This afternoon, I was getting ready to rotisserie a Turkey on my Weber Gensis grill. I installed my new rotisserie only to find that the motor didn't work DARN.

But thats not why I wrote in

So I decided nows my chance to finally smoke a turkey. A quick look here and I pull the instructions/recipe on how to smoke a whole self basted turkey in my WSM. I chose Luscious for my rub and for the wood I used 3 GIANT chunks of Cherry. I had a 14 lb Honeysuckle White bird all thawed and ready to go.

I followed the instructions as closely as I could. The day was cool (55-60) and moderately windy. At 2 hours I found the thigh meet to be 128 degrees by an instant read thermo.

I was also using a wireless smoker thermometer so I know the grill was running close to 310.

To get to the point one side or at least one thigh of the bird was MUCH slower to cook. We pulled the bird at almost 4 hours and cut all of the breast and one side of dark meat. But put the remainder back in the over to keep cooking.

Now the recipe suggest turning the meet after an hour but also said that wasn't really nessasary. I think next time I'll do that. I also think next time I'll pull the Turkey much sooner probably before 3 hours to finish the WHOLE thing in the oven.

But in the final analysis WHY did this happen? Could I prevent this some how? Did I do something wrong?

I've only used my WSM 2 times before both times for brisket. UUMMM that was good. And it came out almost EXACTLY as I expect via the recipe.

Thanks for any suggestions,

OH, and one more thing. It was FREAKING delicious. I and my guests loved it. We had roasted a turkey before Christmas in the oven and had the same guests over for dinner that time. But the smoke ring was beautiful and the Luscious had permeated right through the breast meat to the inside.

Bear

quote:

It was FREAKING delicious

doesn't sound like too much went wrong

I can think of a couple things that could cause that:

partially frozen

bad therm readings

turkey was off center, leaning to one side such that the side that cooked was open (leg away from the body), but it was leaning on to the other side which was compacted (leg shoved tight against the body).



Was the wind blowing steady from the direction the side of which wasn't done as much? Just wondering, I think it's plausible though less likely than the other things.

Thanks for the response. I don't think the turkey was off center. I took a photo, and I'll post it later today or tomorrow. Perhaps the photo will reveal it's placement better than my memory.

I'm pretty sure it was fully thawed, but I admit that I"m always surprised how long it REALLY takes to thaw a big bird.

As far as the readings, well I'm using a quality instant read (a CNC or CDN something like that) recomended by America's Test Kitchen. Now the wind . . . well I surely can't say from which direction the wind was blowing. I just didn't didn't think to notice it.

I will definitely watch for these things next time. And I won't hesitate to finish in the oven.

I think I have a notion that in WRONG. I have this idea that I must cook it entirely on the smoker or somehow I failed to cook it properly. I know there are plenty items folks plan on pulling it from the smoker to finish either to save time or to crisp the meat.

One more thing though, perhaps realated to the wind. My smoker is just a little out of round. When I put the middle section on I have to turn it until I find the SPOT where it fits properly. Could that mean that air (wind) is more likely to be leaking in??

Thanks,

Bear

My first response would be don't measure in the thigh. It's the white meat we're most concerned with overcooking and drying out, so that's where I put my thermometer, "in the largest part of the breast, not touching bone", as they say. The thigh is a much harder place to get a good reading on, and, often, it doesn't end up mattering, as the thigh tends to cook more quickly than the breast, and therefore reaches acceptable temperature (for dark meat about 170) right about the same time the white meat reaches its own desired temp (about 160). Upon resting, after a high-heat cook, both will rise an additional 5-10°. As always, use an instant read to spot check any dark meat that looks suspect, noting that a bloody-looking thigh joint doesn't always mean undercooked.

As to cooker out-of-roundness, it could actually help in this case, the "air leak" allowing additional oxygen to the coals, helping achieve a higher cooker temp. Wind could be a problem, but you say that your remote reported 310, so it doesn't appear that it was depleting your heat significantly.

Bear, how did your "fire" look? I imagine it was pretty much engulfed evenly throughout the ring vs. one side higher than the other but did you happen to look at it? I'd be inclined to think it may have been more of a defrosting issue than anything else. I've done many cooks in the wsm and have never experienced a "hot spot."

EDIT: Doug and I posted at the same time and clearly he's "more sober than I." I agree with Doug to focus on the breast. However, what I do with my birds to promote even cooking is to ice down the breast for 30 min. while the bird is resting on the counter prior to cooking. This allows the legs and thighs to warm and the breast to remain at a lower temp. thus ensuring (in my case) breast and thigh to come to their respective temperatures at the same time. I've NEVER had "doneness" problem when using this method. YMMV.

"One likes to believe in the freedom of music"

I agree with Larry that it's possibly a defrosting issue. I also use the "ice pack on the breast" method so that the breast are colder than the dark meat which helps the whole bird cook evenly. When the temps are even, the legs and thighs take LONGER to cook than the breasts because of proximity to bone and the higher fat content.

Doug, do you ice the breasts? Is that why you stated that " the thigh tends to cook more quickly than the breast"?

quote:

Originally posted by J Pan:
Doug, do you ice the breasts? Is that why you stated that " the thigh tends to cook more quickly than the breast"?

No, and no. Maybe it's coincidence, but my observation has always been--contrary to "turkey science"-- that, given the same cook time, the dark meat reaches a higher internal temperature reading than does the white. Maybe it's something to do with brining, the smaller size of the birds I typically cook, or that I don't stuff, or ever truss the legs.

quote:

Originally posted by Doug D:

quote:

Originally posted by J Pan:
Doug, do you ice the breasts? Is that why you stated that " the thigh tends to cook more quickly than the breast"?

No, and no. Maybe it's coincidence, but my observation has always been--contrary to "turkey science"-- that, given the same cook time, the dark meat reaches a higher internal temperature reading than does the white. Maybe it's something to do with brining, the smaller size of the birds I typically cook, or that I don't stuff, or ever truss the legs.

I really noticed that made a difference early on with WSM turkeys ... I'll pin the wing tips to the body, I might even put the leg ends under the lower abdomen cavity skin, but I let the legs hang loose at the sides.

Thanks for all of the responses folks. Clearly a sign of a healthy and active forum.

First I think the fire was pretty even. I know the coals were all ashen and hot and evenly distributed before I added the top of the grill. I might sheepishly admit that I suspect the defrosting an issue as well. But I do think next time I'll rotate the bird at the first hour (as was suggested in the recipe).

I'll definitely keep in mind the idea of icing the breast. That sounds like a good idea. But I have not cooked enough turkey in my time to feel confident in the temps. What I know with a high heat cook, as with the oven, the temp will rise another 5-10 at rest. But I feel like I have to poke that thermo in different spots to make sure there aren't any cold spots.

And I want another shot at this. But next time I might just get a turkey roll w/ white and dark meat.

And we're big fans of cornish hens. Deep fried or blasted in the oven are two of our favorites. Well I'm looking forward to smoking some hens sometime soon.

Thanks,

Bear