Sous Vide Turkey

I'm considering attempting to sous vide an entire 18-20lb turkey (whole, not broken down). What times/temps would you suggest? I'm probably going to use the method used for cooking a chicken (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pd3gMP9CqQQ) and finish it in the oven for about ten minutes at 500 degrees to crisp up the skin. Any help would be appreciated, thanks! Also, would the times/temp be different if I didn't poach it with the broth and just sous vided it with olive oil?

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fisher23

The reason they add the liquid to the bag is so the middle of the chicken isn't hollow and will cook evenly. The problem is that because a turkey is so much thicker the center core doesn't get out of the danger zone within 6 hours. I just ran the numbers in "Sous Vide Tool Box" , here is one of the only safe calculations that I could come up with. Thickness at or less than 5.5" (very small turkey), temperature at 160°F, time is just under 18 hours. At that temperature you may as well oven roast. Using sous vide a thicker turkey or at a lower temperature, core temperature doesn't reach pasteurization within 6 hours. If it was mine I would break in down, a small turkey could even be spatchcocked, then you could sous vide it at a much lower temperature and retain its juiciness. Check out the Joule app for suggested times and temperature for a turkey broken down. That's my 2 cents.

tshewman

See @John_Fisher_218893s feedback. If you start with a warm broth (e.g. @160F-it will instantly cool when you pour it on the cold bird)in the bag it may help with the safety. The other things is the crispy skin. This is very challenging (esp with a bird of that size) after a poach. You'll need to somehow dehydrate the skin (e.g. with LN2 poured on it or put it in the freezer for 1/2 an hour-don't worry you won't freeze the bird) prior to the oven step.