We are doing a large 25lb turkey this year. It’s taking a bit to get the breast to 160 I aim for - sitting at 155 currently. Thigh is at 175. I’ll probably pull it in a half hour and let it rest for a while to finish.

Done! - Yours?

I’d pull it now. The temp in the middle will continue to rise as it’s resting.

As an example, I did two standing rib roasts on Tuesday. I pulled them off the grill at 120 and tented both of them with aluminum foil. They both continued on to 140 which is higher than I wanted. I’ll pull them sooner next time and try to lower the grill temp.

Put a fork in it -- it is done.

I plan to pull mine off at 157, it will carry over 160. I don't want to go over 165.

Food safety from bad bugs is a function of both temperature and time. The FDA recommendation of 165F is accurate in the sense that the bugs will die almost instantaneously at 165F.

However, the same level of pasteurization can be achieved by holding the meat at a lower temperature for more time. For example, you can hold your temp at 145F for 8-10 minutes and it'll be just as safe as if you brought it to 165F.

The benefit of this is that you don't have dried out nasty meat. Rather, you have soft juicy safe meat with a ton of flavor.

Pull it now and enjoy.

ETA: Here's an article on the subject.

I pull my turkey at 154 degrees and it is cooked slow. I also cook it with the breast side down. It turns out really tender and juicy throughout.

Gustofer is absolutely right about the time temperature scale.

We just put our 21# bird on the Yoder. It's sitting at 45 degrees going for 160. Cooking at 275.

My recipe [Alton Brown] says to pull at 161* & rest for 15min before carving.
500* for 30min, then 350* until up to temp

First bird was tender & juicy. 2nd is about halfway there

This message has been edited. Last edited by: P250UA5,

165 for poultry