How Do You Prepare Your Turkey for Thanksgiving?

For many years I (or my wife) have prepared the Thanksgiving turkey the traditional way with the whole bird in the oven.  For variety, we would BBQ once in a while.
I have brined the turkey a couple of times but wasn't fond of the resulting texture or saltiness.  Smoked turkey is good but we  use it for other occasions.  Haven't tried deep fried but I have heard good things about it but not sure I would want to deal with all the left over oil.
The last couple of years I've deboned the turkey and have been quite pleased with the results.  After deboning, the meat is slathered in butter, stuffing is laid on top and the skin is sewn up over it.  Always turns out very moist and tasty plus it is a cinch to carve.

I was happy with the few we have deep fried but, yes, the resulting oil is expensive unless you have bunches of other things to deep fry in the very near future.  We got bored & just started deep frying random items simply because ..... well, we were bored.

You don't want to know.

Last year I did a spatchcock and brine; this year I'm considering trying the Julia Child method of separating the thighs, brining the breast and giving the breast a head start in a pan in the oven. Or I may debone. I have no idea at this point. Brining will happen.

Deepfried two 20-pounders last Saturday! In peanut oil...

You don't want to know.

That was all bad. 

 

So far:

At least SOMEONE had gloves on.    I'm sure the head fell off of natural causes.

RIP whitey

Usually I just roast it. This year I almost bought a turkey fryer. I do have a deep fryer. I always say two things about that. 1. It's the best appliance I ever bought; because it makes deep frying so easy. 2. It's the worst appliance I ever bough; because it makes deep frying so easy. 

I've also smoked a turkey. That too all day and them some!

Slather in mayonnaise, season and put in a baking bag. Super juicy.
I've deep fried them too. The mayo and bag is the easiest and most juicy.

I've also smoked a turkey. That too all day and them some!

Where did you find a rolling paper that big?

I've also smoked a turkey. That too all day and them some!

Where did you find a rolling paper that big?

Thanks to Cheech & Chong it wasn't that hard...



 

Brine the beast for 24 hours, pat it dry, and then onto the BBQ over indirect heat. Add a heaping hand full or fruit wood for smoke. Make sure there's a little brown sugar in the brine to crisp up and brown the skin. Couldn't be easier, plus it frees up the oven for all of the other goodies that get served alongside.