Thanksgiving Turkey 2003


 



I started with a 23# + frozen turkey that
thawed for 4 days in the fridge. I then
made a brine ( recipe from the forum ) and
let it rest in the brine for a full 3 days, turning
once or twice a day. Never getting above 39°.
Had no taste of salt when eaten at all.



Rinsed well from the brine and dried with a
paper towel it went in the fridge for 18 hours
 of drying.


Then came the rub down of 
garlic pepper infused EVOO,
and the 1/4`d onion, apple and orange
stuffed inside. The ice on the breast is a
Mad Max suggestion.



On the egg at 6:55 Am with a dome temp
hovering right around 375°. Two fist sized
chunks of apple and a drip pan on an
inverted plate setter filled with apple juice. There
was not enough room to use a v rack, it went right
on the main grid. The bird got so close
to the thermometer that I did not trust the
readings after that.


After roughly 2 hours I rotated the bird 180°
to insure even browning, the dome was reading 275°.
Here it is coming off at 11:45, total cook of 4 hours
50 minutes. The breast were at 162°, thighs and legs
around 180°. The full load of  lump was for the most
part gone at this point.

Here it is delivered and being sliced
within an hour of coming off the egg.
It was still very hot and VERY juicy, all
comments were positive, great flavor,
very moist, juicy, just a hint of smoke.....
All in all, a complete success.