Turkey trials

Our Nicky

With Thanksgiving on the horizon I thought I'd do a trial run first turkey to check out timing on my July 2009 XL.

I used Mad Max's recipe. The gravy was just magnificent but I had a less than superlative turkey. It was good (certainly as good or better than I've had from other peoples' ovens) but not as moist as I'd expected.

I'd read (Mad Max and others) that I should expect to cook turkey at 325 for 15 - 20 mins/lb. I had a 12.6lb fresh turkey, cavity filled with lemon, onion, apple, herbs a la Mad Max so I figured 4 +- hours and say half an hour rest. We planned to eat around 6:00pm so I figured a start time of around 1:30pm.

I did the ice cubes on the breast thing and it was more like 1:45pm when I got the bird on at 325 degrees. The temperature probe in the breast was telling me 160 at around 4:00pm; however, the thigh wasn't yet at 180 so I relocated the probe and at about 4:20pm the probe said 180.

When I looked at the bird here was reddish juice in the hammock of skin between the thigh and the breast and wiggling the leg encountered some resistance. Repositioning the probe didn't give different temperature readings but Max had said to check for clear juices and loose leg joints so I left it on. Had I taken it off I would have had to let it rest for 1 2/3 hours. Well, I left it on for another 40 minutes, took it off at 5:00pm and let it rest, foiled and wrapped in towels for an hour.

Great flavour but dryer than I would have liked.

Mad Max's recipe used a 20 lb turkey and mine was only 12.6lb. The colour of the juice between the leg and breasts could have been influenced by the herbed butter I slathered on before he/she went on the grid.

It seems plausible that a larger bird will take longer per pound to cook. According to the thermometer probe, mine took 2hrs 35 mins (excluding the rest period) which works out to just over 12 mins/lb

Is it the case that smaller birds cook disproportionately more quickly? Should I have had more trust in my thermometer and Chef Charles who told me at Nieggarafest that it would take less time than I would expect?

Also, are there any meaningful cooking differences between toms and hens?

Looks like the rehearsal was a worthwhile exercise. I'll be cooking a 15lb bird for the real show - Canadian version - next weekend.

PhilsGrill

I think you will find folks with much different cooking times than the norm. I've done the MM Turkey and my 24 pounder was done in 3.5-4 hours at a solid 325 degrees. Go figure.

Unknown

I'm sorry to hear that your turkey ala Mad Max didn't turn out as planned.

We did it last year for Thanksgiving and the Turkey was terrific!

cdn thanksgiving BGE.JPG

Michael

Unknown

For some reason I can't access my pick from last year - I'll post it later.

Michael

Our Nicky

Thanks Michael, I'll watch for it.

civil eggineer

You need to cook to temp NOT time. I have cooked numerous turkeys on my medium and for a 12 lb bird at 375 dome, they were done in 2 hours and extremely moist. The egg cooks like a convection oven so the stated cooking times posted with the bird will be overcooking. Chill the breast with ice water for a couple of hours prior to placing on the egg and cook to internal temps of 180 in the thigh and 160 for the breast. I keep my cooking simple (KISS) and rely on meat temperatures for incredible tasting food.

Unknown

Here you go... (not sure why I couldn't make it work the last time.

I basically followed mad max's recipe:



I don't recall the exact size bird, but I think it was a 15 lb bird. I did a post at the time comparing the one I did on the egg versus the one my wife did on the weber gasser.

You've got a week, I'm sure you'll perfect it by then.

Michael

Our Nicky

But you need to have an idea how long it will take to get to the right internal temperature. When people ask, "What time should we come for dinner?" I can't say - "Oh come when the turkey thighs are at 180!"

Our Nicky

Great looking bird Michael. I think I cooked its younger sister. I have no doubt I'll get there and even the failures are still pretty good.

Unknown

Improved your results with a bigger bird.

Michael

mad max beyond eggdome

LOL .... letting them wait a little while only makes them more hungry!!! . . ..i read what every one else has written. ..all good advice.. .. with turkey's cooking times are estimates but not always an exact science. ..even from me!! .. .and yes, smaller birds typically cook faster than larger birds. ..(even the times on the packaging will tell you that). . .your dryness issue may have been a result of initally pulling the turkey and then returning it to the egg, but i'm not sure of that. .. .stick with what you were doing, maybe ice the breasts a little longer next time, but then don't pull it out till, regardless of the internal temps, you are seeing clear juices and that drumstick is nice and loose. . .also, keep in mind that it is ok if the thigh meat is kinda pink. ..if its still over 170 degrees, its done, even if its pink in color. . ..

p.s. glad the gravy was good!!!!

Our Nicky

Thanks Max. Second round is coming up this weekend. The verdict on the gravy was my 90 yr old mother in law looking for a spoon to scoop up the dregs on her plate.