Turkey grease


 
L

Lance

TVWBB Super Fan
I just finished cooking my second turkey in as many weeks and one thing that I noticed was that both were exceptionally greasy. Both turkeys were Jennie-O that I had purchased right after Thanksgiving and were 90% defrosted. Both turkeys were between 22-25 pounds. I was cooking around 300-325 degrees. There was so much grease it looked like boiling black tar on the bottom of the empty water pan. The top vent was pretty greasy as well. I cooked an Armour turkey prior to Thanksgiving and there wasn't nearly the same amount of grease but it was about 17 pounds. Is it the turkeys that I bought or something else? The grease didn't effect the end result (the turkeys were delicious) but I will think twice before doing another turkey.
Lance
 
I'm just curious if you foil your water pan or not?? If not, the "black tar" might be a combination of the grease and all the other residue that was on the pan.

I've never done a whole turkey but I know that even chicken to chicken you can see pretty decent differences in the rendered fats.
 
Lance I think alot of things may contribute to the 'grease' in the pan an on the lid. Here's my theory.......Jennie-O turkeys are enhanced, your turkey was not thoroughly defrosted and you cooked it at high temps. Nothing wrong with any of these things I've listed, however combined I 'think' contributed......here's why.

The contrast between the COLD bird and the high heat from the cooker not only created alot of condensation, but also forced alot of the injection out of the bird as it thawed and cooked. I have cooked alot of Jennie-O turkeys and have also put them on partially frozen like you, with great results.....however I cook them at lower temps did with no ill effects. That's my theory, does it make sense?

If you are going to do high heat with a store bought enhance bird, let it sit on the counter for an hour or so before throwing it onto the cooker and see if that makes a difference, rather than shocking a cold bird into a hot cooker.
 
Larry,
Your theory makes sense but I don't necessarily follow why the rapid defrosting would cause the saline solution to be forced out of the bird. I definitely think that ice crystals in the cavity would add to the fluids. However, it was so much grease, it made me think that the birds themselves had extra fat. I did not trim the birds in any way. I think the size of the turkeys is also a factor.
Lance
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Lance:
Larry,
Your theory makes sense but I don't necessarily follow why the rapid defrosting would cause the saline solution to be forced out of the bird. I definitely think that ice crystals in the cavity would add to the fluids. However, it was so much grease, it made me think that the birds themselves had extra fat. I did not trim the birds in any way. I think the size of the turkeys is also a factor.
Lance </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Lance,
Was it one of THESE? I couldn't find anything on their site to determine exactly what has been injected, but the solution may have some sort of oil or fat mixed with the broth solution that caused the greasiness?

What I mean about the solution being forced out is, if you put a big very cold piece of meat into a very hot cooker, you're 'shocking' the meat from one extreme to another. So 30 minutes or so into your cook, the outer meat of the turkey is rapidly warming (cooking) while the inside is still partially frozen or very cold, so the solution has no place to redistribute, so it's forced out of the cooked portion of the meat. On the flipside, you can get away with this if you're cooking at lower temps and letting the meat gradually warm and cook, while the juices redistribute through the meat..
 
Larry,
I understand what you are saying now. I think it was a premium basted turkey. The broth/ fats injection makes a lot more sense. I will go low and slow next time that I have a turkey like that or I could plan ahead and thaw the turkey a couple of days prior. I was a little rushed and didn't thaw the birds as well as I would have liked.
Lance
 
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