Instead of just brining, have you ever cured a turkey like a ham? I am going to try a 20lb whole fresh tom. I am leaving from the 11th till the 24th and I am going to inject and brine the bird using the same cure I used for my Easter Ham. 13 days should be about right. Anyone done this before? Please feel free to comment. Looking to slow smoke it after it is cured.
I cure turkey breasts and smoke them for my wife on a regular basis. It turns the turkey into a very lean and moist ham with a much smoother texture. My wife loves it and as long as she gets what she likes, there is never a question about getting extra stuff for the smoker (LOL).
My only concern would be the amount of time in the curing brine, too much time could cause nitrite burns slightly altering texture and taste with that iridescent glow to the meat when sliced. But depending on the amount of sugars, curing could take slightly longer than normal. Make sure you use Cure #1 (Sodium Nitrate) or Morton Tenderquick / Morton Sugar Cure. If you go the 13 days as described Morton Sugar Cure has a small amount of Sodium Nitrate added that is converted into Sodium Nitrites starting after the basic cure begins to loose potency, the extra sugars would also slow down the process. Don't forget to do a good soak in fresh ice water several times to remove excess salt.
My turkey breasts only take 6 to 7 days to cure, once I let one go to 8th day because of time constraints and all was well. Maybe you could make the brine ahead of time and cover and refrigerate, then ask someone to put the bird into the brine at a later date (16th or 17th).
I would agree with Marty Leach, brine only the breast and leg/thigh pieces, it takes much less room and the carcass can be rendered down into great soup stock.
I've had turkey ham. It's kind of like non-alcoholic or lite beer, the taste is not right. Kind of like a salty, smokey tofu.
I would guess you have purchased commercial turkey ham which is only injected and not really smoked. If it was homemade than something went wrong in the process of making it, especially if it was salty as you indicated. A nicely cured and Smoked turkey breast has great flavor, the texture is smoother but it does have a great smoke flavor and the additives in the brine you choose will impart really great flavors.
The only draw back is that because it is so lean, if you fry the leftovers they do become slightly dry, but as cold sandwiches, lightly heated, or added to a bean soup it is really good.
