Turkey Skin

[ArchStanton]

Just joined. I have a question about smoking turkey. The meat tastes good and is moist. However, the skin is like rubber. Any tips on how to get the skin crispy?

 

[SecondHandSmoker]

If your smoker is able to reach 325°-350°, then crank up the heat.
If not, you can place the bird under the oven broiler for a few minutes.

 

[912smoker]

Although I love the skin, Mark @ Swine Life just did a video for a naked turkey cook that sure looks good !

 

[rc4u]

i just dont eat skin. but ya spatch n put on grill with chunks on burners it will look good. leave center burner off

 

[SmokinEdge]

Smoke the bird as you normally do then towards the end, hit it with a torch. The skin will crisp and shrink. It will tear in places but you control the crispness of the skin with the flame. It work fairly well for me.

 

[DougE]

Smoke the bird as you normally do then towards the end, hit it with a torch. The skin will crisp and shrink. It will tear in places but you control the crispness of the skin with the flame. It work fairly well for me.

Huh, that never even crossed my mind. Seems like that should work equally well when smoking skin on split chicken breasts.

 

[SmokinEdge]

Huh, that never even crossed my mind. Seems like that should work equally well when smoking skin on split chicken breasts.

It works, but it’s not the end all be all answer. It does make the skin crispy, but timing is important. To late in the process and you have crispy rubber. To early and you have smokey crispy junk that just needs pulled off and tossed. Keeping the skin a little moist throughout the cook helps then torch toward the end. Not a fool proof method but one that does make the skin eatable once you figure it out.

 

[Quentin Bengel]

Sorry to hijack your thread but it’s on the same topic. I’ve heard cranking the heat up at the end but typically the skin gets extremely dark unless it gets a tent earlier on in the process. My question is if i smoke at 325, tent the turkey, then uncover and crank temp up to 375 but will it work and still have good smoke flavor if most of the cook time is while tented and then finished at the high temp?

 

[Mr. Zorg]

FWIW, IME which smoke wood is used, and how much smoke wood is used (except for 100% stick burning) has an influence on how dark the skin gets.

When I was still smoking turkeys for holidays, I used a Bayou Classic beer can turkey rack and used my bullet smoker with the turkey upright and on the lower food grate with no upper food grate. My fuels were primarily charcoal, either lump or 100% hardwood briquettes like Royal Oak Chef's Select, and a few chunks of smoke wood in a modified Minion Method. I kept the dome thermometer in the 325°F + or - 15°F and obtained juicy meat, crispy skin, and not too dark skin mostly by using just a few wood chunks. My favorite for color was wild cherry, but I've used mesquite as well.

The suggestion to practice whatever method anyone chooses using a chicken or two prior to the turkey cook session is a solidly smart idea.

 

[chef jimmyj]

Smoking at 325°F should give crisp skin, no temp change needed. However, that skin Must be as Dry as possible to start. Brine, Inject, whatever, on Monday/Tuesday, then Refer the bird, Uncovered and on a rack, until Thursday...JJ

 

[mike243]

I cheat 2 hours in the smoker at 180 or so then into a cooking bag and into the oven for the finish, you could skip the bag if you prefer the crispest skin.

 

[zwiller]

Smoking at 325°F should give crisp skin, no temp change needed. However, that skin Must be as Dry as possible to start. Brine, Inject, whatever, on Monday/Tuesday, then Refer the bird, Uncovered and on a rack, until Thursday...JJ

THIS; MANY ways to approach this issue. Some guys even remove the skin. Best hot smoked turkey I ever had was in Texas and no skin to be found.

 

[pineywoods]

I'm with Jimmy, make sure the skin is dry, I usually smoke at lower temp for an hour or two then up to 325-350 till done

 

[thirdeye]

I'll be the odd man out.... just remove the skin and you have no worries. Many barbecue joints in Texas serve slices of skinless breasts, usually a tick heavy on the pepper.





The breasts are skinless, the thighs are skin-on.

If you didn't know these were skinless, it's hard to tell until you bite.

 

[zwiller]

I'll be the odd man out.... just remove the skin and you have no worries. Many barbecue joints in Texas serve slices of skinless breasts, usually a tick heavy on the pepper.

Oh man that looks good! Did you do a write up for that? Maybe I missed it. Would love info, especially the brine. The stuff I had (Rudy's) I think had some flavor like garlic/onion/etc in there.

 

[motocrash]

I'll be the odd man out.... just remove the skin and you have no worries.

Absolutely. I have been doing 7-8 lb whole turkey breasts for years without the skin. I think they turn out better than with the skin.

 

[DougE]

I'll be the odd man out.... just remove the skin and you have no worries.

Looks great !! I also remove the skin at least some of the time.

 

[schlotz]

Ok, there is a way with guaranteed results but it's an entirely different method. Use the rotisserie on your grill (remember to NOT stuff the bird) and use a smoker tube w/pellets. Run the grill (~ 350-375º) with indirect heating, ie no heat source directly under the bird. A full 12" tube of pellets will last the 4-6 hours it takes to get the bird done (depending on size). Result is a smoked & self basted moist bird with yummy crisp skin.

 

[thirdeye]

Oh man that looks good! Did you do a write up for that? Maybe I missed it. Would love info, especially the brine. The stuff I had (Rudy's) I think had some flavor like garlic/onion/etc in there.

For the top 4 photos I used a low salt version of Pop's brine for 15 hours which helps with moisture retention and gives poultry a slight pink tint. I either smoke until 140° and wrap with a little butter and broth, or smoke until 130°ish provided the color is good, and sous vide finish @ 147° for 90 minutes. This is the brine amounts:
1 gallon of water
125 grams canning salt
25 grams white sugar
25 grams brown sugar
20 grams Cure #1 (heaping tablespoon)
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
15 to 24 hr cure time

For the bottom pictures I injected Kosmo's Chicken Soak mixed with apple juice. The breasts were smoked until 140°, and the thighs to ~170°. Both were foiled in a butter broth in separate packages. I pulled the breast at 157° and the thighs at ~180°. I wanted the thigh meat pulled.