Trial Run Diary

Uncle Milt

This forum has been berry, berry good to me, as it is a great resource for my beginning endeavors in the world of the EGG. So, I thought it's about time that I return the many helpful suggestions I have gotten in these parts. So here I present the diary of my first attempt at an EGGed turkey, prior to my actually doing THE Thanksgiving bird on the EGG.[p]In an earlier post, I sought advice about doing a turkey on the EGG. I asked for recipies and thoughts on brining. I got very good responses on brining and after looking at dozens of brine formulas, I decided to go with one of Emeril's that I found on the web. The URL is listed below. I chose that one because it had the most interesting array of ingredients and it seemed skewed toward sweetness, as opposed to saltiness, which seems more in keeping with the traditional flavors of Thanksgiving.[p]I made the brine last night. I heated all the ingredients together just enough to get the salt and sugar to dissolve. it sat in the fridge all night. I think next time I might just heat the water, salt and sugar and then add the rest of the ingredients to the water after it has cooled. This brine has oranges and orange juice in it, and I am concerned that the brine might be acidic, which according to the very informative Brining 101 link, could make the meat mushy. That's why I'm doing this trial run -- to see what works and what doesn't.[p]Unfortunately, I did not get many actual recipies for how to EGG the bird. The ones I did get advise cooking the bird at a temp very much similar to oven cooking. I still am unsure about whether I should cook it slower or faster, and whether I should use some wood chumks for smoke. I don't want the bird to be too smokey, so I am wondering if just using the lump charcoal will be sufficient to give it that EGG signature flavor. I would appreciate some advice on that point.[p]This morning, Saturday, at 8:00 AM, I put the bird into into a large plastic bag and poured all the brine in with it. I then tied up the bag, and put it into a second bag, for protection (sort of like a second condum for the really nervous), and put the whole thing into a roasting pan in the fridge. The pan was not big enough to use alone to submerge the bird in the liquid brine. I plan on leaving the bird in the brine for 24 hours, turning it now and then to insure that the whole thing gets treated.[p]So, that's it for now. I still am looking for more actual cooking advice and thoughts on smoke or not to smoke before EGG it [p]Next stop: setting up the EGG and cooking the bird, tomorrow morning.[p]Milt

Uncle Milt

For some reason, the link to the Emeril brine recipe, did not come up on my original post. Here is is again:[p]http://www.wchstv.com/gmarecipes/brinedwholeturkey.shtml
[ul][li]Emeril's Holiday Turkey Brine[/ul]

Prof Dan

Uncle Milt,[p]I am also geting ready to do my first Egg Turkey; but I went back through the archives and did a survey of the recipes. Bottom line: the two preferred ways are (1) just like a regular oven, at 325, or (2) a little hotter and faster, at 350. I tried to pin down the "minutes per pound" standard, with mixed results. It looks like at 350, it'll take 13 to 15 min per pound, and closer to 20 per pound at 325.[p]Either way, the consensus seems to be a layer of fire bricks, a drip pan on the bricks, a v-rack in the pan [with maybe some water in the pan], breast up, and take it off when the breast hits 160 internal. Then let it sit for 15 min before carving.[p]If you don't like a smoky flavor, then just use plain lump charcoal. It'll still taste Eggish, but not deeply smoky.[p]Good luck [to both of us]!

The Naked Whiz

Uncle Milt,
The brine you point to used the ratio of 1:1 salt to sugar, which is pretty normal. Brining normally doesn't make the meat salty. I've brined a number of turkey breasts and a chicken and didn't notice any saltiness. I'd think that putting all the spices into the hot mixture (rather than putting them in the next morning) is going to extract more flavor from them and thus more flavor will go into the meat. Personally, I like smoke on the turkey, so I use a fair amount of pecan or apple chunks. My breasts (the turkey breasts) got rave reviews at the Appalachian State University Student Ambassador's Parent's Weekend pot luck supper. If you are hesitant about the smoke, strike a happy medium and use a little, unless you just dislike all smoke flavor whatsoever. Good luck![p]TNW

Uncle Milt

Prof Dan,[p]Good summary. I also forgot to mention in my diary post that I am using a fresh, all natural bird from Whole Foods. Is $75.00 per pound too much to pay?[p]Milt

nikkig

Uncle Milt,
$75.00 per pound? What do they feed those turkeys?[p]~nikki

Uncle Milt

The Naked Whiz,[p]I appreciate your weighing in here. Your advice has always been right on, and once again I am grateful for your wise counsel.[p]I think I want some smoke flavor so I am going to go with couple of chunks of pecan. I'll go see if I can find some apple at my local Barbecus Galore. They are one block away and they also stock the EGGs and BGE lump charcoal.[p]Milt

Strmn2Smoke

Uncle Milt,[p]Where do I get in line? (The devil made me do it)...nde

The Naked Whiz

Uncle Milt,
You can always throw in a small handful of chips to get a short burst of smoke at the beginning, if you want to be cautious.
TNW

Uncle Milt

nikkig,[p]As I understand it, each turkey has it's own condo, where they are hand fed only organic grain. They are also massaged daily by Swedish stewardesses.[p]zmily