I've been told I'm now cooking the MAIN Turkey. Help!!

I was told last night that my turkey is now the only turkey at Thanksgiving insteady of being a second. After much reading on these boards I've decided not to do a brined turkey and just start out with a plain old Grilled/smoked Butterball on my 18". Here are my questions:

1) Would lump be better to use b/c its gets a little hotter?

2) What should I use for seasoning on the outside of the turkey?

3) I'm considering not adding any wood chunks to smoke as I have a pregnant wife who much doesn't like smokey things. Would the charcoal give it a little smoked flavor?

4) Does the turkey temp have a time where it stalls like a butt does?

5) I've seen pics on here with the legs tied together. Is this necessary or a benefit of doing this?

6) Should I have some unlit charcoal on the bottom (minion)or just add 2 or 3 chimney's of lit?

Thanks in advance for your help. I'm feeling the pressure of cooking the "main" bird.

John

John_H said:

I was told last night that my turkey is now the only turkey at Thanksgiving insteady of being a second. After much reading on these boards I've decided not to do a brined turkey and just start out with a plain old Grilled/smoked Butterball on my 18". Here are my questions:

1) Would lump be better to use b/c its gets a little hotter?

2) What should I use for seasoning on the outside of the turkey?

3) I'm considering not adding any wood chunks to smoke as I have a pregnant wife who much doesn't like smokey things. Would the charcoal give it a little smoked flavor?

4) Does the turkey temp have a time where it stalls like a butt does?

5) I've seen pics on here with the legs tied together. Is this necessary or a benefit of doing this?

6) Should I have some unlit charcoal on the bottom (minion)or just add 2 or 3 chimney's of lit?

Thanks in advance for your help. I'm feeling the pressure of cooking the "main" bird.

John

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If you have smoked food in your smoker already, your turkey may "grasp" some smoky flavor regardless you not adding any wood.

Legs tied will enhance the way your table looks.

Here's about your fire:

http://virtualweberbullet.com/fireup1.html#standard

Keep calm. It's going to be good.

1) I use lump more often than not. I like the way it burns.

2) When I do a Butterball I don't season the outside and I don't stuff it. (I season the Cajun Fried Turkey with Cajun Shake and inject with Creole Butter.)

3) I've found that lump charcoal itself gives a nice smoky taste.

4) No. Turkeys straight line to the finish.

5) I don't tie the legs together and I remove the plastic do hickie thing that comes on the bird.

6) I fill the ring with unlit and dump a full large chimney of lit on it. I cook poultry in the 325-350*F range. I have to create more air flow to do that so I raise the lid with a skewer to keep the heat up. With your 18", you can turn the access door upside down and prop it open to get more heat.

Relax. You got this. Plan about 15-20 min per lb at 325*F and go for it! You might want to read up a little: http://www.virtualweberbullet.com/

The only reason to tie the legs together is for presentation...they tend to splay out during cooking. But if you're not bringing the whole turkey to the Thanksgiving table, it's OK to not tie.

I would keep it simple with that Butterball. Sprinkle salt/pepper in the cavity. Brush the skin with 4 TBSP melted butter, then sprinkle with salt/pepper. Cook as you plan. Plain charcoal without smoke wood will give you the very light grilled flavor you're looking for.

Have fun, and take good care of the wife of yours!

1) Would lump be better to use b/c its gets a little hotter?
I think this is preference, I've used both with good results.

2) What should I use for seasoning on the outside of the turkey?
Brush w/olive oil, some salt, pepper, maybe some garlic powder.

3) I'm considering not adding any wood chunks to smoke as I have a pregnant wife who much doesn't like smokey things. Would the charcoal give it a little smoked flavor?
Lump more than likely would.

4) Does the turkey temp have a time where it stalls like a butt does?
Not in my experience.

5) I've seen pics on here with the legs tied together. Is this necessary or a benefit of doing this?
See what Chris wrote

6) Should I have some unlit charcoal on the bottom (minion)or just add 2 or 3 chimney's of lit?
That's what I do

Another tip that I use, put some ice on the breasts while sitting on the counter, say 30 minutes. Promotes even cooking between the white and dark meat. I do this with every bird.

Have fun and don't stress out about it too much.

This helps a lot!!! Thank you so much for this!

Empty water pan or no water pan?

Is a butterball your only choice?

Jo Torez said:

This helps a lot!!! Thank you so much for this!

Empty water pan or no water pan?

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I use an empty water pan.

Tom Golden said:

Is a butterball your only choice?

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Not at my grocery, there are more choices.

Then get anything BUT a Butterball.

Tom Golden said:

Then get anything BUT a Butterball.

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I love Butterball turkeys. Pull out the temp pop up do hicky and smoke it at 350*F to golden brown and delicious. Yum.

Jo Torez said:

Empty water pan or no water pan?

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Empty water pan has always worked well for me.

Dwain Pannell said:

I love Butterball turkeys. Pull out the temp pop up do hicky and smoke it at 350*F to golden brown and delicious. Yum.

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My wife loves turkey out of the WSM so I've been doing two or three a month for the past nine months. Dwain is wise and his counsel is good. That's exactly how I do my turkeys. The higher the heat the better. I try to run the WSM between 325-350 when doing a turkey, and I like hickory for no other reason than it tastes the best to me when paired with poultry.

High heat method has three main benefits to me:

1. It takes out the stress of trying to maintain low and slow temps. Fire management is fun most days, but not necessarily on Turkey Day when there is football, guests, snacks, kids and everything else going on. The simpler the better.

2. In that same vein, it takes the guesswork out of cook times. I've never had a turkey stall on me using high heat. Your window when you expect the turkey to be done is much narrower and more certain than going low and slow.

3. I don't think poultry stands up to low and slow cooking. I think it gets a little too mushy for my tastes. I much prefer high heat and think it firms up the meat so that the texture is similar to what you'd get roasting in an oven. This is all subjective to your tastes, of course.

Finally, my one piece of advice I hope you heed is do not get out of your comfort zone for a "showtime" cook. I learned this lesson the hard way. If you don't normally use lump for your cooks, don't do it now for a holiday meal. If you're comfortable with Kingsford Blue and the way you set up your WSM just roll with it. You don't want to be like the pro golfer working on a swing change in the middle of the U.S. Open. Save that experimenting for the driving range.

As for trussing, it does help presentation. But I also think it helps promote a juicier breast. If you don't truss the bird hot air will circulate in the body cavity and you are more likely to have uneven cooking times between breast and legs and risk a dry breast.

Of course, you can not truss and still get a great result. I do it quite a bit if I'm out of butcher's twine or just feeling lazy/in a hurry. But for a showtime cook like Thanksgiving there's no doubt I will truss.

Good luck!