Ahhg! Pulled at 165* - checked from both breasts - but not done


 
Sean M.

Sean M.

TVWBB Fan
So frustrating -

I did a 7.5# Bone in breast.
Temp probe in both breasts registered 165*.
Let it rest for 20' and started slicing and the bird was not done yet.
It is in the oven - but I am afraid to trust my probes now.

Sure looks good.
 
Apparently the probe was not deep enough.
Even after I put it in the oven at 400*, pulled it out and looked at the half carved breast it was still too pink.
Flavor was decent - not my best product.
 
I noticed that you can incert the probe an inch and get one reading, then another inch and get another reading, another inch so on an so forth. I cook until I get 160*F at the deapest level.
 
It takes quite a while for the heat to reach the center of a big piece of meat. The higher heat you're cooking at, the more difference there will be between the outside and the center because at high heat, the outside gets way ahead of the center. I love my Thermapen because it reacts fast enough that you can slowly push it in and watch the temps dive as it approaches the center. I do this to find the coldest spot, and then I make sure my DigiQ meat probe is right in that spot.
 
You only need about a minute at 155 to be safe, although you might not like the texture. Pink means nothing as far as safety is concerned. It could be from smoke, but by all means, check your therms. Cook to the texture you like, but if you want zero pink you might end up with dry poultry.
 
I had a similar thing happen. Where I placed my probe I was at 155 but I was getting different readings with my thermopen. I let it go a little longer. Breast turned out perfect
 
Dave/G said:
You only need about a minute at 155 to be safe, although you might not like the texture. Pink means nothing as far as safety is concerned. It could be from smoke, but by all means, check your therms. Cook to the texture you like, but if you want zero pink you might end up with dry poultry.
Click to expand...

Where are you getting that 155 number? Is that a typo? Everything I've ever read states that it needs to get to 165. Here's what the FDA has to say about it.
 
Something else to consider is whether you stuffed the cavity. With an empty cavity, the bird should cook from both the outside and the inside, though it will still be slower from the inside due to the bones. If you have stuffed the cavity, the temp will be lower inside the cavity so most of the cooking will be from outside in.
 
Dave/G said:
Here's one place and don't forget about carryover cooking
http://tvwbb.com/showthread.php?19422-Poultry-Final-Tempeature-and-Processing-Times
Click to expand...

Hmmm...I guess the "time @ temp" - as opposed to just temperature - makes sense now that I think about it. I pulled mine at 162 today and it "coasted" up to 168 and was perfect. According to the "time @ temp" model it was probably safe at a lower temp given how long it spends at a given temp. It also depends on who you're serving it to. If my mom sees a trace of pink in the meat, other than smoke ring, there's going to be some squawking. Easier to just cook it a bit more and eat in peace. :)

Thanks for the excellent link, Dave/G.
 
When my maverick reads 160 I take my thermopop and do a couple of random checks to make sure the maverick is reading the correct overall temps. If it is I remove the bird and cover and leave the maverick in and it almost always goes up to 165-170 within twenty minuets or so
 
thanks everybody - great feedback.

Since my iGrill probe is about 4", and only about 3" of the probe was inserted - could that have caused an incorrect reading?
I assumed it was the tip that gave the temperature reading.
A friend of mine who also used that iGrill made the guess that the temperature is read throughout the entire probe.

If that is the case, how would that be accurate on a steak?

Let me know what you think - thanks.
 
The tip of the probe is where the sensor is located.
The probe body being metal will conduct heat but the farther from the tip you get the less influence there will be.
It is very unlikely 1" exposed influenced the reading.
If your bird was not completely thawed that could be why the meat was not cooked.
I am real picky about squishy poultry meat but 160-165 in a turkey breast has always been fully cooked, tender, and moist for me.
 
Sean M. said:
thanks everybody - great feedback.

Since my iGrill probe is about 4", and only about 3" of the probe was inserted - could that have caused an incorrect reading?
I assumed it was the tip that gave the temperature reading.
A friend of mine who also used that iGrill made the guess that the temperature is read throughout the entire probe.

If that is the case, how would that be accurate on a steak?

Let me know what you think - thanks.
Click to expand...

that's how bi-metal thermometers work: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bimetallic_strip
 
yes - it was in the center of the breast when I removed it.
Here are some pics.
I brined for 8 hours, then air-dried overnight.
You can see how good it looked on the grill and when I pulled it off after the false reading at 165*.
And the final product.
The turkey was better the 2nd day - loved it.
2 small chunks of cherry and 1 shank of apple.





 
If that second pic was of your actual probe placement, I think we found the problem. The probe sensor looks like it was too high up in the bird.
 
It's difficult to tell from the pic you posted, but it kind of looks like Chris's is going in at a steeper angle, thereby getting closer to the bone.
 
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