- Sep 17, 2015
- 15
- 10
I have a 20 pound turkey that I wanted to smoke next week. I began reading on here , looking for an estimated time to expect. That is when I started seeing the warnings about the 40-140 in 4 hours danger zone. I read so many threads about this that I forgot why I started searching to begin with. It appears 50/50 opinion about the "danger zone" , some say they have been smoking 20 pound birds for 30 years and never had an issue and others say they got sick after one attempt.
The settings on my MES40 will go up to 275 , so I'm thinking that if I set it at 275 it , might reach 265 or 270.....maybe. In the end I will smoke it until it reaches the desired temp but can someone please tell me how long to expect it to get to temp using 275 as my goal box temp for a 20 pound bird?
I might try spatchcocking for the first time , so what temps and time should I set as my goal if I try it this way as well? Either way I pick to do it , the turkey will be brine the day before.
Thanks for the input
Rick
The settings on my MES40 will go up to 275 , so I'm thinking that if I set it at 275 it , might reach 265 or 270.....maybe. In the end I will smoke it until it reaches the desired temp but can someone please tell me how long to expect it to get to temp using 275 as my goal box temp for a 20 pound bird?
I might try spatchcocking for the first time , so what temps and time should I set as my goal if I try it this way as well? Either way I pick to do it , the turkey will be brine the day before.
Thanks for the input
Rick