Summary
Cookshack 009 Smoker
250 F
Brined for 36 hours, outside rubbed with olive oil
Moist, flavorful, loved by all.
This was my first turkey in the Cookshack 009. I have done others in my previous smoker though. It was also the first time I brined a whole turkey, but I have brined turkey legs before.
We got a 12.1 pound fresh turkey from Keller's in Albuquerque. It had not been injected or adulterated in any way.
I used the "Holiday Brine" from Smokin Okie's 101 guides.
The Turkey went in the Brine Tuesday night at 900 PM and came out Thursday morning about 0900 AM. 36 hours. I used one of those 5 gallon orange water coolers to keep the turkey in. I mixed the ingredients of the brine in a quart of water on the stove. I let this cool, put the turkey in the cooler and then added it to the cooler. I made up the rest of the gallon with ice and water. I still had a bit of turkey sticking out, so I added chicken broth and ice to cover it. If I had to do it over again, I would put the turkey and broth in a large plastic bag and surround it with ice. Next year.
I put the cooler outside at night as the temperatures are belwo 40 thse days. There was still lots of ice in the cooler on Thursday when I put it in the cooler.
We took the turkey out of the cooler, patted it dry and sprayed the outside with olive oil. I cut the skin around the ankles of the drumsticks so I could pull the tendons out with a needle nosed pliers when they are done. We put it on the bottom rack, added 2 pieces of the wood that comes with the smoker, put a Tru-Temp ($16 Target special)probe in the breast, cranked the thermostat all the way up to 250 F added a Polder probe to monitor the smoker temperature, and closed it up at 0915. I then put the giblets in a pan with water and spices to make broth for gracy. The gibblets simmered until the turkey was done.
The probe hit 160 F at 1210, a bit less than 3 hours. I was surprised that it was done so soon. We covered the turkey with foil and waited for the rest of the dinner to be finished. I took the drippings from the pan and made gravy with the broth from the giblets. It was a bit too smoky for my taste, but my kids loved it.
The turkey was delicious. The white meat was very moist and the dark meat was done but still a bit pink. There was a hint of smoke. It could have been smokier. The meat was flavorful, and the brine was not overpowering. Everyone pronounced it delicious. The skin was rubbery, but I sxpected that and just didn't eat it. Everybody loved it.
This was quick and easy. Nothing fancy, no fuss required, but very delicious.