Turkey Smoking & Reheating Test Run with Q-View **Updated Sliced Pics***

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teeznuts

Master of the Pit
Original poster
Jun 18, 2011
1,065
21
Central Cali
I know alot of people here are doing turkeys for the holiday and many like myself haveb turkeys going different places that require them to be smoked prior to thanksgiving and reheated. I will be following the reheating suggestion from this thread by rbranster last year, a must read if you haven't seen it yet http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/100716/9-turkeys-for-thanksgiving-heavy-qview

 I decided to do a test run and post the results of the reheat for any that are curious. I'll be updating until the turkey is reheated and sliced with plenty of pics.

Started out with the AMNPS full of hickory. I want a heavy smoke flavor that won't be slowed down by the turkeys skin. I lit both ends to maximize the smoke.

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Went back inside and took the bird out of the fridge. It's been thawing for a couple days. This bird was not brined, just injected, rubbed and into the smoke. The weight of the bird is 9.6 lbs. I'm going with a whole breast since we're not big on dark meat plus I don't have to worry about the thighs temp catching up.

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Im injecting with a mix of EVOO and a mesquite seasoning I buy at costco. Since the seasoning tends to get clogged in the injector, I run it through my spice grinder first to powder it up a bit.

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makes quite a difference.

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I pull the skin back in order to inject and to make sure i get the rub applied really well. Here the bird is getting injected.

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Looks like it's wearing bikini bottoms
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rubbed with EVOO and the same seasoning as the inside without going through the grinder.

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Skin pulled back over to cover rub and keep in moisture. I "pin" the skin back in place with a few toothpicks.

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There's different opinions on this but I start with the breast down for the first 2 hours. I've heard it suggested that this may help keep the juices running into the breast. Who knows if there's any truth to it but it works for me.

The bird went into the smoker at 8:15 pm

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At 2 hours into the smoke I "flipped the bird"
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 so it was breast side up and I stuck a temp probe in each breast. It was taking on a nice color already.

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At 11:19pm 1 side had cleared the danger zone. At 11:22pm the other side cleared. so for the guys that like to calculate time, for a whole breast it took just over 3 hours to clear the DZ. At this point I rotated the bird to keep it cooking evenly.

At 12:12am 1 side was at 165 IT, the other side reached 165 at 12:18am. Just a hair over 4 hours from start to finish.

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I wrapped the bird in foil and after it cooled it went in the fridge for the night. This afternoon I will take it out and place it on this roasting rack I got at walmart for under $5. I will go with rbransters suggestion and pour some chicken stock in the bottom and probably cook at 250 for 2-3 hours until it comes back up to temp.

The rack insert sits approximately an inch up so it should keep the bird out of the stock during the reheat.

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I'll update with info on the reheat(for anyone interested) with sliced pics once it's done.

See ya this evening.

So this afternoon I took the turkey out of the fridge and placed it on the roasting rack/pan set from wally world. I poured a can of chicken stock in the bottom of the pan. The roasting rack kept the bird elevated above the liquid to avoid soggy meat.

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I probed the turkey and then covered the turkey and pan in aluminum foil creating a nice steam bath for the bird. I placed in the oven at 250 degrees. In 2 1/2 hours the bird was at 144 IT. I suppose I could've let the temp climb to 160/165 but I had already smoked it to 165 the night before. I was just reheating.

I pulled at 146 and after a short rest I carved it up. You can see that it was still moister than some turkeys on their first cook. I swear by the EVOO injections for a moist delicious turkey.

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Soooooo juicy! Its hard to believe this is the second round of heat for this bird.

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All sliced and ready for hot sammies.

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 Hope this helps anyone faced with cooking ahead and reheating questions.
 
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That is some good looking breast !!!  Real nice and a great reheat idea....I am sur that this will help lots of turkey smokers ...
 
Thanks. I gotta give rbranster the credit for the reheat idea. he walked me through his method and it worked like a charm.
 
Teez..Sounds like a great way to get an Intact Bird to the Table for the Big Show....Kudos to You and Ross...Thanks...JJ

Sorry Guys ...Based on recent USDA find I have to Retract the above statement highlighted in Blue... The KUDOS STILL APPLY!... YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!...JJ
 
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Teez - appreciate the step by step.  One thing I didn't see, what was your smoker temperature as you proceeded through the "danger zone"?

Thanks!
 
Hey Guys....I was poking around on the USDA website for Turkey Guidelines and found THIS!...
[h1]Can I cook a whole turkey ahead of time and reheat it later?[/h1]
Published 03/26/2009 05:46 AM | Updated 03/05/2010 01:55 PM

Can I cook a whole turkey ahead of time and reheat it later?

After cooking a whole turkey, USDA recommends cutting it into smaller pieces and refrigerating. Slice breast meat; legs and wings may be left whole. When reheating, always test reheated cooked turkey parts and sliced turkey in several places with a food thermometer to be sure they reach 165 °F throughout. The turkey should be steaming hot. If using a conventional oven, it is not safe to reheat any cooked meat or poultry in an oven set lower than 325 °F. Some microwaves ovens do not cook food evenly and cold spots develop. When reheating turkey in the microwave, cover and rotate once or twice during cooking.

For the Safety of the Members and anybody lurking...Based on the USDA Guidelines...Reheating Whole Birds at 250*F and Not reaching an Internal Temperature of 165*F...Is UNSAFE and should not be done...Chef JimmyJ

Sorry Guys...JJ
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Sorry JJ I just don't buy into that.

That up there wasn't reffering to whole birds.  >>>>> USDA recommends cutting it into smaller pieces and refrigerating. Slice breast meat; legs and wings may be left whole<<<<<<<

Is not warming up sliced turkey, taters and gravy to get to steaming hot 165 unsafe???

Thats a little over the top.

Gobble gobble!!!

  Craig
 
Sorry JJ I just don't buy into that.

That up there wasn't reffering to whole birds.  >>>>> USDA recommends cutting it into smaller pieces and refrigerating. Slice breast meat; legs and wings may be left whole
 
Also for whatever its worth this is not a whole bird its basically 2 breast halves on a carcass.

When I post a thread I'm simply showing how I did something. I'm sure the USDA wouldn't agree with me only cooking my beef roasts to 130-137 degrees but its a risk we take when we cook to our personal preference.
 
I don't  understand this hopefully someone can explain it. If originally you cook a bird and it goes from 40-140 in the 4 hours its considered safe. Now I put it in the fridge and I  want  to reheat it again weather its whole or sliced. If it goes past the  40-140 in four hours and you take it to over 165 why wouldn't it be safe?
 
Teez....You know on many occasions I have told You and Ross...How much I RESPECT you and think your work is Awesome...And have not now or any time in the past or future meant any Disrespect...But in the past couple of weeks the subject of Reheating Whole Turkeys and Whole Breasts has come up on many occasions and for every new or old member that asks there are a bunch of lurkers, that Read the posted answers and take the info as Gospel!  I have been told to follow USDA guidelines when making and responding to posts....Today I find the USDA and CDC States, Reheating Turkey at Temperatures under 325*F is Unsafe....So I posted the Guideline right from the USDA Site...Just to bring it to your attention...I hope this has not created any Bad Blood between us...JJ
 
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