mguerra Posted October 29, 2016 Report Share Posted October 29, 2016 As ya'll know I have gone pressure cooker crazy. Here is my latest test. Brine poultry under pressure for two minutes. Finish it on the grill. Honestly, if you pre- cook poultry in the pressure cooker before you grill/smoke it, there is probably no reason to brine at all. Why? A normal turkey cook benefits from brining because of the drying effect of the prolonged cook. If we pre-pressure cook, the turkey will be completely hydrated and not the least bit dry, with half (or something) of the cook done already. It will only take a quick cook over the fire to finish and get some smoke on it. Like that guy who boils his ribs before smoking them. That was on Guy Fieri's show. Now if you think an overnight brine adds flavor, that's another story. But I believe that a brine under pressure will impart the flavor as well. So I am testing this right now. I just brined some turkey under pressure for two minutes, will temp it to see how done it is already, and finish it on the fire. Results to follow later today... If it works, you won't have to boil up a brine, chill it, ice it, and then brine under ice overnight. It will SERIOUSLY decrease your brining workload. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mguerra Posted October 29, 2016 Author Report Share Posted October 29, 2016 Interim update: The turkey came out of the pressure cooker after two minutes at 127º F and is on the 350º F fire now. Should cook very quickly. It smelled awesome coming out of the pressure vessel! The brine was 2 quarts of water, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 cup salt, and a fistful of poultry rub from World Spice. Simple brine for this proof of concept test. I am going to seriously diminish my workload this year. I am querying my guests as to what parts they want and will buy the turkey parts. They should all cook perfectly since I'm not trying to finish a whole bird all at once. No dorking around with foiling the legs, icing the breast and all that other happy horse.... I will pull each part off the fire at it's exact correct temp. The entire cook should be barely an hour, I am guessing. Standby... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony b Posted October 29, 2016 Report Share Posted October 29, 2016 Waiting with bated breath, Doc! Another crazy pressure cooker experiment indeed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacKenzie Posted October 29, 2016 Report Share Posted October 29, 2016 Sounds really interesting and like Tony can't wait for the results. I am on a little pressure cook binge myself. Did hard boiled eggs yesterday and today in the PC. However you do have to crack the egg and put it in a greased container. PC it for 3 mins and it will be hard boiled, I did mine this morning for 2.5 mins. and the yolk was just short of hard boiled. Might try 2 mins. tomorrow. I have read you can tightly cover the dish with foil and the yolk won't be hard boiled after 3 mins. I didn't try that yet. Just finished a PC batch of chicken stock using the remains of that free range chicken that was on the rotisserie yesterday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mguerra Posted October 30, 2016 Author Report Share Posted October 30, 2016 The experiment was a success. My test was thighs, which is not the best test, breast would be the best. But there was only frozen breast at the store and I wanted to do my test immediately since I had the time yesterday. Any way the thighs took exactly one hour on the fire, indirect, at 350º, to hit 165º after their 2 minute pre-cook in the pressure. They were moist, just smoked enough and tasty. I did not really perceive the rub. My next test will be to cook direct, to get crispy skin for those who eat it. We don't, so that's why I cooked indirect yesterday. The skin was cooked but certainly not what the skin eaters want! We just toss it. Today I will buy a breast, thaw it, and cook it later this week. That will be a better test of the moisture retention properties of this cook method. I am looking forward to a very quick and easy turkey cook on Thanksgiving! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony b Posted October 30, 2016 Report Share Posted October 30, 2016 When you say "We just toss it." I hope you mean to the dogs and not into the garbage! Just sayin', Doc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinyfish Posted October 31, 2016 Report Share Posted October 31, 2016 Some good info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussie Ora Posted October 31, 2016 Report Share Posted October 31, 2016 I grew up on a pressure Cooker my old man loved it sadly his specialty was ox tounge cabbage and potatoes he even made us drink the left over water lol. Outback Kamado Bar and Grill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony b Posted October 31, 2016 Report Share Posted October 31, 2016 7 hours ago, Aussie Ora said: he even made us drink the left over water lol Down South, we call that "pot liquor." My Dad used to love to dunk his cornbread in it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacKenzie Posted October 31, 2016 Report Share Posted October 31, 2016 Supposedly that water is full of goodies for you to enjoy.:) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussie Ora Posted October 31, 2016 Report Share Posted October 31, 2016 Supposedly that water is full of goodies for you to enjoy. That's what he said Outback Kamado Bar and Grill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony b Posted November 1, 2016 Report Share Posted November 1, 2016 That's why I always have a splash of water in my bourbon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacKenzie Posted November 1, 2016 Report Share Posted November 1, 2016 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
