Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Roasting Wild Turkeys

For whatever reason, turkey hunting never piqued my interest. That changed over the last couple of years and this spring I decided to make an effort to kill a turkey. I killed my first bird, a young Jake yesterday morning after two or three failed and somewhat embarrassing hunts that afforded me some great lessons in turkey hunting. It was very exciting to finally call in a kill a turkey after several failed attempts this spring.

I’m not much for leaving stuff like legs or wings for the coyotes and pigs, even though I’ve heard all the stories about tough legs and wings on wild birds. I took the time a pluck and gut the bird and quickly got it cooled on ice. I’ve got it in a brine solution now, but I haven’t decided how I’m going to cook it.

I’d really like to roast it whole, but all I hear is how difficult it is to roast a whole wild turkey and how you can never get the legs and breast roasted properly together. There is a roast turkey recipe in my Meateater cookbook that I’m probably going to try. But before I do that, I thought I’d ask the campfire faithful. What say ye? Ever roasted a wild turkey and liked it? If you’ve ever tried the roast turkey recipe I’m referring to, I’d appreciate your thumbs up or down on that recipe in particular. Thanks.

Good luck- - - - -try the same recipe on a pair of worn out work boots- - - - -they'll be easier to chew. Deep fried turkey breast nuggets are pretty good- - - -pressure cook the rest and feed it to the dog if you've got something against keeping the buzzards and possums healthy.

The breasts are the only edible part, the rest is muscle. Remember, wild turkey's are working birds as opposed to pen-raised turkeys.

Only if you don't know how to cook 'em:

https://www.riflesandrecipes.com/wild-game-recipes/turkey-recipes/

A baking bag works very well for tame and wild turkeys.

I roast whole wild turkeys on my Weber kettle charcoal grill and they’re great.

How I do it:

First, gut the bird immediately after shooting it, but leave the feathers on. Like any kind of wild meat. You have to hang it. I fill one of the plastic grocery bags with ice, pull it up into the body cavity and pull the bag handles up and out through the opening I make over the top of the breast and loop them over the bird’s head and neck, then hang the bird by the head in the coolest place I can find until it comes out of rigor, when you can move a leg or wing easily.

Next I pluck the bird.

When it’s all plucked, trimmed and cleaned up, I brine it over night.

Gently work some soft garlic butter under the skin, oil on the outside, tie the legs up close to the body and roast it to an internal temp of about 150 -160.

You figure out your own variations based on what you’ve got to work with, but the important thing is gut and cool quick, hang until it’s out of rigor and brine it.

Just cutting the breast out and tossing the rest is akin to just cutting the backstraps out of a deer.

Legs separated and placed inside body cavity, bake at 1/2 temp and 1/2 time as for a tame bird. I skin mine and put as much apple as will fit in with the legs and cove the carcass with a few cabbage leaves, it works for me.

Foster Brooks could add a bit of levity to the proceedings.

It cute that in your child like understanding of game meat you think a turkey breast is not "muscle".

Do you imagine the breast is made of lemon sherbert?

As said above the legs need some slow cooking or better yet pressure cooking but there is some decent eating there if you spend some time learning.

Don't do it whole.

Put legs and thighs in crackpot, with aromatics and stock and wine, etc. and cook for hours. Shred meat and make whatever you would with Shredded bird.

The breast can be roasted, grilled, fried.

I skin them ,soak in brine overnight , and smoke them whole .

I bone all of my wild turkeys out. Grind it into burger and make turkey burgers or sausage.

If I want to roast a turkey, butterball is my preferred.

Agree with separating the breast from the legs/thighs. We always cut the breast in strips and fry. Legs and thighs get deboned, marinated and cooked on the grill.

Smoked one wild bird. My lab got loose and robbed it out of the cooler on the back porch. I guess it was good but too much trouble.

I've done them many ways. The key to roasting whole birds is to introduce moisture as they are very lean. Cavity filled with apples and onions, bottom of roasting pan with white wine, etc , raw bacon strips draped over breast, butter under the skin, roasting pan with the lid on until the last half an hour, etc etc. All ways to keep it moist. I would only roast a large tom and not a skinny Jake.

Alternately you can breast them out, brine the breasts, roll those up and tie with butcher twine, then slow smoke those on Apple wood. You might finish these in the oven to get the internal temperature where you need it.. but this makes delicious smoked turkey sandwiches and is very moist.

You can take the legs off and slow cook them in stock and onions and celery until the meat falls off of the bones. Separate out all the meat and then fry this as you would carnitas with cumin and some other spices. This makes phenomenal tacos. I've also used this meat to make tamales and it's delicious.

I used to love to roast a big Tom with stuffing including fresh morels... Mmmmmm

One of the best wild turkeys I've ever eaten was on Thanksgiving Day my sophomore year in college.

I was 20, was hunting and trapping all weekend with two buds and some suds. It was colder than phouc that weekend.

Breaded and fried it; cast iron (with a lid).

Probably wasn't grade A, but perspective, age and circumstances has never produced a better tasting turkey.

Now I'd probably toss it on a trivet in a big enough covered Dutch oven with beer or seasoned stock underneath on slow; then uncover, butter the skin with some Old Bay or Lowry's and broil for some crisp.

Longarm, sounds like you have a great method. I’ve cooked a few on the Weber with charcoal with mixed results. I hope I can remember your method if I ever get another wild bird.

As mentioned,baking bag,lots of bacon,stuff the inerds with apples..
Depending on the bird,we will just breast them out and the legs and wings go into a stock pot.
Worth the effort I believe.

The legs are all stringy cartilage. I hear people cook them in a slow or pressure cooker. After many tries at cooking one whole, I now just bone out the breast and feed the wildlife with the rest.

Interesting. I seem to remember reading about people doing something similar with pheasants but IIRC, they hung them for several days. Makes total sense. Back when I hunted a lot, I would put deer quarters in a cooler with ice or in a fridge for about a week before cutting up but never would have thought to age a bird.

I have had lots of good wild turkey and 1 so chewy it couldn't be eaten.
I have had it Roasted and cooked on a charcoal grill that was great.
I have had the thighs and breast fried that was great. I have never had a good drumstick off one.