12-25-2015, 01:19 AM
Got my first Tom this fall. Field dressed and frozen for tday on nov 12. Thawed and sea salt brined with liquid smoke and ice water in a cooler right next to a butterball for 24hrs. I brined and cooked both side by side to compare taste and texture. Baked the conventional way in a turkey pan covered in tin and basted every 20. The only difference in prep was the wild turkey was skinned cause of damage from broad head slicing it front to rear. As for taste. The wild turkey was hands down better! To me it had a slight hint of ruffy only real mild. The brining made for two of the most moist turkeys I've ever cooked by far. Now as for texture. The wild turkey was more firm than the butterball. The legs were noticeably tougher tho. As said earlier that's only because they actually use them. If for nothing else the experience alone is worth it,as if you haven't enough of that.😜
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