First Turkey Smoke This Saturday !

[Guest]

Hi, hope your holiday was good & maybe you can help me with some recently learned tips...

Im smoking a 13# er Saturday. I have my WSM insulated with this insane stuff called 'kao-wool' & I can get any temp going inside pretty much...

The bird is fresh, unbrined, what temp should I start it at, I want crunchy skin, so im thinking 400-425* for an hour or so & then down to 350*,total 3-4 hrs.

Is this workable, will i get crispy skin? what is internal temp on turkey? is there a better way?

thanks folks.

 

[Guest]

The general concensus seems to be 425 degrees for the first half hour, then 325 degrees for the remainder of the cooking time.

If your 13 pounder is unstuffed, I would start checking before the 3 hour mark. I would guess 3.5 hours would be the most likely cooking time, but it could surprise you and be done in as little as 2.5 hours.

Measure the temperature in the fattest part of the thigh, but not touching bone. According to the guidelines, the thigh needs to be 180 degrees. I've found that to be about right, although you could probably pull it off at 175 degrees and let it sit for half an hour.

Breast meat needs to be 165 degrees, it is likely to be above that when the thigh is done, so that's usually not an issue.

If you are doing a stuffed bird, the stuffing in the middle of the bird should be 165 degrees.

Spreading the outside of the bird with butter or oil will help the browning and "crisping", as will occasional basting.

If the bird is getting too dark for your tastes, you can wrap it in a blanket of cheesecloth moistened in melted butter (perhaps with a little water). I don't think this will be a big problem on a small bird on the WSM, but it's a handy trick if the legs or other parts of the bird are getting black. You can baste right through the cheesecloth.

Go easy on the wood smoke. If you pour the wood on for three hours, your turkey will be excessively heavy and smoky tasting. Poultry seems to absorb smoke flavor like a sponge so don't overdo it. I generally use wood chunks or chips for the first 30 to 60 minutes and then stop.

 

[Guest]

Excellent info...that about covers it all. im sure it will go well!

Thanks