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How do you guys cook your wild turkey? Anyone got a good recipe?

Chicken Fried!!!

Cut strips from the breast. Pound them thin and keep them covered to prevent drying out. Dredge them in flour, milk, flour, milk, flour and fry in very hot peanut oil.

Have the cream gravy ready!

Pan fried just like you would do if you are doing Southern fried chicken. Butter milk wash and batter, deep fried.

A trick when you shoot a turkey is to use a .22lr. Wound only let'em flop around and his buddies will do the rest of the work for you as to picking. Fun to watch.

The ex-old-lady's kids called 'em Turkey Nuggets. Even better than store bought....they'd drive me nuts asking me to shoot some more birds.

If you want to cook it whole, cook it in a oven bag with 1 cup butter and 1/2 cup cooking Sherri, basting it a few times during the cook. Ice the breast with a freezer baggie of ice before cooking for 20 minutes. This will start the breast off cooler. This helps get the breast done at the same time the thighs finish. (Breast tends to cook faster than the thigh normally). Slide herb seasoned butter up under the skin of the breast as well. Pull out of the oven when the turkey breast hits 170-175. It will continue to rise in temp a few degrees after pulling from oven. Let it rest for about 20 minutes, then enjoy!

The best I have found is cut the breast into slices and then pound out very thin.Bread lightly with flour eggwash and bread crumbs then fry in butter. Better than any wiener schientzle I have ever had. Some homemade spaetzle on the side and you have some great eating. I only season with salt and pepper sometimes a touch of fresh squeezed lemon just before serving. I want to taste the meat. If I am going to cover something in gravy I will stick with chicken or something else that has no flavor of it's own. I save the rest of the bird for stock. I turkey carcass plus a bout a 1/2 dozen pheasant carcasses make excellent stock for soup.

The last one I cooked had a smallish breast. I just removed the legs and started them first, then put the rest of the bird in. I fill the cavity with apples and celery, and baste it often.

Always comes out ok.

Cut the breat cross grain and batter and fry. Use the legs for soups or salad.
The only time I tried to bake a wild turkey it tasted great but chewed like shoe leather!

I seem to have pretty good luck with them. I use a lower heat than I do with a commercial bird, and baste often and well.

Whole bird, rubbed, injected and deep fried in peanut oil.

Can't beat it!

The 26 lb breeder tom I shot even smelled like a boar hog. Cooked a leg in crock pot for 24 hrs before throwing it away. The rest made excellent Jerky.

About two fingers in a glass, warmed by a fire with a good book & a dog...

Mebe, if'n she behaves, a good woman also. (Aint' found her yet!)

Pat

Last spring when I got my bird, I cut it right down the breast bone and across the back, then put it on my grill bone side down for about an hour and 20 minutes (low heat), rotating it to cook it evenly (not flipping it). When I checked the meat after the time, it was a little under done, so I then flipped it over and let it cook meat side down for about 12 minutes.

Very tender, very tasty.

That's pretty much been my experience with the bigger tom's as well. If you want a whole bird for the smoker or fryer, shoot a jake in the spring or even a good sized hen in the fall.

Mike

I like Pats idea. I've eaten the deep fried turkey a couple times. Once it was really good and the next the dogs wouldn,t of eaten it. I've had the most consistancy with the turkey nugget method. cut the breast into 1 inch chunks, roll in a shore lunch mix and then deep fry them in a fry daddy.

Salt & pepper bird. Set aside.

Dig a large & semi-deep hole and fill with your favorite wood. Being from Texas, I like mesquite. Burn till there is nothing but coals.

Locate a piece of cedar wood approx. 8" long by 2" or 3" dia. Remove all bark. Soak this wood in your favorite alcoholic beverage (overnight if possible).

Insert treated cedar in bird cavity. Wrap bird in WET burlap bags. Place in your pit of coals and cover with dirt. Let cook for 8-10 hours.

Dig up bird and remove burlap and cedar. Be careful not to get burned.

Now throw away the bird and eat the cedar.

If you don't like cedar try this:

Chicken fry the breast. Legs and thighs go into a pot of peppers and assorted spices. Boil till done. Put meat in a food processor. Add pecans, celery, onions and mayo. Makes a great sandwich spread.

BP...

For doing the whole bird I like to bake them in an oven bag with a few strips of bacon wrapped on the breast and toothpicked in place. After I cut the meat from the breast and thighs I put the rest in a pot cover with water and make soup out of it. Damn good!

I have a terrific recipe that uses ground turkey. It is a casserole and it is tremendous. I will never cook wild turkey any other way again.

Each half of breast meat does one meal. Two birds, 4 awesome meals.