Oil The Skin?

[Rusty James]

Is this necessary?

I'm smoking two 14 pound birds, and I was wondering if I could get by without oiling the skin (rub only).

 

[ChuckO]

Is this necessary? I'm smoking two 14 pound birds

What temp are you going to smoke at? If over 300 degrees, oiling the skin will help crisp the skin, however if you're smoking below 300 degrees, it's pretty tough to crisp the skin oiling or not

 

[Rusty James]

What temp are you going to smoke at? If over 300 degrees, oiling the skin will help crisp the skin, however if you're smoking below 300 degrees, it's pretty tough to crisp the skin oiling or not

I smoked them today somewhere between 275 and 325. The first hour was in the 200s, and afterwards, the smoker stabilized around 325 (no water in the pan). I guess I should have oiled the birds before sprinkling on the rub, but it was too late as I used the rub first.

Frankly, I think the birds stink after pulling them a few hours ago. I used four, fist-sized chunks of apple wood with one small chunk of hickory. I just tasted the breast of one bird (after it sit wrapped in tin foil for two hours), and the meat is leaving a somewhat bitter aftertaste in my mouth. Honestly, it smells like I smoked them with a telephone pole. The breast meat is a bit tough too (these are Honeysuckle White turkeys).

Maybe they will taste better tomorrow after they sit up overnight. Sometimes aging has a way mellowing the flavor of smoked meats.

 

[ChuckO]

I used four, fist-sized chunks of apple wood with one small chunk of hickory

Wow!! I only use a few pieces the size of a domino: Two cherry and one apple. I stay away from hickory for any fowl. Hopefully the over night sit will smooth out the flavor

 

[Chris Allingham]

The apple wood is a good choice, but maybe half of what you used. And maybe not use the hickory at all.

Make sure you have plenty of gravy on hand tomorrow...that will mellow the flavor of your turkey!

I do oil or butter the skin, if for no other reason than to help the rub or S&P stick better. It probably does help the skin when cooking at high temp.

 

[Clint]

sorry to hear that! I see you cooked at a fairly high temperature with a dry pan, I've had that taste cooking turkeys low & slow with water in the pan - one of my earliest mistakes.

Were all of your vents wide open? KBB or ?

Might be better to age them uncovered (that's an attempt at humor). I hope it's not as bad as it seems right now (that it mellows).

 

[YYang]

Is this necessary?

I'm smoking two 14 pound birds, and I was wondering if I could get by without oiling the skin (rub only).

From personal experience, it seems like oiling the skin helps prevent the bird from taking on too much smoke color. I wonder if this is just me or if others have seen the same thing. I also like the lacquered appearance that oil gives. I'm sure if you'd be fine if you didn't want to oil the skin.

 

[Rusty James]

The apple wood is a good choice, but maybe half of what you used. And maybe not use the hickory at all.

Make sure you have plenty of gravy on hand tomorrow...that will mellow the flavor of your turkey!

I do oil or butter the skin, if for no other reason than to help the rub or S&P stick better. It probably does help the skin when cooking at high temp.

I read your turkey smoking recommendations a few times of late, Chris, but my wife said she wanted plenty of smoke flavor, so I obliged. I don't know why I included the hickory chunk. I'll leave it out for sure next time. I think I'll pre-oil the skin, too, before adding the rub.

As far as the taste was concerned, everyone liked it very much! (go figure!) I could still taste some undesirable flavors on Thanksgiving day, but not nearly as bad as it was the day before. I guess aging the meat on the cold porch helped out more than I thought it would.

What about using Jack Daniels chips next time? Has anyone tried this on poultry?

 

[Rusty James]

Were all of your vents wide open? KBB or ?

Yes, I left all vents open from start to finish using Royal Oak lump. I lit my fire using the Minion method since lump charcoal tends to catch fire quickly anyway, and I did prop the door open for a few minutes at the start. Maybe I should have let the coals ash over before assembling the stack, but I wonder if that would've made any difference.

 

[Clint]

I don't think it'd make that much (think Minion)......... If everyone else liked it you might have just had sensory overload. They'll only get better - I'm happy to hear everyone else liked it.

 

[Rich Dahl]

I used almond and a little cherry this time and I thought it was too smoky for my taste. Next bird I'll go back to two or three small chunks of apple as that seems to be perfect.

 

[JBooker]

I used 3 logs of Apple probably 2.5" in diameter by 8 in long. One was buried in the royal oak lump charcoal. The other two were on top. I used a fresh Honeysuckle turkey as well.

Was yours fresh or frozen and did you brine it. The fresh ones are only 3-4% solution while the frozen ones are around 10-12% if I remember right.

 

[Rusty James]

I used 3 logs of Apple probably 2.5" in diameter by 8 in long. One was buried in the royal oak lump charcoal. The other two were on top. I used a fresh Honeysuckle turkey as well.

Was yours fresh or frozen and did you brine it. The fresh ones are only 3-4% solution while the frozen ones are around 10-12% if I remember right.

Wow, that's a heap of wood. No problems with over-smoking?

Our birds were previously frozen and self-basting with a percentage of solution present, but I cant remember how much (15% maybe?), so I did not brine it for fear of excess sodium intake.

 

[Rusty James]

I don't think it'd make that much (think Minion)......... If everyone else liked it you might have just had sensory overload. They'll only get better - I'm happy to hear everyone else liked it.

I guess aged turkey tastes better than freshly smoked.