Caring for the meat

Wild turkeys can be eaten either fresh or aged. It all comes down to personal preference, and there are adherents on both sides.

Why and how to age a turkey

Aging is a process by which changes in muscle enzymes tenderize the meat, and concentrate the flavor. Many hunters prefer to age their meat – both big game and game birds. Others adhere to the motto “fresh birds are the best birds.”

Aging is particularly helpful in tenderizing the meat of older toms.

If you choose to age your bird, here are some tips:

  • Wild turkey can be aged right after harvest or even after it has been frozen.
  • Always age under refrigeration.
  • Age only head-shot birds (no pellets in the body) with the skin on.
  • If you age a skinned bird, don’t age if for more than 24 hours.
  • Place a field dressed turkey on its back on a rack, or hang it by the head for proper ventilation.
  • Age turkey meat uncovered, for up to 4 days (remove the hardened outer layer that forms prior to cooking).
  • Juvenile birds generally don’t need aging. Their meat is not as tough as that of older birds.
  • Dry pluck (rather than wet pluck) birds that have hung for more than 3 days.

Once you’ve cleaned, plucked, skinned and/or aged your bird, you’re ready to cook it.

Cooking a whole bird

Whole turkeys are easy to roast, grill or smoke. Keep in mind, however, that wild turkeys don’t have the fat content of domestic birds, which can make them dry out quickly. This is especially true if you’ve skinned the bird. Covering the bird, or its parts, with bacon, herb leaves or spice paste will help the meat retain moisture while it’s cooking.

Moist-heat cooking methods (braising, steaming, poaching, Dutch oven, oven bag, etc.) also can help keep all parts of the bird moist when cooking.

However, roasting or grilling a whole bird may not be the best way to get a perfectly cooked turkey. If you’ve cooked a domestic turkey, you know that the breasts often cook faster and dry out while the darker leg and thigh meat is still cooking. The same is true for a wild bird.

Consider cooking your turkey in parts

If you’re not concerned about the presentation of the bird at the dinner table, consider cooking the breast meat separately from the thigh and leg meat. That way you can cook each part of the bird to its optimal temperature.

After breaking down the bird into its major section – breasts, legs and thighs -- many cooks bake, grill or smoke the breast and use the tougher leg and thigh meat for soups and stews.

Removing the meat from the bone, and grinding or dicing it opens up a whole menu of versatile uses:

  • Make turkey nuggets or meatballs.
  • Use ground turkey (consider mixing it with ground pork, beef or chicken) in tacos, spaghetti, gravy, casseroles or sandwich spreads.

Cooking turkey off the bone takes the guess work out of cooking, and lets you add a variety of flavors and moisture-rich fats. Grinding or dicing the meat also gives you another chance to check for stray shotgun shell pellets that might still be in the meat. You don’t want to send your guests to the dentist right after dinner.

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