Perfect Thanksgiving Turkey - Roasting and Carving a Spatchcocked, Dry-Brined Turkey, Pt. 2

Ben Starr shows you how to properly roast and carve the spatchcocked and dry-brined turkey in Part 2; including why it's safe to pull your turkey when it hits 150F in the breast, and why your turkey juices should never "run clear!" Part 1:    • Perfect Thanksgiving Turkey - Dry Brining ...  



The remote probe thermometer I use: https://amzn.to/39Xx2fG
My Kitchen Toys: https://kit.co/UltimateFoodGeek/my-ki...

About 3 hours before serving (or longer, if you need more fridge space), pull the turkey from the refrigerator. Let it sit at room temp for about 1 hour.


Gently prick the skin of the turkey in multiple places around the breast, legs and thighs. Poke sideways, rather than straight down, to pierce only the skin, rather than the meat. Rub the turkey all over the top side with mayo or oil. Optionally, place the turkey onto a roasting rack of carrots and/or celery.


Place the probe of a leave-in thermometer into the thickest part of the breast, being careful to avoid the center breast bone, or leaving the probe tip too close to the outer part of the breast. Aim for the dead center of the breast meat.



Place on the center rack of a preheated 450F oven (convection on, if you have it, otherwise, rotate the bird after 20 minutes.) A 15-pound bird should be done in less than 90 minutes. Pull the turkey when the interior of the breast registers 150F. (As long as the meat sits at or above 150F for at least 5 minutes, the meat is safe to eat.) As the turkey rests on the counter, the temperature will climb toward 160F or higher. Do not remove the thermometer until ready to carve. The turkey should rest a minimum of 30 minutes before carving.

IF YOU HAVE A LARGER BIRD, in excess of 20 pounds, roast at 425F (convection off, and rotate after 30 minutes.) Larger birds can take longer for the center to reach temp, and you don't want to over-brown the skin. On very large birds, you may notice that the dark meat isn't as "done" as you're accustomed to using this method. If you discover during carving that the dark meat doesn't separate easily from the bone, or feels a bit tough, return that part of the bird to the oven for an additional 10-15 minutes to bring the dark meat to that perfect, succulent texture.

NOTE: This preparation method is excellent for cooking turkey on the grill, or fast-smoking. Slow-smoking, however, will result in very tough skin with this method. If you plan to slow-smoke your turkey (ie, longer than 3 hours), omit the baking powder from the recipe, and rest the turkey covered with plastic wrap in the fridge to prevent the skin from dehydrating. Smoking a dehydrated skin results in tough, chewy skin (ie, turkey jerky) so you want as much moisture in the skin as possible if slow-smoking.


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