Trying Turkey Jerky

[Plan2build]

Well I have second run of beef Jerky using the recipe I tried a few weeks ago....nice and sunny and cold, so a good time for a smoke.  Anyway, since the beef jerky is coming out perfect, I decided to give Turkey Jerky a try (at the request of my wife who is pushing me for more healthy choices).

I picked up boneless Turkey breast (just over 5 lbs or 2.5kg).  Turkey is a lot harder to slice nice and cleanly, so I just tried to slice even thickness, but the widths are somewhat irregular.  I guess that is why the Turkey jerky you buy in the store is always in little pieces.  Got it all cut up and into the Briner jr. with the brine calculated below.  It will brine until tomorrow afternoon when I will get it smoked.  Again I will follow the same path as the beef jerky and hope for the best.

Sorry for no pictures of the cut and prep.  I will get some after the brine and after the smoke tomorrow.

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[Plan2build]

Out of the brine and into the smoker. The turkey went from that raw pink turkey color to a darker salmon-like color...hard to describe, but shows the salt and cure did its job.  I am very curious to see what this looks like when the smoke is finished.  Smoking with 1.5 oz. of hickory.

As a side note, I really love the Briner Jr....makes things clean and simple!

[DivotMaker]

Gregor, jerky made from poultry makes me really nervous.  Maybe the brine kills anything it may have (like Salmonella), the low-temp smoking scares me.  I've never tried it, and I know others will chime-in (especially Brian, aka Pork Belly).  Just be sure of your food safety measures when using anything other than beef for jerky.

[NDKoze]

I have made goose and duck jerky several times without issue.

I have also made Turkey Canadian bacon with very good results:
http://smokinitforums.com/index.php?topic=2461.0

I can't make any guarantees but as ling as you use the appropriate amount of Cure #1 and maybe push you temp a little more than you would with beef, I think you will b OK.

[Plan2build]

Thanks for the input folks....

What I did notice and what Gregg mentions is the drying time seemed significantly longer than with beef.  Not sure  why that would be, but certainly if I do this again I will bump the temps a bit.  My first beef jerky run was at 145, and the second at 140, and the second run turned out fantastic with really nice and even drying.  I thought this "should" work similarly with Turkey, but I was wrong....at 140 it was really taking time to dry so I bumped up to 145 after 6 hours.  Went a full 10 hours and had really nice results.  I think I will go with 150 or slightly higher next time.  As for the cure, absolutely required in my book as I don't want to risk anything with the poultry.  The saltiness was really good, so with the cure, and the dryness of the product,I am quite comfortable with the safety aspect.  The jerky is in the freezer now and will be finished off in no time!

A last note with this versus beef jerky is that the hickory smoke did not seem appropriate.  Don't get me wrong as it has a really good smokey flavor, but just does not resonate like with hickory and beef jerky.  I am thinking more of a fruity wood like apple or cherry may give superior results (again at the 1.5oz amount).

Anyway, the experiment was a success!!

[DivotMaker]

Sounds like you have it covered, Gregor!  I wouldn't go above 150, or you'll cook your jerky vs. dry it.

[NDKoze]

Cherry is awesome on poultry1

[DivotMaker]

Cherry is awesome on poultry1

+1!  My poultry wood of choice!