Turkey! Injected and Smoked

We did an injected and smoked turkey for Thanksgiving! Short video. A few tips and thought process on how I do it. Hope you continue to find things to be thankful for each day! ❤️ Take advantage of the categories and lists that I have assembled and reviewed for top recommendations in the kitchen. Kitchen Best Buys http://bit.ly/KitchenBestBuys

Best Grilled Turkey Burger

Turkey burgers can be a hard thing. Some brands grind it to fine and the texture in your mouth can be dry and mealy. To conquer this, people like to add bread crumbs or eggs to bind them. Or trap moisture in. I use a brand from Aldis that has good consistency. I do not use eggs or breadcrumbs. This allows more people to eat. Sometimes Turkey lacks that good OOMF of meatiness that a beef burger gives. To add a level of that back into the burger, I have a few ingredient suggestions in the video. Keep the Turkey mixture as cold as you can before grilling or pan-frying to keep it firm. But don't be afraid of a loose mixture. Work fast, patty quick, get it on the heat...it will get firm with cooking. In this video, I realized I am not that glamorous to look at. That's ok. It's 2020 yall need something to laugh at! LOL

Great Turkey

[Cooking in a commercial kitchen...]

Jenny-O has Turkey breasts in bulk usually coming in foil wrap at 8 to 12 pounds a piece. 2 in a case. Best bet is to defrost them in the fridge 3 to 4 days in advance.

After defrosting I would NOT cook them as recommended inside the foil. Cut the plastic and unwrap the foil to find two large turkey breasts that you can separate and lay flat on a sheet tray. You can fit a whole case on one full size sheet tray this way.

I use sea salt (although any will do) and a garlic and herb seasoning that has no salt added. I cover the top of them heavily with the garlic and herb mix.[I think I discussed this in the past but I prefer to control the salt AND you waste money buying pre-mixed seasoning and herbs because the first ingredient is salt, which is dirt cheap. Sometimes you want to heavily season but you can't because the salt in the mix will overpower it.]

Cooking the turkey in a convection oven on 350 to 375 (depends on which way your oven 'leans' toward on keeping good heat when the door is opened) for almost 2 hours or internal temp is 160. The weight of the Turkey will make the internal temp rise at least 5 more degrees when you put in on the rack to rest. AND YES, please let this meat rest!!! Easier cutting/slicing and less juices will run out.

Some juice will still escape when you cut it but If you use a little trick, like slicing the turkey on a cutting board that is laying inside a sheet tray, then you can pour the juice back over the meat.

Injected & Smoked!

 Backup to Thanksgiving 2011...I usually don't follow traditional foods for Holidays but this year family was coming over and they were all bringing a few dishes to round out the meal and I would do a flavorful Turkey with a little twist.

So, I decided to simmer up some chicken broth with a few more herbs and spices that I liked (and some onion and garlic). Then I strained all the pieces out which I later rubbed into the skin of the Turkey.  I chilled the liquid then went in search of my meat injector.

Two Turkey's For the Price of One!

Using the liquid I created I pierced the skin and went into the muscle and continually forced the liquid into the turkey at several points in muscles all over the Turkey with my big commercial needle for meat.

Cooking it overnight in my smoker (standard $59 to $69 electric smoker sold at department stores everywhere) with apple wood chips.  Ranging in heat about 200F to 220F thru-out the night for about 10 hours.  The turkey's weight was about 16 pounds before cooking.

That's it.  I took it out and let it rest...later carving it for dinner.  Oh man was it moist delicious!  I have a house full of guests AND guys at work who got to eat the leftovers that can be my witnesses!

Breakfast at Cracker Barrel!