Apple Juice

This recipe may seem long and complicated, but it isn't.  It just takes some time to brine and to cook!  In the end the time spent makes the turkey well worth the wait!

Ingredients

• 1 fresh or defrosted turkey - 12 lbs works well in standard weber grill
• 1/2 cup melted unsalted butter
• 2 quarts Turkey or Chicken Stock
• 2 quarts Turkey or Chicken Broth
• 2 large yellow onions, quartered
• 4 large carrots, roughly chopped
• 4 celery stalks, roughly chopped
• palmful of black peppercorns, whole
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 cherry wood chunks or 4 small handfulls, soaked in water for at least 30 minutes

Brine

• 2 quarts apple juice
• 1 cup kosher salt
• 2 Tbs dried Rosemary
• 2 Tbs dried Thyme
• 1 Tbs dried Sage
• 1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
• 3 quarts cold FILTERED water

Hardware

• Standard Weber charcoal grill(22inches wide)
• Aluminum baking pan from grocery store(the kind that's $3 bucks and you can crush and throw away).  This will be filled with water and used in the grill to help regulate the temperature.  It will be directly next to the charcoal.
• Roasting pan with rack that fits inside your grill and can hold the turkey.
• Fat separator for liquids
• New trash bag that can hold your turkey

Instructions

Day before the BRINE

1. Combine brine ingredients except water and mix until salt is disolved in a mixing bowl.
2. Take turkey out of package and remove neck and giblets.  Set those aside in the fridge for tomorrow.
3. Wash turkey in cold water and place inside a NEW trash bag.
4. Pour brine over turkey in trash bag and add the cold water.  Tighten trash bag so turkey is submerged in the brine and you've taken out most of the air.  NOTE: It is important that when you brine the turkey you keep the turkey breast-side down so that it will always be submerged in the brine.  It's okay if the back is not completely covered by the brine.
5. Place the trash-bag-turkey in a container that can fit in the fridge over-night.  If not, put it in a cooler with A LOT of ice.  If placing it in a cooler, you will need to check every couple hours to make sure that there is enough ice to keep the turkey cold.

Day of Dinner

1. Remove the turkey from brine, wash and dray.  Let it sit for at least 2 hours before cooking to bring to room temperature.  This is vital in cooking a turkey, as it will help the turkey cook evenly. 
2. You will need to prepare your grill for indirect heating and you will want a large tin foil pan to fill with water to help regulate the internal temperature of the inside of the grill.  You want the temperature of the grill to be between 300F and 350F.  NO HIGHER.  My method of indirect heating here is to have the tin foil pan in the middle of the bottom grate with the lit charcoal all by the top of the tin foil pan with some of the charcoal coming down each side of the pan.
3. Place the chopped onion, celery, garlic, carrots, bay leaves and whole peppercorns into the bottom of the roasting pan.  Also add the giblets and the neck to the bottom of the roasting pan.  Place rack for turkey in roasting pan.  Pour in all stock and broth into bottom of pan so that it comes a little over the bottom of the roasting rack.
4. Place turkey breast-side down into the roasting rack that's in the roasting pan and baste with some of the melted butter. NOTE: Because the turkey legs take longer to cook we will cook the turkey with the breast-side down in the liquid to slow down the cooking of the breast meat.  After an hour you'll flip the turkey over so that the back is in the liquid, exposing the barely cooked breast meat to the heat and smoke!
5. Once your grill is ready for indirect heat at 300F-350F, add 2 of the soaked wood chunks to the coals.  You will want to position the coals under the part of the grate that flips open for easy access later.
6. Place the roasting pan on center of the cooking grate with the legs closest to the charcoal heat source.
7. Cook the turkey with the lid closed for 1 hour.
8. After 1 hour, to maintain the heat you will need to add more charcoal(8-12 unlit briquettes).  Also add the remaining soaked cherry chunks to the coals.
9. At this point you will also very carefully turn the turkey over so the breast-side is face up.  Continue cooking turkey with the lid on as before.
10. After another hour baste the turkey with more butter!  At this time you will also want to take the temperature of your turkey.  The turkey is done when the internal temperature of the thickest part of the thigh(not touching the bone) reaches 175F and the the breast meat reaches 165F.  NOTE: The turkey will continue to cook after taking it off the grill and the temperature will continue to rise another 5F-10F.  Therefore you will want to take it OFF the grill before it reaches those "Finished" temperatures.
11. Once the turkey is 5F-10F below the finishing temperatures take it off the grill and place the turkey on a carving board covered loosely with tin foil.
12. Overall cooking times can vary depending on size of the turkey and how hot your grill is.  I'd say for a 12lb turkey, you're looking at 2.5 to 3.5 hours.  Or more if you cook at a lower temperature.

Lets make GRAVY

What to do with all that wonderful liquid?  Oh man.  That stuff is what dreams are made of!  I recommend saving some of that liquid for soups later on, while using some of that liquid to make gravy!

1. Strain liquid and remove all solids.
2. Use the separator to remove the fat.
3. Reduce the liquid you want for gravy in half to concentrate flavors.  So start with double what you want to end up with!
4. While reducing make a golden roux with a 1/2 stick of butter and enough flour(adding just a little at a time).
5. When the liquid has reduced in half, lower heat and add the roux while stirring.
6. Once the roux has been incorporated and it's boiled a little you will have GRAVY!

CARVE TURKEY AND SERVE WITH GRAVY!

ENJOY!

NOTE: It is important that when you brine the turkey you keep the turkey breast-side down so that it will always be submerged in the brine.  It's okay if the back is not completely covered by the brine.

NOTE: Because the turkey legs take longer to cook we will cook the turkey with the breast-side down in the liquid to slow down the cooking for the breast meat.  After an hour you'll flip the turkey over so that the back is in the liquid, exposing the barely cooked breast meat to the heat and smoke!

NOTE: The turkey will continue to cook after taking it off the grill and the temperature will continue to rise another 5F-10F.  Therefore you will want to take it OFF the grill before it reaches those "Finished" temperatures.