# Turkey Smoking & Reheating Test Run with Q-View **Updated Sliced Pics***



## teeznuts (Nov 21, 2011)

I know alot of people here are doing turkeys for the holiday and many like myself haveb turkeys going different places that require them to be smoked prior to thanksgiving and reheated. I will be following the reheating suggestion from this thread by rbranster last year, a must read if you haven't seen it yet http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/100716/9-turkeys-for-thanksgiving-heavy-qview

 I decided to do a test run and post the results of the reheat for any that are curious. I'll be updating until the turkey is reheated and sliced with plenty of pics.

Started out with the AMNPS full of hickory. I want a heavy smoke flavor that won't be slowed down by the turkeys skin. I lit both ends to maximize the smoke.








Went back inside and took the bird out of the fridge. It's been thawing for a couple days. This bird was not brined, just injected, rubbed and into the smoke. The weight of the bird is 9.6 lbs. I'm going with a whole breast since we're not big on dark meat plus I don't have to worry about the thighs temp catching up.







Im injecting with a mix of EVOO and a mesquite seasoning I buy at costco. Since the seasoning tends to get clogged in the injector, I run it through my spice grinder first to powder it up a bit.







makes quite a difference.







I pull the skin back in order to inject and to make sure i get the rub applied really well. Here the bird is getting injected.







Looks like it's wearing bikini bottoms 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	











rubbed with EVOO and the same seasoning as the inside without going through the grinder.







Skin pulled back over to cover rub and keep in moisture. I "pin" the skin back in place with a few toothpicks.







There's different opinions on this but I start with the breast down for the first 2 hours. I've heard it suggested that this may help keep the juices running into the breast. Who knows if there's any truth to it but it works for me.

The bird went into the smoker at 8:15 pm







At 2 hours into the smoke I "flipped the bird"
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





  so it was breast side up and I stuck a temp probe in each breast. It was taking on a nice color already.







At 11:19pm 1 side had cleared the danger zone. At 11:22pm the other side cleared. so for the guys that like to calculate time, for a whole breast it took just over 3 hours to clear the DZ. At this point I rotated the bird to keep it cooking evenly.

At 12:12am 1 side was at 165 IT, the other side reached 165 at 12:18am. Just a hair over 4 hours from start to finish.













I wrapped the bird in foil and after it cooled it went in the fridge for the night. This afternoon I will take it out and place it on this roasting rack I got at walmart for under $5. I will go with rbransters suggestion and pour some chicken stock in the bottom and probably cook at 250 for 2-3 hours until it comes back up to temp.

The rack insert sits approximately an inch up so it should keep the bird out of the stock during the reheat.













I'll update with info on the reheat(for anyone interested) with sliced pics once it's done.

See ya this evening.

So this afternoon I took the turkey out of the fridge and placed it on the roasting rack/pan set from wally world. I poured a can of chicken stock in the bottom of the pan. The roasting rack kept the bird elevated above the liquid to avoid soggy meat.







I probed the turkey and then covered the turkey and pan in aluminum foil creating a nice steam bath for the bird. I placed in the oven at 250 degrees. In 2 1/2 hours the bird was at 144 IT. I suppose I could've let the temp climb to 160/165 but I had already smoked it to 165 the night before. I was just reheating.

I pulled at 146 and after a short rest I carved it up. You can see that it was still moister than some turkeys on their first cook. I swear by the EVOO injections for a moist delicious turkey.







Soooooo juicy! Its hard to believe this is the second round of heat for this bird.







All sliced and ready for hot sammies.







 Hope this helps anyone faced with cooking ahead and reheating questions.


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## Bearcarver (Nov 21, 2011)

That looks real Puuuuurdy !!!!

Thanks Teez,

Bear


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## SmokinAl (Nov 21, 2011)

Beautiful color!


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## rhinoguy (Nov 21, 2011)

Awesome!


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## scarbelly (Nov 21, 2011)

Looks like it came out real nice.


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## teeznuts (Nov 21, 2011)

thanks guys, can't wait to cook and taste it.


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## raptor700 (Nov 21, 2011)

Awesome color, I bet it's gonna be mighty tasty


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## teeznuts (Nov 21, 2011)

raptor700 said:


> Awesome color, I bet it's gonna be mighty tasty


It certainly is. Very moist and very tasty.


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## rbranstner (Nov 21, 2011)

Glad to hear it worked out for you. Sure does look nice and juicy.


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## roller (Nov 21, 2011)

That is some good looking breast !!!  Real nice and a great reheat idea....I am sur that this will help lots of turkey smokers ...


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## teeznuts (Nov 22, 2011)

Thanks. I gotta give rbranster the credit for the reheat idea. he walked me through his method and it worked like a charm.


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## chef jimmyj (Nov 22, 2011)

Teez..Sounds like a great way to get an Intact Bird to the Table for the Big Show....Kudos to You and Ross...Thanks...JJ

*Sorry Guys ...Based on recent USDA find I have to Retract the above statement highlighted in Blue... The KUDOS STILL APPLY!... YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!...JJ*


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## bobcats110 (Nov 22, 2011)

Teez - appreciate the step by step.  One thing I didn't see, what was your smoker temperature as you proceeded through the "danger zone"?

Thanks!


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## chef jimmyj (Nov 22, 2011)

Hey Guys....I was poking around on the USDA website for Turkey Guidelines and found THIS!...
[h1]Can I cook a whole *turkey* ahead of time and reheat it later?[/h1]
Published 03/26/2009 05:46 AM | Updated 03/05/2010 01:55 PM

Can I cook a whole *turkey* ahead of time and reheat it later?

After cooking a whole *turkey*, USDA recommends cutting it into smaller pieces and refrigerating. Slice breast meat; legs and wings may be left whole. When reheating, always test reheated cooked *turkey* parts and sliced *turkey* in several places with a food thermometer to be sure they reach 165 °F throughout. The *turkey* should be steaming hot. If using a conventional oven, it is not safe to reheat any cooked meat or poultry in an oven set lower than 325 °F. Some microwaves ovens do not cook food evenly and cold spots develop. When reheating *turkey* in the microwave, cover and rotate once or twice during cooking.

For the Safety of the Members and anybody lurking...Based on the USDA Guidelines...Reheating Whole Birds at 250*F and Not reaching an Internal Temperature of 165*F...Is UNSAFE and should not be done...Chef JimmyJ

Sorry Guys...JJ


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## fpnmf (Nov 22, 2011)

Sorry JJ I just don't buy into that.

That up there wasn't reffering to whole birds.  >>>>> USDA recommends cutting it into smaller pieces and refrigerating. Slice breast meat; legs and wings may be left whole<<<<<<<

Is not warming up sliced turkey, taters and gravy to get to steaming hot 165 unsafe???

Thats a little over the top.

Gobble gobble!!!

  Craig


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## bmudd14474 (Nov 22, 2011)

fpnmf said:


> Sorry JJ I just don't buy into that.
> 
> That up there wasn't reffering to whole birds.  >>>>> USDA recommends cutting it into smaller pieces and refrigerating. Slice breast meat; legs and wings may be left whole


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## teeznuts (Nov 22, 2011)

bobcats110 said:


> Teez - appreciate the step by step.  One thing I didn't see, what was your smoker temperature as you proceeded through the "danger zone"?
> Thanks!


Hey bobcat I smoked it at 225


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## teeznuts (Nov 22, 2011)

Also for whatever its worth this is not a whole bird its basically 2 breast halves on a carcass. 

When I post a thread I'm simply showing how I did something. I'm sure the USDA wouldn't agree with me only cooking my beef roasts to 130-137 degrees but its a risk we take when we cook to our personal preference.


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## rbranstner (Nov 22, 2011)

I don't  understand this hopefully someone can explain it. If originally you cook a bird and it goes from 40-140 in the 4 hours its considered safe. Now I put it in the fridge and I  want  to reheat it again weather its whole or sliced. If it goes past the  40-140 in four hours and you take it to over 165 why wouldn't it be safe?


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## chef jimmyj (Nov 22, 2011)

Teez....You know on many occasions I have told You and Ross...How much I RESPECT you and think your work is Awesome...And have not now or any time in the past or future meant any Disrespect...But in the past couple of weeks the subject of Reheating Whole Turkeys and Whole Breasts has come up on many occasions and for every new or old member that asks there are a bunch of lurkers, that Read the posted answers and take the info as Gospel!  I have been told to follow USDA guidelines when making and responding to posts....Today I find the USDA and CDC States, Reheating Turkey at Temperatures under 325*F is Unsafe....So I posted the Guideline right from the USDA Site...Just to bring it to your attention...I hope this has not created any Bad Blood between us...JJ


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## raptor700 (Nov 22, 2011)

You're doing a great job Jimmy


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## fpnmf (Nov 22, 2011)

bmudd14474 said:


> Craig,
> when the USDA recommends you to cut it up into slices before reheating they are implying NOT to reheat the whole bird. You have to remember that thru the cooking process the bird is in the danger zone for a while and when your reheating it is back in it so if you you spend more time in the danger zone reheating because you doing a whole bird in low temps then you are increasing the chance of causing issues.
> The reason they want it sliced is that you increase the surface mass and it cooks way faster thus getting you thru the danger zone very fast.


Thanks Brian...

 I have never worried about reheating already cooked meats to a certain temp at a certain temp..

Never once been ill from it or know anyone that has.

I think I will start a poll about it after the holiday.

Gobble gobble!!!

       Craig


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## rbranstner (Nov 22, 2011)

There is no bad blood what so ever JJ. I just want to understand so that I am not doing something unsafe and even more important I don't give other people bad advice.

If on reheat weather its a whole bird or pieces if they go from 40-140 in under 4 hours and the internal temp reaches over 165 it would be safe right?

I hope I'm not coming off the wrong way as I wasn't taking offense to any of your comments.


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## rbranstner (Nov 22, 2011)

fpnmf said:


> Thanks Brian...
> 
> I have never worried about reheating already cooked meats to a certain temp at a certain temp..
> 
> ...


I'm the same way. I have never been concerned about reheating cooked meat that I know has been refrigerated and stored properly. Half the time I eat it cold.


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## tyotrain (Nov 22, 2011)

Man o Man thats a great looking bird.. looks real tasty.. Nice job


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## teeznuts (Nov 22, 2011)

JJ there's not an ounce of bad blood and I don't feel disrespected at all. I appreciate you bringing the knowledge per the guidelines set by USDA and CDC. Im sure USDA wouldn't agree with my rare roast beef that never even hits 140. I also don't think many people probe the temp on a plate of leftovers they throw in the microwave thanksgiving night that may only reach 150 IT.

Keep doing what you're doing. it's all good and I don't think anyone has any hurt feelings. I don't.


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## chef jimmyj (Nov 22, 2011)

rbranstner said:


> I don't  understand this hopefully someone can explain it. If originally you cook a bird and it goes from 40-140 in the 4 hours its considered safe. Now I put it in the fridge and I  want  to reheat it again weather its whole or sliced. If it goes past the  40-140 in four hours and you take it to over 165 why wouldn't it be safe?


Ross,  This absolutely true!... But it is not always that simple...There are still Spore Forming bacteria that are not dangerous themselves but give off Dangerous Toxins as they rapidly multiply in the danger zone...Since we pass through this Temp range Twice during Cooling and Reheating we need to do what ever we can to limit liability

The problem with Whole Turkeys is... They are difficult to get from 165*F to 39*F in a Safe amount of Time using a Standard home Refrigerator....Not to mention that, Putting that much Hot Mass in the Refer can raise the temp inside the Refer above 40* putting ALL the other food at Risk Too.  If at any point there is a misstep during Cooling or Reheating whole birds, we can have a problem...The USDA recommendation of Slicing the meat increases surface area so it cools faster AND conversely the greater surface area combined with the 325*F Temp heats up faster...  The combination...Limits the Risks...JJ


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## Bearcarver (Nov 23, 2011)

Chef JimmyJ said:


> Ross,  This absolutely true!... But it is not always that simple...There are still Spore Forming bacteria that are not dangerous themselves but give off Dangerous Toxins as they rapidly multiply in the danger zone...Since we pass through this Temp range Twice during Cooling and Reheating we need to do what ever we can to limit liability
> 
> The problem with Whole Turkeys is... They are difficult to get from 165*F to 39*F in a Safe amount of Time using a Standard home Refrigerator....Not to mention that, Putting that much Hot Mass in the Refer can raise the temp inside the Refer above 40* putting ALL the other food at Risk Too.  If at any point there is a misstep during Cooling or Reheating whole birds, we can have a problem...The USDA recommendation of Slicing the meat increases surface area so it cools faster AND conversely the greater surface area combined with the 325*F Temp heats up faster...  The combination...Limits the Risks...JJ




There ya go!

I'm not a big "Bird" person, but we always slice up the whole bird before eating, just like we always slice up the whole Ham before putting it in the fridge.

Heck, now that we have a vacuum sealer, all but a couple of sammies worth of meat is in the freezer before too long after the meal.

Reasons to cut it up:

#1---It cools faster.

#2---It takes up a lot less room in fridge.

#3---You don't have to get the big carving knife out every time you want to make a leftover meat sammich.

#4---You can't get a whole bird in a vacuum seal bag!!!!!

I have never seen anyone actually put the whole Turkey or the whole Ham in the fridge. But that's just me.

The only place I ever saw a "Dad" stand up at his end of the table and carve the turkey onto individual plates was on TV.

So 16 people just sit there with their dish waiting for old Dad to put their slice on their plate??? Ridiculous.

We carve it ALL up in the kitchen, before everybody sits down, and distribute it on two or three serving plates (depending on the number of seats), with white & dark meat on all plates.

So I never even thought about cooling & reheating a whole Turkey, because it doesn't make sense to me.

USDA or no USDA, I don't see a reason to keep it whole.

Just my 2 Piasters,

Bear


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## rbranstner (Nov 23, 2011)

Bearcarver said:


> There ya go!
> 
> I'm not a big "Bird" person, but we always slice up the whole bird before eating, just like we always slice up the whole Ham before putting it in the fridge.
> 
> ...


Bear,

I am with you I always carve up the whole bird before we sit down and eat for all the reasons you mentioned. But in this case we are leaving the bird whole to reheat because we are smoking it ahead of time and then reheating the whole bird on Thanksgiving day. Sounds like it meets USDA specifications as long as the bird is properly handled/cooled and you reheat the bird at 325 degrees and it follows the danger zone rule and the IT temp goes past 165. The nice thing about where I live is when I take that bird out of the smoker and I put it in the garage the thing is pretty much frozen in under an  hour so I am not worried about the bird staying in the danger zone long enough to build up any bacteria. So when the big day comes along I just pop it into the oven or roaster and reheat. But I can see (especially in warmer climates) if you don't have freezer/fridge space and you aren't able to get the IT temps down on the bird and it sits in that danger zone for to long how you could run into issues.

P.S. I think we should just do away with this whole turkey on Thanksgiving day and just switch over to Prime Rib. haha The stores could run great $.64 cent sale and then we could stock up for the year. I know Bear is on board with this idea. haha


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## Bearcarver (Nov 23, 2011)

rbranstner said:


> Bear,
> 
> I am with you I always carve up the whole bird before we sit down and eat for all the reasons you mentioned. But in this case we are leaving the bird whole to reheat because we are smoking it ahead of time and then reheating the whole bird on Thanksgiving day. Sounds like it meets USDA specifications as long as the bird is properly handled/cooled and you reheat the bird at 325 degrees and it follows the danger zone rule and the IT temp goes past 165. The nice thing about where I live is when I take that bird out of the smoker and I put it in the garage the thing is pretty much frozen in under an  hour so I am not worried about the bird staying in the danger zone long enough to build up any bacteria. So when the big day comes along I just pop it into the oven or roaster and reheat. But I can see (especially in warmer climates) if you don't have freezer/fridge space and you aren't able to get the IT temps down on the bird and it sits in that danger zone for to long how you could run into issues.
> 
> P.S. I think we should just do away with this whole turkey on Thanksgiving day and just switch over to Prime Rib. haha The stores could run great $.64 cent sale and then we could stock up for the year. I know Bear is on board with this idea. haha


Yeah, I thought about your multiple Turkey smokes, after Mrs Bear took over the computer (Son's business).

I also thought about the fact that you live in ND, so you're usually alright, because you wouldn't want to put warm birds in the freezer or fridge.

I guess our more southern friends could bag 'em and put them in coolers with a mess of ice to bring them down quickly, and then into the fridge.

LOL---Prime Rib would be an Awesome replacement for Turkey on any Holiday!!

64¢ sale on standing rib roast?!?!

That would be better than a wet dream!!!

Bear


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## alblancher (Nov 23, 2011)

I am going to chime in here because I appreciate the tone of the discussion and the amount of information being shared among forum members.

I tend to post and try to adhere to USDA guidelines but I completely understand both sides of the discussion.  I have a 75 yr old Father in Law with heart problems and diabetes, a couple of other family members the same age with health problems.  I often cook for this high risk group so producing the safest food possible is important to me. Like most regulations food safety codes are designed to protect the general population regardless of their health and are not tailored to each individual.   30 years ago I couldn't care less about the proper way to handle food.  I generally cooked only for myself, had an iron stomach and was bigger and badder then just about any little bacteria I would run across.  Besides, I was normally broke so I couldn't waste food.  Today with age and all the "great" things that come with it, I try to be extra careful.

Posters and moderators that remind us of food safety guidelines are not the food police.  They are just trying to make sure that newbies, in particular, reading the thread are aware of where they can make someone they care for very sick.  I believe the unwritten rule on the forum is that unless a post is egregiously unsafe a friendly reminder about the potential problem is the normal response.  Blatantly Unsafe posts are removed.

Great discussion guys,  this is one reason I participate on this site,  Always learning.

Thanks

Al


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## rbranstner (Nov 23, 2011)

alblancher said:


> I am going to chime in here because I appreciate the tone of the discussion and the amount of information being shared among forum members.
> 
> I tend to post and try to adhere to USDA guidelines but I completely understand both sides of the discussion.  I have a 75 yr old Father in Law with heart problems and diabetes, a couple of other family members the same age with health problems.  I often cook for this high risk group so producing the safest food possible is important to me. Like most regulations food safety codes are designed to protect the general population regardless of their health and are not tailored to each individual.   30 years ago I couldn't care less about the proper way to handle food.  I generally cooked only for myself, had an iron stomach and was bigger and badder then just about any little bacteria I would run across.  Besides, I was normally broke so I couldn't waste food.  Today with age and all the "great" things that come with it, I try to be extra careful.
> 
> ...


Well said Al


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