Now that the leftovers are in the fridge, it is time to think about what I will do next time to improve. Followed Meathead’s turkey recipe to the letter. Everyone agreed it was a fantastic turkey, and the moistest we have ever had. I thought the skin could have been much better even though it was cooked on the Yoder at 325.
Now that I think about, this was an entirely pasture raised turkey, and just did not have a lot of fat anywhere. Next time I cook a pasture raised bird, I am going to pay much more attention to prepping the skin with oil and fats.
I will spatchcock every single turkey I smoke from this day forward. I brought the PBC and turkey hanger, but no hooks, to the in-laws to cook the turkey. I found out too late that the turkey they bought wasn't completely thawed on the inside. It turned out fine, but not great, due to some dryness as a result of having to overcook to get it all done. Flavor was excellent and everyone loved it, but it was 2 hooks short of being amazing.
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Donw I love the idea. I generally followed Meathead's recipe (my father in particular got a kick out of the Simon and Garfunkel rub) with a young turkey using my WSM and pecan wood. I had a tough time maintaining the temperature of the smoker at 325 given the cold weather in NY today so I compensated by finishing the bird at closer to 375 to brown up the skin. Although it was firm, the skin could have used more crisp to it. However, the bird was moist and had great flavor.
Next year, I'll probably make some tweaks to the rub -- I would probably add more rosemary and bayleaf and a little less basil and oregano. I hope to do a better job maintaining temperature at 325. Otherwise, I'll finish the bird at a hotter temperature. I also didn't do the greatest job applying baste under the skin -- probably need more practice. Anyway, this is what mine looked like. Cheers. .
My #1 absolute tip for crispy skin is make sure it's as dry as humanly possible when it goes in. I dry brined, injected with butter/oil, rubbed with oil soaked herbs, then patted everything dry with a paper towel to make sure there was no excess moisture on the skin. Even though I had trouble keeping it up at 325 the skin was absolutely perfect still. It's something I've had trouble with in previous years and this made all the difference in the world.
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