it's thaT time again Easter in Canada. this year we have a 16.25 lb no-name Turkey. I've just defrosted and dressed it with a dry brine and will begin the cook approx. in 24 hours of marinating.
For this brine I am using 1 T Course sea salt, about 5 T kosher salt, about 2 t black pepper, 3 T brown sugar, 1 T dry italian seasoning, a little dry tyme, about 1 t sage, and my secret ingredient, 2 t baking powder. if I had some lemon zest I would have put that too, but I didn't have any. mixed it all up and rubbed it all over and inside and leave uncovered in fridge to dry out and for the marinade to do its thing.
Tomorrow before putting it on the grill, I may use a butter herb injection. the herb is Emerils essence.
My plan for the setup on the kamado is as follows. In lieu of using a drip pan:
the turkey will be on a rack in a pan. the pan will sit on the main grill. inside the pan will be chicken stock, liquid such as a little wine, veggies, e.g. oniion, grn pepper, garlic, apple, celery, carrot and aromatics e.g. italian seasoning. also I will add in the neck and tail and a couple pieces of fat cut from the birds skin. I will check the liquid level every 30 minutes, and give a quick baste now and then.
the pan liquid and melted drippings will be the base for the gravy. Because my pan is so big it will cover the holes so I won't really be able to use the upper grill at the same time. the entire grill will be dedicated only to the turkey and gravy. after it is done and while it is resting, I will continue to use the grill to do the rest of the side dishes such as some foil wrapped potatoes and a dish medly of root vegetables tossed with EVOO, salt, pepper, brown sugar, butter. and ambitious as it may sound I could possibly bake some cheese biscuits and coco brownies. I will try and take some pics. wish me luck.
man, that's GOOD! as the bbq pit boys say.