Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Cookin the Turkey

Wife made a big batch tonight that looks just like that.
Rained and cold all day and it hit the spot!

I hear ya on that

Goya dark reds.

That looks more than good.

Throw them in a pot of water, alive...

In the brine here in a bit, hope to be able to get home early and put it on a tray to dry in the beer fridge overnight.

Then herb butter under skin and onto the smoke. Pre-ordered a 15-18 lb bird, farmer showed up with a 25 lb'er. Lots of leftovers.

Got cornbread made earlier for cornbread, oyster, chestnut dressing.

Fresh bird, brine overnight, slow roast in the smoke in my $99.95 Weber kettle grill. Homemade slightly spiced cornbread stuffing, garlic mashed, assorted appetizers including venison carpaccio, little venison meatballs with special secret recipe sauce, assorted cheeses, desert, as always, my wife’s apple pie. Wine and liquor for the imbibers (everybody but me). It will be a nice day.

Ham

Hard pass here we’re doing a brisket.

Might be Waffle House.

MIL is supposed to do the cooking. She can't remember what year it is.

I'm sure she won't send us all to the ER......

I may be feeling under the weather, sorry I just can't eat anything mums.

Wet bourbon/maple brine for 18 hours (Steven Raichlen recipe). Then spatchcocked and hickory smoked indirect for 4 hours on a ceramic egg. As we get closer to dinner time, I'll increase the grill temp and transition to grilling, to get it to the optimum temp for serving. Rest it 20 minutes before carving.

4 years straight, I've hit it out of the park.

Yes. That’s why it chilli instead of f’n soup. Lol

How do you ordinarily make the gravy?

Now that's a loaded question....

Inject it with Creole butter overnight and fry in peanut oil at 350 degrees for 3 1/2 minutes per pound.

Drive 14 miles to Mom's.

My wife and our youngest daughter both offered to do it, or help.
Mom is gonna be 85 next month, they know it's tough on her.
She is a tough old bird, and feels like letting them do it/help is her
getting feeble. She ain't going down without a fight!


She will soak it in a (cheap) bourbon brine, then make darn sure it's cooked enough.
The gravy will be good, and necessary!

Didn’t have enough store points for my free frozen bird, so I bought a “fresh” one. Store birds are, if you read the labels, already juiced up by the packers. I’ll throw it in a cooking bag, maybe with a halved apple inside like I used to do with pheasants, and cook it at 300 until the button pops and maybe a bit more. Never fails. Dressing, the dreaded GB casserole, and a few mashed taters.

Dressing is made in a pan, though when cooked inside the bird it picks up a lot of good juices. I make it soppy wet, then roast it covered and brown it off for a bit.

Dessert is Appleton Estate 12y.o. if the store has it today….

Spatchcocked and smoked here as well!

Oven inside a paper grocery bag. Just like grandma did it her whole life.

The turkey is just for decoration, it’s sucks no matter what
Pul a few pieces off and dip in mashed potatoes

Give the rest to the barn cats outside and watch the skippity paps and slaps break out