Simple turkey question

It's great as long as you get the S&P under the skin

This is one of those things that comes down to individual tastes and personal preference. With that said, here are my thoughts on the subject. Plain old salt and pepper will give good results on just about anything. However there are somethings (in my humble opinion) where more than just salt and pepper is needed to really make it shine. Turkey is one of them. The exception being if you are doing a truly "smoked" turkey. In this case salt and pepper is fine as the prevailing profile will be smoke. However the average egger doesn't truly smoke his or her bird. They add a whisp or hint of smoke if you will. For clarity I'm talking about whole turkeys, not boneless breasts. Salt and pepper is actually pretty good on deboned breasts. The birds like you have above (semi-brined) I like to shoot them up with either butter and cayenne or Cajun creole butter. It turns the plain Jane into a real treat. Again, this is not a must but I prefer it. For whole turkeys I always use salt, pepper and cayenne at a minimum. Usually a little something extra. Above brother Fanatic mentioned getting it under the skin. He is correct in his assessment and it applys to all rubs. Not just the salt and pepper. They work much better if placed on and under the skin. Again, salt and pepper will certainly work, but I much prefer to spice turkeys up. It's like anything else, you will get all kind of opinions on this subject as everyone likes something a little different. I hope that this helps my friend. 

slovelad said:

Do you have a recipe for creole butter that you prefer? or do you buy it pre made?

I just buy the premade. Tony Chacheries is so good that I use it instead of going to the trouble to make it. 

slovelad said:

ever tried cajun injector?

Yes sir, they are a great one as well. The trick with any of them is to taste them before you inject with them to be sure that you like the taste. 

Hook_emHornsfan_74 said:

This  year I am going to give spatching it a try.  What temp would you suggest and for how long, and raised direct, or indirect?  Thanks in advance.  

This is again one of those things open to much debate as to which is best. However for spatchcock I have had great luck with both indirect and raised direct. The raised direct is faster but the indirect gives a little bigger margin for error without scorching the bird. Both methods yield pretty similar results as far as the end product. If this is your first, I would recommend going indirect at 350-375 degrees. This will ensure a crisp skin and a reasonable cook time. For the indirect method, a good general guide is 12 minutes a pound at 375 degrees. Now there are many things that can effect this, but it's a good guide.