Whopping 26 lb bird!
Dry brined 2 days with sea salt and fresh sage/thyme/black pepper salt. Did not rinse. On a rack with carrots and onions under 225F super smoke for 1 hour. 425F for 2.5 hrs until breast was 150F, then turned off and left in residual heat until carved a couple hrs later.
The carrots/onion were charred to a crisp but made a tasty drippings to amend the gravy. I made the gravy separately on stove top – basically deeply browned the neck and back piece and simmered for 3 hrs.

Bird was a big hit as usual. Not super Smokey, as it’s not for everyone, but just enough for that wood fired taste. Moist and not overcooked throughout. It was maybe a tad less juicy than usual which I think is a result of the breast being so thick and variable temps through it. I think the dry brining helps a lot with moisture and flavour. Still great, simple and quick.

Sorry, no pic of the sliced meat – too excited to dig in!

Leftovers for days!

by Did_I_Err

2 Comments

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