BGE Turkey Dry Run

Skipman

Since I have never cooked a Turkey in my BGE I decided to do a dry run (or should I say moist run) with a 4 lb turkey breast.[p]I started out by brining in modified version of Alton Browns (Food Network) recipe using; [p]1/2 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 Tablespoon peppercorns
1/2 Tablespoon candied ginger
1/2 Tablespoon Allspice
About 1 Gallon of Water[p]Brought the whole mixture to a boil and then cooled it down. Brined the breast for about 15 hours in the mixture covered with ice.[p]Since I was really interested in see what flavor the brining provided I decided not to include any other than black pepper and rub with a little olive oil.[p]Cook on a large BGE, With plate setter and drip pan with a little apple juice. Cooked using lump only (no wood) at 325 degrees for about 2 hours and 10 minutes until my Polder read 165.[p]Since I used the apple juice the skin did not really brown too much as I expected. I let the meat rest for about 10 minutes then removed one breast loin for the bone and sliced it across the grain in 1/2 inch thick slices.[p]Well I must say that I was very impressed with the results. The meat was incredibly tender and juicy. The brining had imparted just the right amount of salt to the bird and I could also detect a very slight sweetness from the sugar and allspice.[p]My kids (6 and 9 years old) who don't like any hint of browning on their chicken really loved it too.[p]So from the standpoint of evaluating the effectiveness of the brining and the quality of the cooking process I think this was a complete success. I was not at all happy with the skin texture and I think I will forgo putting anything in the drip pan.[p]Also I will use my typically Turkey rub comprised of fresh rosemary, Thyme, Sage, Salt, Pepper to add additional flavor. I loosen the skin in the breast area with my hand taking care not to break it, then spread the rub mixture under the skin rather than placing it on top.[p]For Thanksgiving I will be cooking a 21 lb Kosher bird and feel a lot more confident that a houseful of people will be very happy now that I have done this once.[p]Can anyone chime in on how to get the skin nicely brown. Again, my thoughts would be to use by plate setter and a drip pan with no liquid at about 325 degrees to a breast temperature of 165 degrees. Will having no liquid in the drip pan result in the grease burning and coating the bird?[p]Skipman

Shelby

Skipman,
No, the grease drippings won't burn. Put the plate setter in with feet up, set the drip pan on it, then put the grill on. Turkey directly on the grill over the pan. To make cleaning up easier, you might line the pan with foil.

GaDawg

Skipman,
For a nice brown skin, dry the bird after brining and rub
it with olive oil. By the way, I never rinse anything I brine and it doesn't seem to matter.
Chuck

Tim M

Skipman,[p]Water in or no water in the drip pan won't make much of a difference. You might try a little olive oil coating on the skin to promote browning and 325-350° will do a fine job for you. Good Eats to you.[p]Tim

DavidR

Skipman,[p]Since you like to watch Alton Brown,(I do, too) try his method of browning the turkey after the brining. Roast the turkey at 500* for the first half-hour, or until you're satisfied with the color, then ramp it down to 350*, and put an aluminum foil tent over the breast, and go until you have a 161* internal.[p]I have a test turkey in the oven right now using his method. The brine ingredients I used are posted earlier.

Max

Skipman,
what is a plate setter?[p]

Painter

Max,
Here you go.

[ul][li]plate setter[/ul]