Turkey Smoking Questions

Citizen Q

We're throwing a little party here for about 55 people on Saturday and I'm planning on Egging 2 entree's. The wife says I have my choice of what to cook on the Egg as long as one of my choices is turkey breast and my other choice is pulled pork. I picked up a 12 lb turkey breast and an 11 lb pork shoulder today, the shoulder will get a good rub tonight and go on the Egg tomorrow to be pulled and wrapped well ahead of time on Friday night. I plan on brining the turkey breast tonight and smoking it Friday after the pork is off.[p]I've always roasted my birds at about 375 before, but I think I'd like to try actually smoking this one so my questions are, what is, in your opinion(s), the best way to smoke a breast of turkey? Skin on or off? Injected as well as brined or just brined? What temp and how long to expect?[p]Any and all help is greatly appreciated.[p]Thanks and Cheers,
C~Q

djm5x9

CQ:[p]Tim is the expert on turkey breasts, he should be along shortly . . . (smilie thingie)[p]Short weak brine, skin on, rub under skin if possible, pecan or fruit wood for smoke for about twenty to thirty minutes (longer if you prefer more smoke) in the 200º range (or low as you prefer), then step up the cook to 300º/325º and pull when the internal is at 155º, cover and let temperature continue to rise to just above 160º.[p]May not be right, but I have not died yet and they come back for more . . .

Car Wash Mike

<p />Citizen Q,
55 is alot. I would just do my turkey breast the beer butt chicken way if you need to cook very many (I think you need to cook at least 3-12 lbs.) . Poultry soaks up a lot of smoke so be carefull about what you add other than the lump.
325-350 until you get the desired texture and temp you want.
Your butt is going to shrink at least 1/2 if not more. You need more meat IMHO.
Hope everything turns out well.[p]CWMy

Mike in MN

djm5x9,
That's good advice...I'd go with this prescription for success.[p]
Mike in MN

Mike in MN

Car Wash Mike,
I agree....you need more meat. I just did a 12.8 # (whole)turkey, and a dozen of us pretty much cleaned it to the bone. 5 of the 12 were under 14 years old. (then you have my 16 yr old...he eats for 3 ;> ) If the meat is pure breast, it will go a lot further because there is less waste. [p]On the pork shoulder, the 11 pounds will reduce to about 7 pounds of sammich meat...at 4 oz's per sammich..that's good for 28 sammiches or about 18 adults. So, you have enough meat for 30-40...IMHO.[p]Mike in MN
Mike in MN

ChefRD

Mike in MN,
Don't wait for Tim to answer here, but his website has tons of information that is very helpful to people starting out. Its too bad that its not listed on this site as a FAQ page since it would help a lot of new users.
You can find his site by looking in the profiles for TimM.
HTH,
ChefRD

ChefRD

ChefRD,
Ooops........... that message was sposed to go under CitizenQ, sorry.
ron.

Unknown

djm5x9,
So a fairly short low temp smoke, then right up to roasting temps? Sounds simple enough. Thanks.

Unknown

Car Wash Mike,
I placed my meat order expecting about 35 people (including kids), now it's up to 62 people so I got another 10 lb shoulder. Believe me, this'll be more than enough with all the appetizers (already over 800 individual pieces cooked, wrapped and frozen), and the gallons of side dishes. [p]The skin stays on and the dome stays at 200 throughout the entire cook for pulled pork, I don't get much shrinkage at all. The last one I did was 9.88 lbs that yielded just over 7.5 lbs of meat after I tossed the bone and skin. It's not meat that you lose but the moisture from the meat, more so with brisket. I find that if I keep the cooking temp below 212 (boiling point) for the majority of the cook, the meat is much juicier and more tender than cooks done at 225 or 250. I do give it a kick up to 250 when needed after the meat has come up over 170 internal if time becomes a factor, but I usually plan on a 22-26 hour cook anyway.[p]Cheers,
C~Q

ajw1976

djm5x9,
Do you use a heat deflector or cook it directly over the fire?

fishlessman

Citizen Q,
i set the smoker up at 7 in the morning at 190 to 200 F with a water pan. fish until 2 or 3 check temp and then go fishing until 7. then raise temp to 300 for about 45 min until internal bird temp is right. i buy previously brined birds 16 to 18 pounds. smoke with pecan chips wrapped loosely in tin foil. i do this every camp trip and never have a dry bird.

djm5x9

ajw1976:[p]I always cook direct. Cooking on a BGE I would elevate the grid a bit so the cooking height is flush with the cooker opening. If you feel more comfortable or prefer an indirect cook, by all means do so.
[/b]

Car Wash Mike

C~Q,
Sounds like you have it down pat. Sometimes I have a hard time judging 10. These people show up and act like they never ate ribs, pulled pork, or any form of BBQ for that matter.[p]CWM

Unknown

Car Wash Mike,
I find many people to be really fickle when it comes to BBQ. Some people are deathly afraid of it, others say they love it but only nibble at it, but there's always a few that go at it elbow deep and knock you down going for seconds while spitting little chunks of pork and beef at you as they rave about how good it is and how much it reminds them of some Texas or South Carolina Q joint. I don't mind, those are the ones I'm cooking for anyway.[p]Cheers,
C~Q