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TURDUCKEN !!!
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socal_chris



Joined: 02 Oct 2006
Posts: 49
Location: Southern CA

PostPosted: Thu Oct 12, 2006 6:35 pm    Post subject: Re: Try Walmart. Much ado about nothing. Reply with quote

EngineeringProfessor wrote:


Like all roasted meats, allowing it to rest and cool a bit after cooking settles everything. Properly prepared Turducken will be boneless and, IMO, needs to be sliced perpendicular to the breast centerline (oppoposite to how you would normally carve a bird). You are looking for that multi-layer slice, ovoid with a stuffing center and concentric rings of the three birds apparent. That said, there will be quite a bit of "odd cuts" since a Turducken is a lot of meat and the birds are certainly not egg-shaped ;-)

I would be just a bit nervous grilling a Turducken and cannot offer any advice there.

Thanks for the slicing advice. I always let anything I cook rest for 10 minutes or so before carving.
As for grilling...I've become pretty successful in mastering the grill. I hope to have a larger grill by then and I will test cook a couple whole chickens to make sure I can get them to the right temp without scorching the skin and drying out the meat. Inderect heating is similar in an oven or a grill...just much more depth in flavor with charcoal. Considering some apple wood chips to boot on this bird...I'll be sure to post results of grand success or failure!
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Lintballoon



Joined: 08 Oct 2006
Posts: 42
Location: Massachusetts

PostPosted: Thu Nov 23, 2006 4:25 pm    Post subject: Always wanted to make one of these Reply with quote

I read about the Turducken in a recipe book of Prudhommes many years ago and always wanted to make one. You need a lot of eaters for this.
I compromised one year and made a ChiPheaSquab (chicken,pheasant,squab) and it came out great! It fed about 8 people. Since pheasant can be dry and usually needs barding, being stuck in the chicken kept it moist.
In particular, I found it delightful to cut into the bird (which retained it's illusion of a roasted chicken) and have the rings of different meats and stuffings (I used three stuffings, but sorry don't remember which exactly I chose) without having to negotiate around the bones.
It only took a 1/2 bottle of bourbon (no bourbon is used in the recipe).
And, I learned how to de-bone a bird.
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EngineeringProfessor



Joined: 07 Sep 2006
Posts: 77

PostPosted: Thu Nov 23, 2006 8:31 pm    Post subject: Re: Always wanted to make one of these Reply with quote

Lintballoon wrote:
I read about the Turducken in a recipe book of Prudhommes many years ago and always wanted to make one. You need a lot of eaters for this.
I compromised one year and made a ChiPheaSquab (chicken,pheasant,squab) and it came out great!


Great idea! All this talk about Turduckens made me want one, but my wife does not like them and there are only three of us this year so it is hard to justify such a huge item. Anyway, I got the idea of getting boneless turkey, duck and chicken breasts and making a "Turducken Roll". Well, it's been done and I have it in the fridge right now--bought it at HEB earlier this week. Not quite the full bird experience, but certainly worthwhile for a small group.
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GaryProtein



Joined: 26 Oct 2005
Posts: 535

PostPosted: Fri Nov 24, 2006 3:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

You can also make a ducken, which is a great dinner for four to six people. Prep time is reduced and you still have an elegant dinner.
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EngineeringProfessor



Joined: 07 Sep 2006
Posts: 77

PostPosted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 3:11 am    Post subject: Turducken roll was less than optimal. Reply with quote

GaryProtein wrote:
You can also make a ducken, which is a great dinner for four to six people. Prep time is reduced and you still have an elegant dinner.


We were disappointed with the Turducken roll. Turkey came out dry and it was hard to tell the duck from the sausage (browse here http://www.samsclub.com/shopping/navigate.do?dest=5&item=336948).

Next time I will make it myself.
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socal_chris



Joined: 02 Oct 2006
Posts: 49
Location: Southern CA

PostPosted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 6:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

My CajunCreations.com turducken is in the fridge and will hit the oven at 9:00 tomorrow morning.

Did you use a thermometer on it? All the recipes say 165 in the center, which, as a rule of thumb, means I will pull it out of the oven at 160 and let it rest. I've found with certain meats that dry out quickly, it's best to stop cooking just before the desired temp. With pork, I take it out 10 degrees before.

Professor: I think a lot of your dryness might have had to do with using white meat only...think of all the fat in the dark meat that would contribute to the juicyness of the whole roll...my wife and I don't even do chicken breast on the grill anymore becuase it's so hard to get them off before they dry out. We do boneless thighs for all our chicken grilling and rice dishes.

I'll post results of our 1st turducken Sunday. Wish me luck! Smile
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EngineeringProfessor



Joined: 07 Sep 2006
Posts: 77

PostPosted: Wed Nov 29, 2006 3:47 am    Post subject: Proceed carefully and it will turn out great. Reply with quote

socal_chris wrote:
My CajunCreations.com turducken is in the fridge and will hit the oven at 9:00 tomorrow morning.

Did you use a thermometer on it? All the recipes say 165 in the center, which, as a rule of thumb, means I will pull it out of the oven at 160 and let it rest. I've found with certain meats that dry out quickly, it's best to stop cooking just before the desired temp. With pork, I take it out 10 degrees before.

Professor: I think a lot of your dryness might have had to do with using white meat only...think of all the fat in the dark meat that would contribute to the juicyness of the whole roll...my wife and I don't even do chicken breast on the grill anymore becuase it's so hard to get them off before they dry out. We do boneless thighs for all our chicken grilling and rice dishes.

I'll post results of our 1st turducken Sunday. Wish me luck! Smile


Good luck with the bird(s). I think our roll was overcooked and it was, as you point out, too much white meat. I found it better the next day with lots of cranberry sauce.
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socal_chris



Joined: 02 Oct 2006
Posts: 49
Location: Southern CA

PostPosted: Wed Nov 29, 2006 7:35 am    Post subject: Re: Proceed carefully and it will turn out great. Reply with quote

[quote=name 'EngineeringProfessor']Good luck with the bird(s). I think our roll was overcooked and it was, as you point out, too much white meat. I found it better the next day with lots of cranberry sauce.[/quote]

I have to agree with you somewhat. I was a little dissappointed in the dryness of the white meat. CajunCreations.com suggested cooking time of 4.5 - 5 hours and said if your turducken was still partially frozen to cook it another 30 min. to an hour.

I defrosted in the fridge for 3 days and when i put it in the roasting pan (on a rack), it was still pretty solid on the bottom. I covered it in EVOO, as AB would certainly suggest, tented it with heavy duty alum. foil, and threw it in the oven on 325. I figured it would cook a little longer, so I checked it right at 4 hours...stuck it with my longest old school meat thermometer, and it showed 170! Should have pulled it at 165 (or better yet 160 and left it tented for 30 minutes). Needless to say...breast meat of the turkey was dry, but the rest was great...fantastic stuffing too!

I may try this one more time...just to be fair....once I get my Tejas Texas Smoker 54" barbeque grill. With coals going on one end...some nice apple wood chips, and constant temp monitoring, I think it could be great!

Needless to say, the family reviews were all positive.
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EngineeringProfessor



Joined: 07 Sep 2006
Posts: 77

PostPosted: Wed Nov 29, 2006 11:00 pm    Post subject: Re: Proceed carefully and it will turn out great. Reply with quote

socal_chris wrote:

I may try this one more time...just to be fair....once I get my Tejas Texas Smoker 54" barbeque grill. With coals going on one end...some nice apple wood chips, and constant temp monitoring, I think it could be great!

Needless to say, the family reviews were all positive.


Although I was disappointed, I have not given up on the idea of a Turducken roll. I have had a Turducken that was never frozen and they are just great once cooked properly (I think I overcooked the roll). Anyway, the problem remains--too much bird. If done right, I could see the roll as a savory, great presentation without the three days of leftovers (in our case). Teasing
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GaryProtein



Joined: 26 Oct 2005
Posts: 535

PostPosted: Thu Nov 30, 2006 6:31 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

If you think there is too much bird, just use smaller ones. A 12 pound turkey, 6 pound duck and a 3 pound chicken is perfect for a smaller crowd. You don't have to start out with a 20+ pound turkey, 8-9 pound duck and 6 pound chicken. I also prefer less stuffing, just a thin layer between birds to give a little contrast between meat layers. Less stuffing also makes the birds easier to stuff into one another.
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The Yakima Kid



Joined: 15 Nov 2007
Posts: 27

PostPosted: Wed Nov 21, 2007 10:29 am    Post subject: You can order one from Cabela's Christmas catalog Reply with quote

Cabela's, online and in their store fronts, has all sorts of cool outdoor cooking and gibier equipment. Their Christmas catalog includes Turducken and assorted exotic meats. For years I've done a lot of my holiday shopping through them, and I have the Jackalope to prove it. Teasing

The newest store is either about to open, or just opened, near Boomtown on I80 near Verdi, NV.
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