***Thanksgiving Turkey***

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

Okay,, the Turkey was actually 13 lbs... Just wanted to add that for time reference

13 lbs.
1 hour 35 Mins..
I know thats only 7.5 mins per pound,, But it was cooked all the way thru and checked with a meat thermometer
700 (f) degrees going in
550 (f) coming out
Put it in with foil on and took the foil off for the last 10 min...
Cheers
Mark

P.S. Didnt stuff the turkey,, cooked stuffing balls in the WFO and Some ugly giant mushrooms as well,, (i never ate a mushroom) but everyone else seemed to like them

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

Okay,,, 26 days till thanksgiving, Is everybody ready, After my first succes I think Im going for a turkey in the 20lb. range... (im feeling brave)

I was also thinking of putting in a small suckling pig, Im pretty sure I have enough room for both, will stop by the butcher this morning and try to get an idea of size.

Cheers
Mark

[splatgirl]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

Ready? Yes, what time do you want us?

omd. suckling pig. hello porchetta, I love you. sadly that is one dead animal I'm not sure I could be the boss of. but eating it, yessir. no problem there. If you buy a whole one and have the butcher bone and tie it, does it still look like a pig, like with ears and a snout and stuff?

Since I have not practiced, I'm torn between getting a supermarket turkey or the pastured, happy-life kind I'd prefer (at three times the price). I'd hate to wreck any big piece of meat, but it hurts less when it's a $20 piece not an $80 piece.
I do like the idea of a back-up meat and it's much harder to ruin pork...

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

Splat

If you buy a whole one and have the butcher bone and tie it, does it still look like a pig, like with ears and a snout and stuff?

IM just gonna get the whole baby pig, cook it bones and all, we used to do it on the rotiserrie that way, I may butterfly it... You could always let boy cook the pig too!!

supermarket turkey or the pastured

get the pastured,, you wont ruin it,we have all seen your cooking capabilities, keep the faith and you can be sure I will post pics when I get to the pig..

Cheers
Mark

[splatgirl]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

You could always let boy cook the pig too!!

bwwaaaahhhaa! I just told Boy you said Boy should cook the pig. He was like "yea, that'd be awesome. Are they sending one?"
meaning a Boy, not a pig
Boy, THE Boy, does not cook. Like at all. Unless two entrees in 11 years and the occasional kickbutt batch of old skool pan-popped popcorn counts. It came a as quite a shock when we met and I discovered that there were moms who were not good cooks.
He comes from a culture of people who treat cooking as punishment and a mother who is a downright horrible cook. I never knew such families existed until I met him.
Actually, he made an awesome batch of roasted pumpkin seeds while I was out for a run just now, so I guess he has his moments. They're just reeeaally far apart.

I cannot WAIT to see the results of a suckling pig adventure, and you've seriously got me thinking...

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

Are they sending one?"
meaning a Boy, not a pig

Tooo Funnnny !!!

I will keep you posted on the pig idea... If you get any ideas, let me know..

Thanks
Mark

P.S. Does boy know he is boy ?

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

hey splat,
I talked to a butcher last night, He said best bet is to buy the pig and have them quarter it... He said also you dont have to take the head if you dont want it, But added many people (uckkkkkk) like to eat the cheeks and ears... (yes he was serious) I still think Im gonna go butterflied, sans head...
Let me know what you think

Mark

[splatgirl]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

I'm kind of an authentic experience kind of girl, so I guess if I were going to go to the trouble of sourcing and cooking a little piggy, I'd decide to suck it up and go for the whole deal. Go big or go home, right? OTOH, when you're doing a big turkey, too, that's a lot of meat.

I've heard the cheeks are the best part, and ear...crispy, fatty, chewy? Yum.
Mostly it's the way I would imagine it looks before it's cooked that skeeves me out. Once it's brown and crispy and smells yummy, hand me a fork.

a quarter of a piglet does not seem like much...did he give you and idea of the weight?

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

a quarter of a piglet does not seem like much...did he give you and idea of the weight?

I meant " he said I should cook it in quarters rather than butterfly it and cook it..,,,,

are you really telling me you would eat a pigs cheek ??

Mark

[splatgirl]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

pigs cheek, OH YES, and prolly ear, too. Like I said, my issue is with the uncooked dead animal, not the eating of it. Besides, I've eaten WAY weirder stuff than that. Don't you ever order the weird stuff like chicken feet or tripe at dim sum?
I'd def. go for the whole deal...piglet pata (or con casco?)

[Spunkoid]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

We just did our first turkey today. A trial bird as I was not sure how it would turn out. It was not large, about 12 lbs, and fully stuffed. I got the oven a little too hot and had to let it cool a bit first. The bird sat in a roasting pan that I covered with tin foil. I also used a digital meat thermometer, putting the probe into the breast.
Initially, the oven was a little hot but I left the door open to let it cool a bit, then closed it but turned the pan a couple of times while it was cooking. After about 2 hours, I took the tin foil off to let the bird brown as it finished cooking. The bird browned nicely and the digital thermometer beeped that it reached the 85 degrees C that I had set it for, about 2 3/4 hrs after I put the bird it. It was perfect.
I cooked a roast last weekend using the digital meat thermometer as well. It was one of the best roasts we have ever made. The themometer I use has a probe with a wire on it. The probe goes into the meat and the wire is led out through the door to the temperature unit. With this unit, I can check the temperature of the meat and its cooking process at any time without opening the oven.

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

good lookig bird spunk.... Nice job..

I also have one of the remote thermometers, Havent used it in the brick oven yet,, I think I will though when I do the next turkey,,

Cheers
Mark

[blacknoir]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

I'm doing a trial run today.. thought I'd post some pics of what I'm cooking.

While cooking the turkey I also made a batch of cornbread muffins and a Macaroni & Cheese Casserole.

When the turkey is all done I'll post a finished pick along with times & temps.

[blacknoir]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

Turkey finished earlier then I expected! So, on to details. The turkey was a 12.5 lb turkey. I went the Alton Brown route and let it sit in a brine overnight. I then re-heated the oven this morning and got it up around 800 with some coals in it. I left the coals simmering until it got down to a little over 500 and then I shoveled them all out and put the turkey in.

After 45 minutes I put the Turkey Triangle on and the temp was at 400. Now that the turkey is done I think next time I'll wait an hour before doing the triangle as it didn't get as brown as I'd like on the breast. The legs turned out perfect so that should work.

After a total of 2 hours and 20 minutes I checked on the turkey, this was my first check, and it was done! Breast temp was 180 and Thigh temp was 198. This is a little hotter than I'd normally go so next time I'll be sure to check it after 2 hours. This was a trial run though so that's ok.

One thing I have to be aware of next time is it was really nice out today. Opening that oven door when it's 50+ outside isn't the same as 10+ degrees which it will probably be at Thanksgiving.

[splatgirl]

Re: ***Thanksgiving Turkey***

ok yum. I decided I'm too lazy for a practice run, but since you guys are doing all the r&d I think I'll be ok
I wonder how it would work to put it in when the oven is wicked hot? That's sort of what I'm leaning towards at this point, because like you said, Shay, the outdoor temp is likely to be a factor.