A Pasture-Raised Thanksgiving

There is nothing like a pasture-raised turkey. They have richer dark meat and smaller breasts than their industrial brethren, and thus benefit from a slightly different cooking method.

First, a warning – pasture-raised birds cook up to 50% faster than industrial birds!

Two of our favorite methods:

• If the weather is bearable outside, slow-grilling a turkey is fun and easy and gives the turkey a very moist, rich smoky flavor, especially if you use cherry or other hardwood chips on a gas grill. We’ve used Sunset Magazine recipe in the past, and it came out excellent – although it came up to temperature faster than we’d anticipated, so keep a close eye!
• Another way to ensure the meat cooks evenly without drying out is a parchment paper method we found here. This method is designed in particular for pasture raised birds, which tend to have much less added water (Butterballs and other brands are commonly injected with water, salt, modified food starch, sodium phosphate, etc to make them more palatable). Here too, watch the temperature, although this method is more forgiving than most.

For more turkey tips, see here!

Good luck!