First Thanksgiving Turkey/Lesons Learned

Ladeback69 · November 2014

Well I cooked my first turkey on the egg yesterday and went a lot different then everything I had read. I had a 20 pound turkey that I thought would take 5 hours to cook at 350 (1 lb=15 minutes ), but it only took 2.5 hours. I guess I need to check both my dome temp gauge and dual probe temp gauge. I the bottom part of the breast and the dark meat was done, but the top part of the breast wasn't. So I left it on another half hour , but the dark meat got to 200. I pulled and tented the top with foil and covered with towels. It was a lot better than I thought it would be. Next time I will pull when it is 255 to 260 since the temp can rise 15 degrees after pulling off or do it spatchcock method. It had great flavor and wasn't that dry. I also cooked a pecan pie in my 12" CI skillet at 375 for an hour. It was good too. But a little over done. Next time I am going to cook at 350 for an hour or 45 minutes at 375. The last thing cooked were sweet potatoes that we cut into cubes and seasoned with honey, cinnamon, olive oil and nutmeg. I cooked at 350 for 15 minutes stired them, closes the vents for another 15 and pulled and they were part cooked. The wife she would finish them at her mom's when we got there. They didn't get done enough. They should have stayed in the egg tell we left with would have been 45 minutes. Sorry I forgot to take photos of the main course food. Trust me in that there was a lot of food and all was very good.

stemc33 · November 2014

@Ladeback69‌, looks like you made some good food despite the timing issue. Just guessing, but part of the problem with the turkey cooking uneven might of been due to the roasting pan not allowing air to circulate evenly around the bird. If it was a tight fit in the pan, it may have created a braising effect on the bottom half of the bird. I spatchcocked my turkey this year. Talk about a timing issue. I cooked indirect in the 325° range and it finished quick. Your thermos are probably just fine, consider looking at air circulation. Maybe some of the more eggperienced eggers will chime in. Hope the rest of your holiday weekend goes well.

Ladeback69 · November 2014

@stemc33‌, today when I was cleaning the rest of the bird I found the bag with the giblets, heart and liver in the neck area. My guess it insulated that area and that's why it cooked slower. The rack came with the pan when I bought it and it fit loosely but it may have still speeded it up some. Next time I may put the drip pan underneath and the rack above to see if that makes a difference next time. I will try another sometime in the future. I bought the pan just for the turkey and future roast. Thank you for for the help. I guess it is hard to screw up a meal on the egg.

pgprescott · December 2014

Things cook faster on the egg in general due to the constant temp, the ceramics,and true convection action. Even high end ovens fluctuate tens of degrees as they cycle.

Ladeback69 · December 2014

pgprescott said:
Things cook faster on the egg in general due to the constant temp, the ceramics,and true convection action. Even high end ovens fluctuate tens of degrees as they cycle.

I know, but I got the time per pounder from a chef for BGE. I'm going 300 next time to see if I can get a little more flavor or maybe spatchcock.

KiterTodd · December 2014

Thanks for the feedback. Good to know what worked and what didn't.

In the end, think you'll do a turkey on the egg next year or stick with a standard oven?

JethroVA · December 2014

The Butterball website has a handy cook time calculator that takes into consideration weight and stuffed or not. It assumes 325*. It was spot on for my 14 lb bird at 4 hours. I did use my oven though as my wife wanted no smoke.

SGH · December 2014

Ladeback69 said:

@stemc33‌, today when I was cleaning the rest of the bird I found the bag with the giblets, heart and liver in the neck area.

I about died laughing when I read this. I have done the same thing many times. If I had a nickel for every time that I deep fried one with the bag still in the neck I could take a year off of work!! I hate that bag!!

SGH · December 2014

@Ladeback69‌- On a separate note, the grub looks excellent my friend. I got to ask, how was the bag

theyolksonyou · December 2014

Glad I'm not the only one who laughed. I came real close to cooking that damn bag myself.

DieselkW · December 2014

I did a breast for practice, then an 18 pounder for Thanksgiving dinner, which we celebrated on Sunday because of various work commitments, that was the day all could attend.

My bird also finished two hours ahead of schedule, I was planning on 20 minutes per pound at 325 and she was 175f at the thigh bone in 4 hours flat.

Not a big deal, set the vent open a dime's width - let her come down to 220f which took almost an hour, then pulled that brown beauty to the kitchen to rest another hour.

She was still plenty hot at dinner time when the taters and veggies and stuffing and all the rest were done. Carved it up and everyone was amazed it was cooked outside - I didn't use any smoking wood and the Ozark Oak didn't impart any flavors I could taste.

I really should have listened to my better angels and iced the breast - it was 175f after resting - I was aiming for 165, but it was fine, I'm the only one that knows it was a tad overdone.

Ladeback69 · December 2014

SGH said:

@Ladeback69‌- On a separate note, the grub looks excellent my friend. I got to ask, how was the bag

It was pretty dry and I just through it out. I won't make that mistake again.

KiterTodd said:

Thanks for the feedback. Good to know what worked and what didn't.

In the end, think you'll do a turkey on the egg next year or stick with a standard oven?

Yes, I will defiantly do it on the egg again. I like the smoke flavor or a bird in the oven. All though my better half is getting tired of me grilling. I think she wants some pasta and comfort food. I said I could do lasagna on the egg,but she said no.

SaintLo · December 2014

I experienced exactly the same issue. Grilled a 22 lb. brined turkey on my Egg maiden voyage. Read thoroughly for prep and followed BGE recipe info. Should have taken 5.5 hours. Read 165 degrees on temperature probes after 2.5 hours. Double checked with hand thermometers. Ended up removing the bird from the grill for an hour then putting it back on and bringing it up to 300 degrees slowly. Took two more hours. It turned out just fine after resting but what a pain in the A--. Tough trying to time a meal with unreliable performance information. Never experienced anything like this with the old Weber.

theyolksonyou · December 2014

Welcome @SaintLo‌ don't let it get you down. Learn from it and keep egging.

MongoMn · December 2014

I had the exact same issues with an 18.5 lb bird. The BGE "Your Turkey Cheat Sheet" said 6 hours. I have a wireless temp and I looked up and the breast was 160 already. Checked it with a digital thermometer and it wasn't kidding. It was more like 2.30 hours and the breast was 165 and thigh 170. I shut everything down - took a shower and when I came back the leg was pulling away. Tasted great - although i wish I would have pulled it earlier. Timing is an issue - but 1/2 the time is problematic. I feel better that others went through the same thing.

TylerA · December 2014

My 15 pound bird took ~ 3.5 hours to 165, but I was very careful not to let the temp get over 300 on the dome, and slowly worked my way up to it. I finished it the last 1/2 hour at about 375. It does take some baby sitting, but I think its worth it.

I think the secret is to not let the temp run away when you are initially getting the fire going, and then its much easier to keep it low. Once you get the fire raging, its hard to keep it much below 325 without putting it out. It also seems like if you get it hot at first, you burn up your wood chunks fast, and you don't get a long consistent smoke.

Ladeback69 · December 2014

TylerA said:

My 15 pound bird took ~ 3.5 hours to 165, but I was very careful not to let the temp get over 300 on the dome, and slowly worked my way up to it. I finished it the last 1/2 hour at about 375. It does take some baby sitting, but I think its worth it.
I think the secret is to not let the temp run away when you are initially getting the fire going, and then its much easier to keep it low. Once you get the fire raging, its hard to keep it much below 325 without putting it out. It also seems like if you get it hot at first, you burn up your wood chunks fast, and you don't get a long consistent smoke.

I would have gone 300 if I knew it was going to cook that fast, but it gave me time to get everything else done.

First Thanksgiving Turkey/Lesons Learned

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