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For Thanksgiving I cooked my turkey in my WFO.
Technique 1 - The process: I heated the oven, the night before, to pizza cooking temps.
I roasted the bird on Thanksgiving morning with the residual heat only. The oven was about 450-500f. I cooked it a bit to long, but the breast was still moist and slightly juicy.
For some reason I was thinking it had to reach 180f internal, what I should of been shooting for was 165f. I think if a 180f internal temperature was reached in my kitchen oven, it would make for one dry bird. But anyways... it was still good and here is a picture I previously posted.
So that's my first technique at cooking turkey. (it was also my first time cooking one in my wood oven) Overall, good bird, nice color, no smoky flavor.
Technique 2 - Fry that sucker.
Yep I gave it a try! (my first time and on Christmas day, no less...)
5 gallons of peanut oil, one big pan, an outdoor cooker, and one 13 lb bird. Heated oil to 350f. Then I very very slowly lowered the bird into the oil. The bird had to be dried be very well.(A wet turkey placed in hot fat would be bad!) 45 minutes of cooking at 350f resulted in a nicely browned turkey that was very juicy, full of flavor, and the internal temp was 170f or so. It was a big hit! So now I know why people go to the trouble of doing it. It is very good! I didn't get a picture of it before I cut it up, but here is one after it had been sliced. The color and moisture are visible though.
Technique 3 - Use the WFO, but fire it just before cooking.
I didn't have time on Xmas eve to fire up my oven, so I did it on Xmas morning.
I didn't want pizza temps. I wanted roasting temps. So I built a much smaller fire, and let it burn for about an hour. The inside temp showed 450f. At that point, I pushed the coals to the back of the oven, put the turkey in, and shut the door. The coals and unburned wood smoldered and smoked a bunch! The internal oven temperature dropped quickly(due to the outer part of the bricks wicking the heat away) After the first hour it was about 350f. I checked on the bird and it was very browned from heat and the smoke, so I covered in with foil. About four hours later, from initially putting the bird in, the oven had dropped to about 325f. And the turkey was at 167f. So I pulled it out. It was actually juicer than the deep fried turkey, and the meat had been infused with a nice smoky flavor.(this is how i will cook my pork butts and brisket from now on) Overall this was the best turkey in my opinion. Some of my guests, however, don't like smoked turkey, so the fried one was a big hit with them.
I thought I would post these techniques while they are still fresh on my mind, because I will probably forget by next year. I also imagine that new builders will want to know how to cook their holiday turkey next year.
I hope everyone had a happy holiday.
Happy New Year!
Dave
Technique 1 - The process: I heated the oven, the night before, to pizza cooking temps.
I roasted the bird on Thanksgiving morning with the residual heat only. The oven was about 450-500f. I cooked it a bit to long, but the breast was still moist and slightly juicy.
For some reason I was thinking it had to reach 180f internal, what I should of been shooting for was 165f. I think if a 180f internal temperature was reached in my kitchen oven, it would make for one dry bird. But anyways... it was still good and here is a picture I previously posted.
So that's my first technique at cooking turkey. (it was also my first time cooking one in my wood oven) Overall, good bird, nice color, no smoky flavor.
Technique 2 - Fry that sucker.
Yep I gave it a try! (my first time and on Christmas day, no less...)
5 gallons of peanut oil, one big pan, an outdoor cooker, and one 13 lb bird. Heated oil to 350f. Then I very very slowly lowered the bird into the oil. The bird had to be dried be very well.(A wet turkey placed in hot fat would be bad!) 45 minutes of cooking at 350f resulted in a nicely browned turkey that was very juicy, full of flavor, and the internal temp was 170f or so. It was a big hit! So now I know why people go to the trouble of doing it. It is very good! I didn't get a picture of it before I cut it up, but here is one after it had been sliced. The color and moisture are visible though.
Technique 3 - Use the WFO, but fire it just before cooking.
I didn't have time on Xmas eve to fire up my oven, so I did it on Xmas morning.
I didn't want pizza temps. I wanted roasting temps. So I built a much smaller fire, and let it burn for about an hour. The inside temp showed 450f. At that point, I pushed the coals to the back of the oven, put the turkey in, and shut the door. The coals and unburned wood smoldered and smoked a bunch! The internal oven temperature dropped quickly(due to the outer part of the bricks wicking the heat away) After the first hour it was about 350f. I checked on the bird and it was very browned from heat and the smoke, so I covered in with foil. About four hours later, from initially putting the bird in, the oven had dropped to about 325f. And the turkey was at 167f. So I pulled it out. It was actually juicer than the deep fried turkey, and the meat had been infused with a nice smoky flavor.(this is how i will cook my pork butts and brisket from now on) Overall this was the best turkey in my opinion. Some of my guests, however, don't like smoked turkey, so the fried one was a big hit with them.
I thought I would post these techniques while they are still fresh on my mind, because I will probably forget by next year. I also imagine that new builders will want to know how to cook their holiday turkey next year.
I hope everyone had a happy holiday.
Happy New Year!
Dave
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