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My Turkey Sucked

Unknown
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
Made a ton of great stuff today for the family and brined and cooked a 14lb turkey on my BGE smoked over Steven Raichlen wine barrel staves. Well, I knew something was up when one place in the breast read 175 and other places read 140. Same thing for the thigh. My 3 year old son could cook a bird on the Big Green Egg, so something was definitely up. Bought a "fresh" turkey from Whole Foods yesterday and the *$%(%) thing must have been "freshly" frozen because when I carved into the turkey the "orb" of the turkey was over cooked while the center of the turkey was tartare. There is no way that $35 13lb turkey was pure fresh, it had to have been frozen. MF'ers. [p]Oh well, my Boylan Cane Rootbeer Glazed Chisesi ham rocked!

Comments

  • NOLA Egger,
    I don't want to be mean here but what kind of turkey cost $35 dollars. I bought one frozen from Publix, allowed it to thaw in the fridge for three days. Turned out great.
    I never buy a fresh turkey. In the past I have brought them home and opened a spoiled turkey. Personally I think frozen when thawed has a fresher taste. [p]MC Jerry[p]By the way, the Publix turkey cost $13.00 for 13 pounds.

  • My turkey cost $5.42 at Safeway for a 20 lb bird and it was great. I used to buy the ridiculously expensive birds at Whole Foods until I realized I wasn't noticing any difference.[p]Cooks Illustrated recently did a taste test and found the fresh turkeys weren't as good as frozen.[p]Save your money next time and thaw it yourself.
  • mollyshark
    mollyshark Posts: 1,519
    NOLA Egger,[p]Well gotta put in my .02 here. I used a fresh turkey from Costco. Was .89/lb and absolutely delicious. First of all there is a slight frost on a fresh turkey and if there was any liquid in the middle, which there is likely to be, it will be a frozen ball regardless of the freshness of the turkey. It's the nature of water in a cold environment. Second, did you really smoke the turkey? Cooking over wood does not really constitute a smoked turkey unless you did a lo and slow type deal and really cooked with smoke, not with heat. Second, even if you did not do a mad max style (and you don't indicate other than the wood), of all the comments to read on this whole forum, it is the icing of the turkey breast that is the biggie. You've GOT to get the temp of the uncooked breast down lower than the legs..as low as possible without actually freezing the thing. That extra time it will take the cooled breast to come up while the rest is cooking is the time that finishes your thighs to non-tartare! If you did all this, my apologies...but that's what I see with the info you gave.[p]mShark
  • HungryMan
    HungryMan Posts: 3,470
    NOLA Egger,
    I didn't like mine either. Next year I will buy frozen and NOT brine.

  • FlaMike
    FlaMike Posts: 648
    NOLA Egger,
    I have had great success with the cheapest frozen turkey I can find, usually from .69 to .79/lb. thaws in about 4-5 days in the fridge. Max's recipe rocks, and the result has been great every time. This year 20 lbs, all parts done, and very juicy. Can't ask for more.
    Mike

  • Okeejohn
    Okeejohn Posts: 297
    HungryMan,
    I agree. Brine is over rated and NOT necessary!!!

  • HungryMan
    HungryMan Posts: 3,470
    okeejohn,
    Never again

  • BYC
    BYC Posts: 358
    NOLA Egger,[p]I do not like any of the meats Whole Foods sells. Something always missing and never cooks like the regular ole stuff. Just does not taste good. Maybe they fooed dem animals something weird. Only thing I buy from Whole Foods is produce. Even the fish has been fubky lately. used to be the best.

  • NOLA Egger,
    same thing happened to me several yrs ago--at a different market. ordered in advance; picked up wed before Tday, put it in the fridge when i got home. took it out thurs AM to prep for roasting and found it semi-frozen.[p]i would go back to the store, complain nicely to the manager, and if they are on their game customer-service-wise, they should give you some kind of compensation.[p]ken[p]