Yet another turkey question

Wardster

Cooking a bird for my wife's family. Looking for a bird in the 12-16 lb range. Cooking indirect at 325, how many hours per lb am I looking at? The bird will be brined for 3 days. If I should be using a different temp, please offer your advise.
As always, thanks for the feedback

Puj

Wardster,[p]325°F to 350°F indirect will do you well. I have to ask, what's in the brine that makes it worthwhile or necessary for the bird to sit in it for 3 days?[p]Puj

Rumrunner

<p />Wardster,
Temp is fine. Dry the bird well and set in fridge, naked, for a few hours to let skin 'dry'. This will make for a nice crispy skin. Take out of fridge and let set for about an hour before going on egg. Cooking time will vary (many, many variables), but any where from 12-16 minutes a pound will get you there. I strongly suggest that you use a probe type thermometer for cooking and monitor the breast temp carefully. Remove turkey when breast temp reaches 160°. It will finish cooking as it sets up. Btw, IMHO, 48 hours is plenty for brining that turkey.[p]Attached is a pic of a 12# that had been brined for two days and cooked for 2 hours at 350°. It is extremely over done, but the brining still rendered a nice juicy breast. I had fried my last Polder probe the night before while doing hi temp Rib Eyes. I was shooting for about a 2 1/2 hr cook on the turkey and was going to check with my thermapen. Opened the lid and saw that turkey was done already. Breast temp was 185° (ouch). Got lots of raves, but I would've preferred a little less done.

Wardster

Puj,
I have attached the recipe I took from this forum two years ago. I can not remember who posted it... Kat maybe?? It is called Brined Turkey a la John Ash.
I did it last year and it simply was the best turkey anybody had ever tasted. I have followed the "to brine, not to brine" posts and I really don't care if it works or not. I want to repeat every thing I did last year, I'm not messin with perfection. Here is the post....[p]Brined Turkey
1 turkey, 12-16 pounds, rinsed thoroughly, giblets, tail, and
neck removed
2 Tablespoons olive oil or
melted butter
1 Tablespoon butter, plus extra to grease the casserole dish
1/4 cup turkey or chicken stock[p]Brine:
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup maple syrup
3/4 cup coarse salt
3 whole heads garlic, cloves separated, but not peeled, and bruised
6 large bay leaves
1-1/2 cups coarsely chopped unpeeled fresh ginger
2 teaspoons dried chile flakes
1-1/2 cups soy sauce
3 quarts water
Handful of fresh thyme sprigs
Combine all the brine ingredients in an enamel or stainless steel
pot. Bring to a boil, remove from heat and let cool completely. Rinse
the turkey well, and
put it in a large enamel, stainless steel or food-grade plastic pot
or bucket. Cover with the cold brine and add more water if the brine
doesn't cover the
turkey. Put a plate on top of the turkey to hold it under the brine.
Refrigerate for 2-4 days, turning the bird twice a day. (When you
turn the turkey be sure to empty the brine out of the body cavity
before you turn it or it splashes everywhere.)
To cook the turkey: Remove the bird from the brine and pat it dry.
Lightly brush it with olive oil or butter and set aside.
As promised, here are the details that made me Turkey Queen for a day.
Saturday morning I got up early and drained the brine off the birds, patted them dry and allowed them to air dry. I seasoned the cavities with salt & Grains of Desire* pepper blend, then trimmed off the neck fat and tails. The small bird I rubbed with Santa Fe Seasons Holy Trinity Grill Rub*, trussed it and brushed it with melted butter & oil. The large bird was “stuffed” with apple halves and an orange that had some holes poked in it. I then trussed it and greased it up. I wrapped both with parchment paper & foil & put them in a cooler.
Neighbor/teammate Nancy & I loaded up truck and headed for Rockford.
On site I set up BGEs for indirect cooking with plate setter and a drip pan. I put some cherry juice in the pan for no good reason except that I didn’t have apple juice. (Normally I don’t put anything in the pan). I soaked sugar maple & pecan that was there at the store and put in the BGEs just before the birds went on. Both birds were cooked around 325 until thermometer read 165. (I had thermometer problems with the large bird and would have liked to have had it rest for a half an hour before the judging). Both birds were glazed during the last half hour of cooking. I used the contents of a jar of Santa Fe Seasons Cranberry Especiál* pureed with a shot of Myers’s rum. I heated it up before brushing it onto the turkey, which ended up being a picture-perfect mahogany color. Fortunately it tasted as good as it looked!
* All items marked by an asterisk are items that I have for sale at Mrs. Dog’s JCA[p]

Shelby

Wardster,
Not hours per pound...minutes per pound. And I'd suggest factoring 10 minutes per pound at 350*; at 325* you might go 12 mins. but have a good thermometer and be ready to pull when it says it's done.

Puj

Wardster,[p]Since your approach is "don't mess with Mother Nature", have a blast and enjoy the cook.[p]Merry Christmas,
Puj[p]