Smoked Heritage Turkey (Southern Style)

Not too long ago, my friend Tammie asked me if I'd be interested in cooking one of the heritage turkeys that she had on her farm.  I JUMPED at the chance!!  A heritage turkey is a domestic turkey that has kept the historic characteristics that have been bred out of the majority of turkeys raised for consumption since the mid-20th century.

Modern domestic "Butterballs" have been fed, raised, and processed with genetically modified food, chemicals, and methods for generations now, and they barely even resemble their forefathers.  If you want to pump the brakes on this over-processed poultry, and want to try some honest-to-goodness "old school" bird, then pay attention!  This bird was delicious and it was packed with wholesale wholesome goodness, but there are a couple of things to be aware of if you want to get the most out of one when  you set it on your table!  Let's do this:

You Will Need:

• For the Brine
• 1.5 Gallons of clean water
• 10lbs bag of ice
• 3 Cups of Kosher Salt
• 2 Cups of Brown Sugar
• 3 Oranges, cut into chunks, squeezed into the brine, peel and all
• 3 Tbsp Peppercorns
• 3 Tbsp Chili Powder or Red Pepper Flakes
• For the Bird
• Olive Oil
• Creole Seasoning

First things first, this turkey is NOT processed, injected with salt solution, brined, and frozen "for your convenience."  When you go to the farm to pick up your bird, there's a very good chance you'll find it hanging from a hook, freshly butchered, plucked, and ready for you to take over.  Forget about the giblets because these birds were raised on a farm with access to gravel, sand, and other "goodies" that they stuff into their gizzards that make human consumption impossible!  The rest of the bird, however, is a real treasure so when you arrive to pick up the bird, you should be ready!

What does that mean?  Well, it means you'll need a vessel to carry the bird in, and since it's fresh, you should be ready to cook it in the next day or so!  Therefore, mix all of the brine ingredients together in a pot on your stove.  Dissolve all of the salt and sugar, and let it simmer for 15 minutes or so, to wake up the orange peel and the spices.  Let it cool and pour it into a cooler with a good airtight lid!  Buy a 10lb bag of ice and head to the farm!

At the farm, grab the turkey and lay him (or her) directly into the cooler, and dump on your bag of ice!  The bird should be covered.  Close the lid, pay the farmer, give her a hug, and head back home.  Leave the bird in the brine right there in the cooler for 24 hours!  The ice will keep the bacteria away and the brine will season the bird.  You might want to check on it every 8 hours or so, and turn it, so that all of the parts stay submerged.

With the brining over, after 24 hours, it's time to prep and cook!

One word of caution before we begin... if you have any phobias or misgivings about touching raw poultry, you'd better get over it.  You're about to go full "butcher" on your turkey.  You're going to get gooey, bloody, and dirty.  It will all be OK, trust me!  You have soap and water and a sink, and it will all be over soon enough!  Now, muster up some courage.  Grab your shears, lay the bird, breast side down, onto a cutting board, and snip out the spine.  Take your time, and cut along both edges of the backbone.  You need strong fingers, so you may need some help with this part.

Now, while the turkey is still sitting with the breast side down, use your hands to flatten or "open" the turkey.  I like to remove the breast bone (or "keel" bone).  This is a thick bone that runs right down the middle of the turkey, between the breasts.  To remove it, you will need to use a filet knife to cut the breast meat away from it, and you'll need some strong fingers to pull it up and out.  Removal of the breast bone it not necessary, but it will make carving much easier, later.

Once the spine is out, the hard work is done.  Cut the "leg-thigh" quarters away from the breasts (this is easy since there are no bones to cut), and cut the wings off as well.  You should have:  one large "twin breast" section, two wings, a left leg-thigh quarter, and a right leg-thigh quarter.  Arrange them in a pan, starting with the breasts first (as shown).  The breasts, leg quarters, and wings should all fit into a large roasting pan like a jigsaw puzzle.  Rub all of the parts of the bird with a generous supply of Olive Oil, then sprinkle with some southern creole seasoning.






Now, set the pan aside and wash your hands, wrists, elbows, shears, your counter-top, and anything else you put your turkey-hands on!  Use soap, Clorox Wipes, and dry everything with a clean towel.  Take a deep breath, pour yourself a glass of wine and have a look at what you've done!  You've prepped a bird, restaurant style, in such a fashion that you'll be able to cook it in half the time, cover it with foil, transport it to your venue, and serve it to the amazement of your guests, all without getting a single other thing dirty!  Relax, the hard part is over!!

The rest is easy.  It's time to slow-cook this bird to perfection.  Jam a temperature probe into the deepest part of the thigh, and set the alarm for 170 degrees.  I put mine in a smoker (next to a ham, to keep it company), and I brought the heat up to 250 degrees.  Yes, TWO hundred fifty.  Why so low?  Well, you've dis-assembled the bird, so much more of the surface is exposed to the heat.  We don't want to blast the outside with so much heat that it begins to lose moisture.  Think more along the lines of "Crock Pot braising" and less "heat blasting."  This 22lb turkey was done in under 5 hours with the roasting temperature set to 250 degrees.

When it's done, pull it out and cover it tightly with foil to let it rest.  Allow 30-45 minutes for a good rest.  Carving is super-duper simple!  Just pull the legs up and they will fall away from the thigh all by themselves.  SUPER tasty!  Separate the breasts and cut them laterally.  Notice that there is a substantial layer of fat on a heritage bird!  IT WAS DELICIOUS and it keeps the meat super moist!  This turkey was entirely different than a "modern" store-bird.  How?  IT HAD FLAVOR!!  It was very rich, very moist, and like no other turkey I've baked, smoked, fried, or roasted!  My guests (14 of them) simply annihilated this turkey!  It was completely gone and eaten in under 20 minutes!  We didn't need gravy, we didn't need stuffing, and we didn't even need a knife!  The pieces just fell apart and couldn't have been any tastier!