8 1/2 pound butter ball turkey

Louisiana Redneck

Good evening Eggers,
I have the turkey in brine and plan on cooking tomorrow. I was wondering if anyone had any good suggestions on cooking turkey. I do not want anything too unusual but I love spice and smoke. Have any of you had any outstanding turkey smokes. If so, please share. I want to have a great cook tomorrow. The weather has stunk the last few days.[p]Louisiana Redneck

QBabe

Louisiana Redneck,[p]I did a maple brined turkey not long ago, and it turned out fantastic...The only spice (other than the flavorings from the brine) was some salt, pepper and parsley sprinkled on the bird. I basted it periodically and I think my 20lb bird took about 5 hrs or so. I'm not big on smoke with poultry so I can't help there. I used a little bit of apple wood, but not a lot, since poultry can take on smoke very easily and get oversmoked (in my opinion).[p][p]Tonia
:~)

Banker John

Louisiana Redneck,
I had both success and failure on attempting to add smoke to a turkey. I have found that cooking with temperatures that mimick indoor oven cooking provide the best texture results.[p]As for the smoke, turkey absorbs a lot of smoke so better to go soft and work your way up through several cooks to get the flavor you desire. For me, it is 5 hickory nuts and one 2" chunk of cherry; this smokes about the first 25 minutes of the cook. For our tastes here, that is the limit on smoke. Any more and we feel it is over smoked.[p]Remember, the creation is yours. You get to decide how much smoke and how much spice. Spices we like on turkey are simple. Olive oil, kosher salt, fresh milled black pepper, paprika, and fresh parsley. We keep it simple but you can raid the spice cabinet.[p]I'm sure your turkey will turn out fantastic. I've yet to have a bad one. Best of luck to you.[p]Banker John