how to cook a bird

[Gooserbat]

My favorite? is  inject with olive oil and then off to the smoker.  First run with dry rub of your choice wait 8-24 hours and then I inject 3 oz per deboned breast.  Leave it laying flat with the skin side up in a pan so it cooks in it's juices and place in the smoker at 200 degrees.  Usually takes about 3+ hours to get to 165.  Then I pull it out of the pan and let it bark over in heavy smoke for an additional 20-30 min.

Or cut it into strips that are across the grain and make fajitas.  First saute onions and peppers ( one each bell, and Anaheim) once those are beginning to just get tender but not done add the turkey meat and two crushed dry red chillies, and salt and black pepper to taste.  Cook until the meat is almost done and add two sliced roma tomatoes and squeeze an entire lime into the mix.  Finish cooking until tomatoes are cooked down. 

[West Augusta]

The thighs and drumsticks I put in the crock pot covered with chicken stock, some potatoes, carrots and onions and cook for about 8 hours.

The breast, nuggets as above.

[2eagles]

I use a slow cooker / crock pot too. Breast meat covered in Whylers chicken crystals dissolved in water. Add salt & pepper and chop some onion to toss in. Start before work in the morning and ready for dinner. Slice it thin on bread with potatoes and gravy for a hot turkey sandwich. Shred leftovers for any recipe you would use chicken.

[trkehunr93]

Lots of options but whatever you do brine that bird if your going to smoke or roast, you will not regret doing it.  Whether you pluck whole, skin out breasts and leg/thigh meat it makes a world of difference.  I like to smoke the breast, I trim it so its proportionate in size and does not overcook on the ends, truss it with butchers twine and smoke at 200 over applewood and you have a weeks worth of meat for sandwiches, salads, etc.  You can vacuum seal it also and freeze it for lunchmeat down the road.  The left over pieces can be cubed up and breaded or battered, I like to flour, egg and panko mine.  Damn their good!  Last batch was fixed Saturday and was gone by Monday.  The leg/thighs I like to drop in a dutch oven and cook low and slow until the meat falls off, great for salads, BBQ or tacos when crisped up in a frying pan with some olive oil and some of the braising liquid.  Turkey pot pie anyone, another good use for leg/thigh meat.  Grinding the leg/thigh meat makes great sausage/burger meat as well. Probably the best thing to do with breast by far is slicing across the grain, pounding it flat and flour/egg/panko it and make schnitzel, German for chicken fried, served with a salad, some sauteed garden veggies like squash/zucchini and a glass of red wine and your wife will love you forever!

[Meadow Valley Man]

Here's my (no longer) secret recipe:

First, cut a single breast into nuggets.  Combine one box of Jiffy Cornmuffin mix and a like amount of Krusteaz Buttermilk pancake mix in a gallon size ziplock bag. Shake well to mix.  You can add seasonings if you like, but I do not.

Combine one egg and a half to three quarters cup of milk in a bowl large enough to contain all the nuggets. Mix well.

Put the nuggets in.  I usually heat a saucepan of peanut oil to approximately 350 degrees.  The oil should be about three inches deep in the pan--make sure there is at least two inches of pan above the oil line.

Put 6 or 7 nuggets in the ziplock bag and shake. Fry the nuggets two to three minutes until golden brown.

We use Sweet Baby Ray's  as a dipping sauce.

Yum!

[dutch@fx4]

We love the Nuggets and breaded cutlets. Fried in oil. Just don't over cook it.   Chicken fried steak. .yumny

[Spring Creek Calls]

Try this for a little Caribbean twist on the grill.

This makes enough marinade for one boneless half of a wild turkey breast.

1 TBS Kosher Salt
1 TBS Garlic Salt
1 TBS Thyme
2 TBS Whole All Spice

2 Fresh Cubanelle Peppers or 6 Annaheim Peppers (remove stems and seeds)
1 Habanero Pepper (remove stem and seeds)

1/4 cup Peanut Oil

Thoroughly liquefy all ingredients in a blender.

Dry the turkey breast thoroughly with paper towels.  (Helps it soak in the marinade and seasoning stick while cooking)

Put the turkey breast and marinade in a large ziploc bag.  Shake it up to make sure the meat gets coated. 

Refrigerate in marinade at least two hours before cooking.  (Overnight is better!)

Grill the breast until done.  The seasoning should stick and blacken while grilling.

[Yoder409]

Towel dry breast fillets
Brush both sides with light olive oil
Season with Tone's garlic pepper
Grill over low heat til done to your liking................less is better

[TauntoHawk]

1. cut strips beat them flat marinade over night and fry in seasoned flour
2. marinade overnight crockpot on low 8hrs, shred add bbq sauce for one more hour
3. brine, season, smoke


never had any of these 3 options not wow people that it was wild turkey.

[earl9932]

I breast out, pound out till about 1/4 inch thick, season to taste, roll and tie with butchers twine and then wrap in bacon pierced with skewers. Place in smoker and smoke over apple wood, low and slow. Slice thin for sandwiches or a little cream cheese and crackers.

Can also do the above and spread the cream cheese on the inside of the breast with a little spinach then roll as above. 

[tha bugman]

I dress them...The Boss Hen takes care of the rest....white meat is fried....dark meat goes into a crock pot with BBQ sauce...I just show up at the dinner table when she rings that bell!

[Chris O]

I dress them...The Boss Hen takes care of the rest....white meat is fried....dark meat goes into a crock pot with BBQ sauce...I just show up at the dinner table when she rings that bell!

Man where did I go wrong !

[chadly]

I've done it about every way mentioned other than the smoker.  Something new I started last year the pressure cooker.  I make the meat the same as you would with nuggets only bigger.  Bread and fried on each side.  Then add chicken broth and put the top on the cooker.  Cook under pressure 25 minutes.  You will not find a juicier tender way to cook meat.  I've been doing it with whole pheasant breasts too.  Cuts with a fork and is not dry. 

[jperch]

Google Creamy Turkey Breast.  The recipe is on another  website and I am not sure if it is legal to mention the website or copy and paste the recipe.  This version of the recipe uses applejack and heavy cream.  My GF is somewhat of a gourmet cook and this is the only way we prepare wild turkey breast now.  Served with rice and asparagus, can't be beat.   We do one breast at a time.  (I grind the dark meat to mix in with meatballs, meatloaf, etc.)  A big mistake I made when I started was roasting a whole bird.  This gives too much meat at once for us and tends to be too dried out.  You won't be disappointed with this recipe!   
jperch

[Ozarks Hillbilly]

Braised Turkey in Mushroom Gravy

1/2 Turkey breast cut into pieces
1 cup seasoned flour  (reserve 2 tbs)
1/4 cup butter
2-3 tbs canola oil
2-3 cups sliced mushrooms. (depending on how much you like mushrooms)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup chicken stock
1 tbs lemon juice
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
Directions
1. Dredge turkey pieces in seasoned flour
2. Heat butter and 2 tbs oil in Dutch oven over medium heat. Add about 5 turkey pieces make sure everything is in a single layer and nothing is over crowded. Cook 3 min. per side until brown and remove. Repeat for remaining pieces adding oil as needed.
3. Remove last batch of turkey and set aside. Add mushrooms cook about 10 min stirring often.
4. Add onions to mushrooms, cooking 3 or 4 min until tender.
5. Add 2 tbs reserved seasoned flour. Stir well.
6. Add wine, chicken stock, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and make sure to scrape all those bits from bottom of Dutch oven.  Add turkey pieces.
7. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 1 hour.
8. Serve with mashed potatoes.