i have decided to cook two birds this thanksgiving

smokeypete

i have recently purchased a new gas range with a convection oven. they will both be prepared in the same manner so the cook-off can be fair, both will be stuffed with traditional stuffing, however the egg will feature some smoke for seasoning that will obviously not work in the gas oven, it should be fun, i will, of course, post the results. any suggestions will be appreciated.

JSlot

Be careful with the stuffing in the Egged bird, Pete. Make sure the stuffing reaches 165° in the center. This may be a challenge to do without overcooking the bird. I've never stuffed one on the Egg, so maybe someone who has will chime in.[p]Jim

Chef Wil

JSlot,
good point JSlot, I do have a remedy that may help. Wait till the last minute to stuff your birds.
Hint: after brining your birds or whatever way you decide to prepare them, let them come to room temp or 1 hour on the table, while they are warming up naturally, make your stuffing, then stuff your birds with warm stuffing, It will take an hour off the cooking time and you won't have much of a bacteria concern. But please your use temp probe and reach the 165 mark on the bird and at least 145 on the stuffing.Hope this helps.

Chris

smokeypete,[p]We recently did games hens on the egg. They were stuffed (stuffed them immediately before putting them on the egg) and it worked fine. Maybe not the same thing though, butI think of game hens as being just undersized chickens or turkeys.[p]Chris

Gretl

smokeypete,
I did two birds last Christmas; both were smallish (around 12 lbs). One in the conventional oven, and the other was Spatched on the BGE. I did separate stuffing, for food safety reasons. I also saved some poultry bones and made really good stock in advance, which I then used to make gravy. Making the gravy ahead is a real bonus when you're scrambling to get dinner on the table.[p]By the way, everyone preferred the Egged bird, though the oven-roasted was tender and juicy, too. [p]Cheers,
Gretl

stike

Chef Wil,
the issue of cooking the stuffing in the bird is one that is an issue egg or no egg, by the way.[p]in ANY case, you need to hit the 145 mark, and both the egg and the oven need to be watched to make sure you get to the 'safe' temp.[p]tho i bet the egg will yield a moister bird.