Sausage, in a Bird, in a Bird, in a Bird, in a Bird.... Layered with Sausage.....

Sausage, in a Bird, in a Bird, in a Bird, in a Bird.... Layered with Sausage.....

OK, so we have all either saw the infamous Turduckhen displayed in specialty foods catalogs ( http://www.cabelas.com/entrees-cabelas-tur-duc-hen.shtml ) around the holidays, or saw Epic Meal Time's Turbaconepic ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Xc5wIpUenQ ) ..... either way it has caused lust amongst us food lovers.... So, for this Thanksgiving I have decided to forego my traditional Smoked Turkey for something a little more adventurous. I decided to take two different types of animals and a few species and meld them in a deliciously unholy way that will only cement my room in the depths of hell...

I decided to take delicious sausage, and stuff a delicious cornish game hen with it. Then stuff the corning game hen into a chicken. Then stuff the chicken into a duck. Then stuff the duck into the turkey. Then smoke it with wood chips made from the casks that they age Jim Beam bourbon in.  
( http://www.amazon.com/Beam-BTJB48-Smoking-Bisquettes-Count/dp/B001HZXYCI/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1353296649&sr=8-10&keywords=bradley+smoker+bisquettes )

Up to no good.......

Before I go any further, let it be known that this project will take a few hours to prep before you even get it to the smoker, and you have to have some serious knife skills to pull this off. I would recommend if you do not have the aforementioned knife skills either have the butcher debone your birds for you, order a Turduckhen from Cabela's, have an ambulance waiting in your driveway for the inevitable (and unenviable) trip to the hospital to have your forearm reattached, or just skip this project altogether. I am a guy who has a degree in culinary arts and ran some big ass kitchens in my day, and this was a pain in the ass challenging task. 

I would plan on par cooking the bird a few days before your meal, then reheating and glazing in the oven the day of the meal. Because of all of the layers involved, this one will be a difficult one to time with the rest of your meal, and you don't want anyone to get sick from undercooked poultry.  

So, what you will need for this:

2 lbs Sage Pork Sausage (or some other non-breakfast sausage that you like. I would imagine chorizo, andouille, or even kielbasa would be good in this.... or bacon if you are into Internet memes)
1 - Partially Deboned Turkey (12 lbs, leg bones and wings left intact, innner bones and backbone removed)
1 - Fully Deboned Duck (5-6 lbs, no bones at all, leg meat intact)
1 - Fully Deboned Chicken (4-5 lbs, no bones at all, leg meat intact)
1 - Fully Deboned Cornish Game Hen (1-2 lbs typically, again, no bones)
1 lb Bread Stuffing Mix (homemade or store bought, whatever you like)
2-3 oz. Cabela's Roasted Garlic and Beer Seasoning
2 - 4 cups of chicken stock
2 - Jumbo Eggs

Tools:

1 -SHARP 6" Boning Knife
1- Large Skillet
1 - Large Cutting Board with something to keep it from sliding (wet towel laid under it works fine)
Butcher's Twine
3 Half Bakers Sheets (or 3 large cookie trays)
Calibrated Stick Thermometer

Method:

How NOT to do this.....

1. Thaw and debone your birds. You can do this by brining it for a couple of days in the fridge, buying them fresh or thawed, or just letting your frozen birds sit in the fridge for a few days. You can choose to remove the skin from everything except the Turkey. I took the skin off of the game hen and chicken, and trimmed the duck fat liberally. IF YOU DON'T KNOW HOW TO DEBONE A BIRD, DON'T ATTEMPT THIS PART!!!! HAVE A BUTCHER DO IT FOR YOU!!!!

2. Once your birds are thawed, seasoned, and boneless, start making your stuffing. Cook off your two pounds of sausage in a large skillet. Once browned, add 2 cups of your chicken stock to deglaze the pan. Add in your dry stuffing mix. Stir until all of the moisture is absorbed. The stuffing mix needs to be rather moist and sticky, yet retain a ball shape. Add more chicken stock or cook a little bit uncovered to adjust the stickiness. Think Sushi Rice..... Let it cook off a bit until warm, but not too hot to touch. 

3. Add your eggs, ONE AT A TIME, to you warm stuffing stirring as you go. This will help stiffen your stuffing once it is cooked to make for a nice presentation. 

4. Take two long pieces (about 2-3 feet depending on your knotting skills) across the center of one of your baking sheets in an X shape.

5. Take a baseball sized bit of stuffing and roll it into a tight ball and place it in the middle of your tray with the butchers twine laid across it, right on top of the twine. 

6. Take your boneless Cornish Game Hen, and lay it over top of the stuffing ball, being careful to tuck in the edges. 

7. Layer about 1/4 inch of stuffing on top of the Cornish Game Hen. Smooth it out so it covers the bird entirely. 

8. Place your Chicken over top of the Cornish Game Hen being careful to tuck in the edges. Layer it with 1/4 inch of stuffing.

9. Place your Duck over your Chicken being careful to tuck in the edges. Layer it with 1/4 inch of stuffing.

10. Place your Turkey over your Duck being careful to tuck in the edges. Take your butchers twine and tie them firmly in an X shape. Don't tie it so tight it squeezes your stuffed birds out. This is a temporary tie and will be removed in the coming steps.

11. Place another baking sheet on top of your birds and gingerly flip it so it is breast side down. 

12. Commence tying a butcher's the length of the bird. I found it best to have 4 segments, on in the front in front of the wings, two in the middle, and one in the back, using the tails to truss the legs together. To maximize my easily sliced portion, I tied it in such a way that it looks like a long turkey. 

12a. Paula Deen has an alternative method for this that uses several metal skewers run through the bottom of the turkey, parallel to one another, perpendicular to the backbone, then lacing it up like a sneaker. I attempted this, but found the Turkey skin too weak for this to work effectively. 

13. Flip the bird gingerly back over onto either your smoker rack or the sheet you will bake it on. 

14. Generously season your bird with the Cabela's spice (or whatever you like)

Baking:

If baking, place the bird into an oven preheated to 500 degrees. Allow it to roast for 15 - 20 minutes. Turn the oven down to about 275 degrees and let it finish low and slow. If you get impatient and cook at too high a temperature, the eggs in your stuffing will leaven and force the whole thing apart. Take your time. Expect to roast it 3-5 hours depending on final weight.

Awww Yea.... The Bradley Smoker...

Smoking:

Smoke the bird until the internal temp reaches 155 degrees, which will take about 5-8 hours at 200 degrees. Hickory, Cherry, and Mesquite work well for poultry. If you have a Bradley smoker, I would recommend the Jim Beam smoking pucks. 

Once Par Cooked, place the bird on a cooling rack on top of a bakers sheet. Allow it to rest at room temperature for 20 minutes or so, then transfer to the fridge once it is cool to the touch. Cover it loosely with foil to allow air to circulate. 

Reheating:

To reheat this bird, place in a roasting pan with a rack. Put about 2-3 cups of Chicken Stock in the bottom, cover loosely, and place into the oven. Baste often with butter or garlic oil. Once the internal temp get to about 130, take it out of the oven, pour off the chicken stock, and turn the oven to 375 degrees. Baste with Butter or Garlic Oil and the skin should become golden brown. If the temperature gets to 145 degrees or higher and the skin has not crisped up, put the bird on the middle low rack and use the broiler. MAKE SURE YOU WATCH IT CAREFULLY!!! FAT IS FLAMMABLE!!!

Once the skin looks the way you want it to, remove it from the oven and allow it to rest for about 20 minutes. Slice and eat with gravy or the Roasted Shallot Sauce mentioned in an earlier post.