Thanksgiving is only a few days away!
Here is a great way to cook that holiday bird.
The first step is to brine the turkey. The general rule is about an hour per pound. Brining it overnight works as well.
I used the Traeger Turkey Brine kit but there are many great brine recipes online. To add some more flavor, try replacing some of the water with bourbon, chicken stock or other liquids. There are lots of possibilities with your brine to make a more flavorful and juicy- I’d love to know what you use!
After brining, the next step is to remove the backbone. You can use a heavy sharp knife or a pair of kitchen shears.
After the backbone is removed you will want to lie the bird flat and press down to break the breastbone.
I seasoned the back of the bird first. Any of your favorite poultry rubs will work great. On the skin side, I rubbed a garlic herb butter all over then applied the rub.
I turned my Traeger on to 400*. I put the bird on for 30 minutes at this temp. Afterwards, I dropped the temp back down to 300* for the rest of the cook. It took me about 3.5 hours to cook my 14 pound bird to 165* internal temp.
Let rest for at least 20 minutes.
Carve and enjoy!
[…] Then flip it over on the board and push down super hard to crack the breast bone. It should flatten out pretty well, which will make for even cooking. This is called spatchcocking and once you’ve done it with a chicken or turkey, you’ll be amazed at how evenly and consistently you can cook your birds! Check out this blog with more detail about the technique. […]