Smokin' a turkey, couple of quick question

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Hello. I'm smokim' a turkey this weekend using Keri C's Apple Juice Brined Turkey method. I was wondering if pouring boiling water over the bird will help give me crispier skin, and if so when do I do it? Do I pour it over after it has come out of the brine, and I have patted it dry? Do I re-pat it dry after I pour the boiling water over it?

Also, does it matter if I dry it overnight breast side down or up?

These might sound like pretty newbie questions, but the skin from my last turkey is still successfully being used as patches on my rubber boots.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Steve Abrams:
I've never heard of pouring boiling water over a turkey after brining. The only time I've heard of using boiling water is on a wild turkey that you have to pluck. It helps you get the pin feathers out.

After you brine, leave it sit in the fridge overnight. It'll help dry out the skin. I usually leave the breast up. Skip the water in the water pan, use sand or foil the pan leaving a space between the pan and the foil. Get your WSM up to 325 or 350 and cook there. Cooking breast up or down is personal preferance. I cook breast up. Your skin should turn out OK. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
 
You can always rub some butter and corn starch under the skin. This will make for a nice crispy skin.
 
I've heard of the boiling water approach, particularly when used with ducks to help melt the fat layer under the skin and produce a crisp skin, but I've never tried it.

The thing that seems to make the most difference for me is oil or butter on the skin, and breaking the skin contact with the meat. Just run your hand up between the skin and the meat to separate the two on the breast, legs, and thighs, and leave a little butter and seasoning behind between the skin and meat for good measure. Another thing I've tried with good results was soaking a cheesecloth in melted butter, folding it into a double layer, and wrapping the entire turkey in the butter-soaked cheesecloth while it was smoking. It made for a much more attractive golden-brown even-toned color on the skin. The cheesecloth was gross-looking, but the skin underneath was beautiful.

One great hint that I've discovered here recently came originally from Cooks Illustrated, if I remember correctly. At least an hour or more before your turkey goes on the cooker, fill a ziplock bag with ice and lay it across the breast of the turkey. This will chill the breast meat down to a cooler temp than the faster cooking legs and thighs. Thus, since the breast starts off cooler than the rest, it helps to keep the breast from overcooking whilst you wait for the legs and thighs to get up to temp. I left the ice on the turkey breast for about two hours, and it worked out quite nicely.

Keri C
 
Hi Keri! I saw that article and have been waiting to cook a turkey to try it. I'm glad to see that you did it and it worked well for you

Rita
 
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