Orion Turkey

MossyMO · 12-08-2012, 12:09 AM

So I have had this Orion Cooker a for a while and all I have used it for is ribs a few times and they taste ok but nothing compared to off a pellet grill or a Weber kettle, but it will do 3 slabs of ribs in 90 minutes (in the summer).

Now I have always heard how great a turkey is from an Orion and had to give it a try. Started out by putting the 10 lb. turkey in Mad Hunky Poultry Brine that was planned to be an 8 hour brine but North Dakota weather switched my plans and it ended up being a 32 hour brine.

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Now here is the turkey on the Orion poultry stand rubbed with Simply Marvelous Season All.

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The Orion Cooker is designed to add smoke taste if you choose to add wood chips around the drip pan, instead I thought I would try 2 hand fulls of pecan pellets.

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Here is the turkey loaded in the Orion.

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Here is the Orion with the coals lit.

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Orion cooks by time, not temp; and Orion suggest 7 minutes per pound for turkey. Well, North Dakota winter temps seemed to not work well with Orion's directions cause at 70 minutes this turkey needed more cooking time. Ended up going an hour 45 minutes which still is not that bad to cook a turkey in freezing temps! Here is the turkey when I pulled it.

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Check out the juices!

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Turkey, dressing and mixed veggies!

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I really like this turkey; great taste, the brine and seasoning made it moist and delicious... and most surprising was the smoke flavor, it really had a deep pecan smoke flavor. I like the Orion for cook time and flavor, but I will say with this style of cooking the turkey skin was terrible.

Thanks for looking!

code3rrt · 12-08-2012, 12:25 AM

Looks great, sounds like you got pretty close to what you wanted. Certainly looks juicey enough!

Johnny_Crunch · 12-08-2012, 07:05 AM

Looks good from here!

superdan · 12-08-2012, 07:16 AM

I find turkey skin is usually terrible so I think you did just fine!

cousinconley · 12-08-2012, 07:28 AM

I've always kinda wondered about the Orions seeing them at bass pro.

RAZORBACK JIM · 12-08-2012, 07:53 AM

Looks like it did a great job!!

Wampus · 12-08-2012, 08:14 AM

Looks great!

RW · 12-08-2012, 10:26 AM

And here I thought you were saying that your Orion was a turkey. Looks like it does a good job on gobblers.

tish · 12-08-2012, 10:35 AM

Looks fantastic! Love the color, and it certainly looks juicy enough. Great job!

Hook_Line_and_Sinker · 12-08-2012, 11:32 AM

The Orion is a fun toy for sure ! Great looking turkey, dripping with moistness

cowgirl · 12-08-2012, 02:40 PM

I've wondered how those cookers work. Great looking bird Marty, your whole meal looks tasty. Wish I lived closer. lol

Parruthead · 12-08-2012, 04:45 PM

Love my Orion!! Looks like you nailed that bird too!!!

K-Train · 12-08-2012, 06:36 PM

I had an Orion, even competed with it a few times as a rib cooker. Got a 2nd at the MD State BBQ Bash tailgate division. Have since sold it and got a WSM 22.5. The WSM gives more of a smoke flavor, but the Orion is awesome for what it is. Kinda wish I still had it.

Hankdad1 · 12-08-2012, 09:31 PM

I thought strongly about buying one a couple of years ago when HD was carrying them. Then I thought about the flame height and my golden retrievers wagging their tails around it.

They still look like they would be fun to try.

HuskerMan · 12-09-2012, 08:38 AM

Nice looking bird. I actually just bought one of these at an estate sale. I figured if I didn't like the way it cooks the poultry rack/hook was worth what I paid for it.

12-08-2012, 12:09 AM	#1
MossyMO Knows what a fatty is. Join Date: 05-27-12 Location: Glenburn, ND Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Orion Turkey So I have had this Orion Cooker a for a while and all I have used it for is ribs a few times and they taste ok but nothing compared to off a pellet grill or a Weber kettle, but it will do 3 slabs of ribs in 90 minutes (in the summer). Now I have always heard how great a turkey is from an Orion and had to give it a try. Started out by putting the 10 lb. turkey in Mad Hunky Poultry Brine that was planned to be an 8 hour brine but North Dakota weather switched my plans and it ended up being a 32 hour brine. ----- Now here is the turkey on the Orion poultry stand rubbed with Simply Marvelous Season All. ----- The Orion Cooker is designed to add smoke taste if you choose to add wood chips around the drip pan, instead I thought I would try 2 hand fulls of pecan pellets. ----- Here is the turkey loaded in the Orion. ----- Here is the Orion with the coals lit. ----- Orion cooks by time, not temp; and Orion suggest 7 minutes per pound for turkey. Well, North Dakota winter temps seemed to not work well with Orion's directions cause at 70 minutes this turkey needed more cooking time. Ended up going an hour 45 minutes which still is not that bad to cook a turkey in freezing temps! Here is the turkey when I pulled it. ----- ----- Check out the juices! ----- Turkey, dressing and mixed veggies! ----- I really like this turkey; great taste, the brine and seasoning made it moist and delicious... and most surprising was the smoke flavor, it really had a deep pecan smoke flavor. I like the Orion for cook time and flavor, but I will say with this style of cooking the turkey skin was terrible. Thanks for looking! __________________ www.facebook.com/TatonkaDust www.OwensBBQ.com

12-08-2012, 12:25 AM	#2
code3rrt is One Chatty Farker Join Date: 08-09-12 Location: Spokane Valley, Washington Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Looks great, sounds like you got pretty close to what you wanted. Certainly looks juicey enough! __________________ KC Weber Performer with rotisserie ring, 22.5OTS, Maverick 732, Weber Smokey Joe,PBC Smokenator/Hoovergrill, variety of microbrews, Gin and tonic, variety of lighters.

12-08-2012, 07:05 AM	#3
Johnny_Crunch Babbling Farker Join Date: 04-03-10 Location: Cypress TX Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Looks good from here! __________________ J Crunch

12-08-2012, 07:28 AM	#5
cousinconley On the road to being a farker Join Date: 09-13-11 Location: Broken Arrow, OK Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	I've always kinda wondered about the Orions seeing them at bass pro. __________________ Vertical Home-Built Smoker, Cook N Kettle SR 59, Alaska Ulu Knife

12-08-2012, 07:53 AM	#6
RAZORBACK JIM Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 12-08-10 Location: Maryville Tn Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Looks like it did a great job!! __________________ BUBBA KEG CONVECTION GRILL (2) VISION GRILLS KAMADO PRO CERAMIC CHAR-GRILLER AKORN WEBER GENESIS E 310 SS WEBER PERFORMER (2) WEBER SMOKEY JOE (3) SMOKINTEX PRO 1400 (2) BBQ GURU RED THERAPEN PIT-MASTER IQ 110

12-08-2012, 07:16 AM	#4
superdan Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 08-21-11 Location: Sacramento, CA Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	I find turkey skin is usually terrible so I think you did just fine!

12-08-2012, 08:14 AM	#7
Wampus somebody shut me the fark up. Join Date: 06-05-09 Location: Mooresville, IN Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Looks great! __________________ Big JT's Smokin' BBQ Competition Team “If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change. As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him. We need not wait to see what others do.” - Mahatma Gandhi

12-08-2012, 10:26 AM	#8
RW On the road to being a farker Join Date: 02-13-12 Location: Texas Hill Country Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	And here I thought you were saying that your Orion was a turkey. Looks like it does a good job on gobblers. __________________ Weber Performer / 18.5 WSM / mini WSM / Char-Griller Akorn / #14 Old Smokey / Weber Jumbo Joe

12-08-2012, 10:35 AM	#9
tish Babbling Farker Join Date: 11-13-11 Location: york, pa Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Looks fantastic! Love the color, and it certainly looks juicy enough. Great job! __________________ When all else fails, just ask yourself WWGALD???* ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Just a little pyro at heart! Who's got the hot dogs? Bubba Keg, Weber Genesis E-310 NG Mini WSM, Shhh!!! Michael's surprise <'\__! .// .\\ Puppy baby says 'piss on it and walk away!' ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Proud recipient of a certifiably uncertified limited edition MOINK ball certificate!!

12-08-2012, 11:32 AM	#10
Hook_Line_and_Sinker is One Chatty Farker Join Date: 03-28-08 Location: Downey, California Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	The Orion is a fun toy for sure ! Great looking turkey, dripping with moistness __________________ Hook Line and Sinker Viking 30 inch Gravity Fed Charcoal Smoker Brinkmann 5 burner gas grill with sear & rotisserie UDS's 3 and growing Char Griller w/SFB w/mods Orion Cooker Charbroil 7000 Gas Grill

12-08-2012, 02:40 PM	#11
cowgirl somebody shut me the fark up. Join Date: 07-18-07 Location: Oklahoma Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	I've wondered how those cookers work. Great looking bird Marty, your whole meal looks tasty. Wish I lived closer. lol __________________ jeanie sittin' by the campfire with my Brethren friends. Lifetime member of the Society for the Preservation of Authentic Royal Magical Rare Kaskaskian Peppers (Thanks Ash :)) http://cowgirlscountry.blogspot.com/

12-08-2012, 04:45 PM	#12
Parruthead Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 04-21-11 Location: Shawano Wisconsin Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Love my Orion!! Looks like you nailed that bird too!!! __________________ 18.5" WSM

12-08-2012, 06:36 PM	#13
K-Train is one Smokin' Farker Join Date: 09-22-11 Location: Edgewater, MD Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	I had an Orion, even competed with it a few times as a rib cooker. Got a 2nd at the MD State BBQ Bash tailgate division. Have since sold it and got a WSM 22.5. The WSM gives more of a smoke flavor, but the Orion is awesome for what it is. Kinda wish I still had it. __________________ Keith Fat Maxine's BBQ Thanks to DArtagnan Foods (Awesome ribs)

12-08-2012, 09:31 PM	#14
Hankdad1 Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 05-07-10 Location: Twin Cities, MN Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	I thought strongly about buying one a couple of years ago when HD was carrying them. Then I thought about the flame height and my golden retrievers wagging their tails around it. They still look like they would be fun to try. __________________ WSM, Green stainless Performer, Genesis 3000, 2 18.5" Weber kettles, C-G Akorn.

12-09-2012, 08:38 AM	#15
HuskerMan Knows what a fatty is. Join Date: 08-05-12 Location: Wahoo,Ne Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Nice looking bird. I actually just bought one of these at an estate sale. I figured if I didn't like the way it cooks the poultry rack/hook was worth what I paid for it.