The vacations bring with them thoughts of carving and serving delicious turkey dinners to your family and friends. Tradition has its fans, but perhaps this year you’d like to try a twist to your turkey recipe.
If you’ve got a gas grill and enjoy the smoky flavor of grilled meats, why not try barbecuing your turkey this year? It’s not only possible, it is rather easy. And it delivers a tasty tempered bird to your table. And , having the turkey on the grill instead of the stove leaves you with all the room you need to prepare the rest of your dinner in less time. When you’re prepared to buy your turkey, the first thing to consider is the size of your grill. You do not need a bird that is so enormous that it can’t fit on the grill rack.
Ideally, the turkey you select should sit on the griddle and the lid should close without touching the bird. If this isn’t likely, don’t worry, you can still griddle your turkey. You’ll need some heavy duty alcan foil and either a V shaped grill stand or another metal cooking instrument that you can safely use to prop open the lid of the grill. Prepare and stuff the turkey as you normally would.
Place it on the griddle so that it is positioned over one burner that you can turn off. Turn that burner off and the other burner or burners on. Since you can’t actually “flip” a turkey, you require the turkey to cook by indirect heat, not by a direct flame beneath it. You get the hazy flavour by employing wood chips. If you have not used wood chips before, they’re easy to use. You soak them in water so that as they dry out from the heat of the griddle, they’ll release a seasoned smoke that infuses the turkey.
You can purchase a tray that is designed for putting wood chips on the griddle or you can make one yourself from heavy duty tin foil. Take the wood chips out of the water and put them into your tray. Place the tray on the griddle over the lit burner. Next, close the lid fully if at all possible. If not possible, prop the lid up just enough to keep it from touching the turkey.
Then cover the remainder of the opening with alcan foil. If heat gets out you will probably have to cook the turkey longer. However, the foil creates enough of a barrier so the smoke is kept circulating inside the grill and flavoring the turkey. The time required to cook the turkey will change depending on whether or not you were able to close your grill completely.
If you can, it will take less time. If you can not, you may need to extend the heat on the other burner or burners to try and up for the lost heat by having to prop open the grill. After 2 hours, revolve the turkey 180 degrees to help guarantee even cooking. As with any system of cooking chickens, it is important to make sure that the internal temperature of the meat reaches 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Ideally you need to employ a beef thermometer to monitor the temperature as you cook. If you don’t have one, then you’ll have to check the readiness by poking the thigh with a fork or skewer. If the juices that run out are clear and the turkey has turned a nice golden-brown color, then you’re prepared to remove it from the griddle. Consider glazing the turkey with a sauce you use on other meats, or potentially adding barbecue sauce to the conventional cranberry sauce as a seasoning. Don’t be afraid to experiment - enjoy the new twist you’re putting on an old family tradition.
Do you enjoy cooking and learning more about food? If yes, you may also visit cooking101.org to learn more about the many different kinds of recipes and cooking ideas that will be useful next time you are in the kitchen. Also, you might want to check out stuffing turkey.