Are you ready to Roast?

[KQ]

^bump

10 days to T-day!

[liv2ski]

^^^^Thanks KQ

[Cruiser]

KQ bringing it! These recipes are making me want to do a little t-day trial run later this week.

[~mikey b]

FKNA KQ FTMFW!

[Benny Profane]

I am at the mercy of distant relatives to be. All I can do is smile and hope for a good culinary experience.

[KQ]

I am at the mercy of distant relatives to be. All I can do is smile and hope for a good culinary experience.

Sounds like you're going to need a little something-something to see you though <wink, wink, nudge, nudge knowwhatimean>

BTW - every time I see your avatar I have a flash back to an old friend I haven't seen in years. R. Crumb was his uncle.

[Benny Profane]

Alcohol will help, of course.

The Crumb family had it's issues. The big irony of that movie about him is that he is the most functional of the clan. What a bunch.

[Cruiser]

Smoked a fresh bone-in turkey breast last night on the bge with a mix of apple and cherry wood. Then, just for a trial run, I made a small batch of Jasper White's cranberry ginger relish. Paired it all up with some toasted farro tossed with craisins and garam masala.

Yup! I'm ready for turkey day!

[~mikey b]

My wife's not that into the smoked turkey so I'm just going to use the gas grill as an oven and roast it right in there.

[bodywhomper]

^^^ do you create indirect heat using a roasting pan filled with liquid over the burners but under the grills? that's what I do (and am going to do this week). I smoke it though by adding a wood chip pouch or two on top of the burners, via amazingribs.com recipe.

i also dry brine and inject butter, primarily into the breast meat.

[butterscotch]

Smoked a fresh bone-in turkey breast last night on the bge with a mix of apple and cherry wood. Then, just for a trial run, I made a small batch of Jasper White's cranberry ginger relish. Paired it all up with some toasted farro tossed with craisins and garam masala.

Yup! I'm ready for turkey day!

Nice. I'll be doing the turkey on the bge this year. Any suggestions?

Not totally sure what else we're having. Probably sweet potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and green bean casserole (with real ingredients, no canned soup/pre-packaged fried onions).

[~mikey b]

^^^ do you create indirect heat using a roasting pan filled with liquid over the burners but under the grills? that's what I do (and am going to do this week). I smoke it though by adding a wood chip pouch or two on top of the burners, via amazingribs.com recipe.

i also dry brine and inject butter, primarily into the breast meat.

I'll likely brine it in water and stuff. Yeah indirect heat like that. Low and slow baby.

Saves room in the oven for yams & bananas and sausage & apple dressing.

And we're gonna brew a batch of IPA.

[KQ]

Just picked up my bird! Now to get organized and start baking/brining/chopping/cooking!

[liv2ski]

^^^^From a guy selling Turkeys on the cheap out of his van????

[Cruiser]

Nice. I'll be doing the turkey on the bge this year. Any suggestions?

Everyone loves to carve a beautifully roasted bird at the table but the damned white meat and dark meat take different amounts of time to cook. 2 years ago I did Mad Max's turkey recipe which involved icing the breasts prior to putting the bird in the egg. It worked nicely for me and I will probably do it the same way this year. But deep down I know that the best results would probably be achieved by quartering the bird and then starting the leg quarters ahead of the breasts.

Oh, and turkey soaks up smoke so don't use very much wood unless you're going for a barbeque style bird.

[~mikey b]

Next year I'm going to have my own turkey. When I raised them in the past they were awesome. Fun to raise and super delicious. Fkn hudge!

[booner]

We had a pre-Thanksgiving, "Friendsgiving" here last night.

17 adults...12 childrens

Great party

[Skistack]

^^^ do you create indirect heat using a roasting pan filled with liquid over the burners but under the grills? that's what I do (and am going to do this week). I smoke it though by adding a wood chip pouch or two on top of the burners, via amazingribs.com recipe.

i also dry brine and inject butter, primarily into the breast meat.

I put a bird on the grill in the roasting pan w/ some liquid. Pan goes over the middle burner, which is off. Side burners on, throw on some hickory chips.

I'm going to try the icing the breast trick this year, my dark meat is never as done as I would like.

Turkey's hit the brine in T-minus 24 hours.

[bodywhomper]

if i remember and can find it, i'll post a picture of my set-up from last year, which worked well for me. if i remember right, i basically kept my two burners as low as they go (maybe a little higher than low) and made sure water stayed in the alu roasting pan. i used a digital thermometer to ensure proper ambient temp in the grill space. I also made my gravy from that water/dripping concoction.

maybe ten years ago, dan leone, the author of cheap eats from the SF bay guardian (RIP) posted a column on how to slow smoke a bird via a smoker. if i remember right, it involved drag, time by yourself, and two bottles of wine. each time you came to after passing out from the wine, you checked the smoker and made adjustments. it was pretty funny.

i'm starting to get excited!

[KQ]

^^^^From a guy selling Turkeys on the cheap out of his van????

LOL!!! No but from the guys that got rustled. Still no clue as to who it was or where the birds ended up. When I went in they had a sign up the read "Turkey's are sold out". Glad I pre-ordered!

[irul&ublo]

Whole turkey does very well on a rotisserie, indirect fire.

[KQ]

Everyone loves to carve a beautifully roasted bird at the table but the damned white meat and dark meat take different amounts of time to cook. 2 years ago I did Mad Max's turkey recipe which involved icing the breasts prior to putting the bird in the egg. It worked nicely for me and I will probably do it the same way this year. But deep down I know that the best results would probably be achieved by quartering the bird and then starting the leg quarters ahead of the breasts.

Oh, and turkey soaks up smoke so don't use very much wood unless you're going for a barbeque style bird.

Here's a method Cooks came up with for heritage birds - it involves cutting the bird up to get the white and dark meat cooked the same. I know you're going to bar-b-que but thought this might give you some ideas/thoughts.

ROAST HERITAGE TURKEY


Heritage turkeys lead a much longer and more active life than their supermarket brethren, leading to dark meat that is well exercised and collagen-rich. Plus they have a shallower breast. Before roasting, we season under the skin and let the turkey parts sit uncovered in the refrigerator overnight to improve flavor and tenderness and boost crisping of the skin. We break down the bird in order to separate the dark and white meat so that we can give the dark meat a head start in a low oven to begin tenderizing. We add the breast partway through and flip the pieces to ensure even cooking. After letting them rest for 30 to 60 minutes, we return them to a 500-degree oven to quickly crisp the skin.


SERVES 8 TO 10

This recipe requires refrigerating the salted turkey for 24 to 48 hours before cooking. If you’re making our Gravy for Roast Heritage Turkey (see related content), reserve the turkey backbone and neck. We prefer Mary’s Free-Range Heritage Turkey.

INGREDIENTS

1 (10- to 12-pound) heritage breed turkey, neck removed
Kosher salt


INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place wire rack in rimmed baking sheet and lightly grease rack. With turkey breast side up, using sharp knife, slice through skin between breast and thigh down to joint on both sides. Using your hands, pull each leg quarter back to expose joint between leg and breast. Remove legs by cutting through hip joint and then skin. Slice through membrane connecting breast to backbone. Bend backbone away from breast to break where it meets rib cage; use knife to remove completely.

2. Using your fingers, gently loosen skin covering legs and breasts. Rub 1 1/2 teaspoons salt evenly inside cavity of turkey breast, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt under skin of each breast, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt under skin of each leg. Tuck wings underneath breast. Place turkey legs and breast, skin side up, on prepared wire rack. Refrigerate turkey parts, uncovered, for at least 24 hours or up to 48 hours.

3. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 250 degrees. Transfer breast to large plate and set aside while leg quarters start roasting. Flip leg quarters skin side down and transfer to oven; roast until thighs register 140 degrees, 45 to 75 minutes.

4. Flip leg quarters skin side up and place breast, skin side down, on wire rack next to leg quarters. Return to oven and roast for 1 hour.

5. Flip breast skin side up and continue to roast until breast registers 155 degrees and thighs register 175 degrees, 1 1/4 to 2 1/4 hours longer. Remove turkey from oven and let rest for at least 30 minutes or up to 60 minutes.

6. While turkey is resting, increase oven temperature to 500 degrees. Stack turkey assembly on second baking sheet to prevent excess smoking. Return turkey to oven and roast until skin is golden brown and crispy, 10 to 15 minutes.

7. Transfer turkey to carving board and let rest for 20 minutes. Carve turkey and serve.


OLD-FASHIONED BIRD, NEW PREPPING AND COOKING METHOD

Since a heritage turkey’s well-exercised legs require more time in the oven and its shallow breast is prone to overcooking, we separate the white and dark meat so that we can customize the cooking. We give the dark meat a head start before adding the breast, and we flip the meat partway through to ensure even cooking.


1. Using sharp knife, slice through skin between breast and thigh down to joint on both sides.


2. Pull leg quarter back to expose joint, then cut through hip joint and skin. Repeat on other side.



3. Slice through membrane connecting breast to backbone. Bend backbone, breaking where it meets rib cage. Use knife to remove.



4. Cook leg quarters skin side down in 250-degree oven until meat registers 140 degrees.



5. Turn leg quarters skin side up. Place breast on rack, skin side down, and cook for 1 hour.



6. Turn breast skin side up and cook until it registers 155 degrees and thighs register 175 degrees.

[~mikey b]

Mine were so big that the small one just barely fit in the oven w/o any racks. The big one we had to use a saw and cut the spine out and do each half on a big Weber kettle. Breast meat slices as big as a dinner plate. They were outstanding pets and wonderful dinner. We had 18 people over that year. Had to "borrow" 4 picnic tables from the community center across the road to seat everyone.

[Meadow Skipper]

Next year I'm going to have my own turkey. When I raised them in the past they were awesome. Fun to raise and super delicious. Fkn hudge!

What's fun about raising turkeys? Serious question.

[~mikey b]

They are entertaining critters. They're gigundous. They come running when you have treats for them. They fly. The roost in your trees. They are yummy. It's way cool to serve your own turkeys. Like chickens x10.