Flippin' Turkey!


 

Steve_A (Tatoosh)

TVWBB Super Fan
I made a couple of turkeys for Thanksgiving using my Weber 22.5 OTG and a Smokenator insert. They came out okay, the second being distinctly superior. But what grabbed my attention was the two rib racks I used. I had bought them after reading discussion here, thinking I could use them for smoking pork belly bacon sections. I was sort of regretting getting two of them, since I never use but one when smoking the bacon.

However, Thanksgiving showed me the wisdom of purchasing two of these wire racks. Since they are identical, their handles match up perfectly when you turn one upside down. And that is what we did when we wanted to let the turkey finish with the breast down for the last hour or so of the cook/smoke.

I have never had an easier time flipping a turkey! The rib rack turns over to become a roast or turkey rack. With a nice smaller to medium bird in it, when time came to flip, I just inverted the second one over the turkey and picked them both up where the handles met. A quick turn and it was done, minimum amount of mess, very little loss of juices, and it was back on the Weber in a matter of seconds!

I know some guys like to cook their birds "vertically" but I think that roasting it on its back until the last hour or hour and a half, then flipping it breast side down allows the juices to work their way back into the bird. Particularly with a Weber/Smokenator setup where the heat is not coming from below. Along with a injecting the turkey with compound butter, it really promotes a superbly moist breast.

I didn't have a working camera on Thanksgiving, but I will be doing one again for a Christmas party this weekend. I will try to photograph the sequence then and post an update to this thread next week..

As A Rib Rack:

charcoalcompanion.jpg


Inverted to be a Turkey or Roast Rack:

charcoalcompanion.jpg


Although the photos are not the same size, you can easily imagine how the handles match up when one is turned upside down. Given that a hot, slippery turkey is a pain to flip over, this is the best way I've ever run across, much better than the trying to pick it up with "turkey forks" or gloves.
 
Great Idea!
I do the flip with a set of tongs and a wad of paper towels and it is a pita.
What brand of rack is that?

Tim
 
I did turkey again for a Christmas party and this time I had enough time to sit down and enjoy it. It was the best turkey I've ever had! I'm not trying to toot my horn, I am not a culinary genius. But the Weber/Smokenator setup, the injector, and flipping the turkey all contributed to the tenderest turkey breast I've ever had on a plate in front of me.

How the two racks fit together:

charcoalrackdemo.jpg


Flipping the turkey over:

flip3.jpg


And the turkey is now breast down:

flip4t.jpg


How I set up the Weber/Smokenator with an upturned pot to rest the roasting pan on, no food grate used.

webersmokenatorforturke.jpg
 
Honorable Mention: The young guy flipping the turkey is my brother-in-law, Mark, who will finish his bachelors in hotel/restaurant management with emphasis on culinary arts in two or three months.

I used a cheap plastic "chicken syringe" to do the injections - maybe 6 or more per side and using about 2 ounces of butter in each breast. Then rubbed the turkey under the skin with more of the compound butter (rosemary and a bit of sage). The outside of the turkey is powdered with my turkey powder - 2 teaspoons of salt, 2 tablespoons of corn starch, some fresh cracked pepper, and maybe 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of sage. All mixed together and then rubbed over the exterior of the skin.

The breast side, when finished, looked like this:

beforeflipping.jpg
 
That looks like it tasted VERY good. Nice write up and use of the racks to flip the bird over. I may try that the next time in my kettle too. I smoked lots of food the same way with a kettle and smokenator before I bought my WSM to be able to do more at one time. Will keep using it for smaller things when needed.
 
Great looking turkey Steve. The photos really due justice to the explaination of how the racks work. I like your method.
 

 

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