Why Do Turkey Legs Taste So Much Better At The Fair?

Turkey legs, in the parlance of our times, hit different at a fair. Whether you get one at a Renaissance Faire or you shell out for one at a Disney theme park, the experience is equally delightful: a slab of meat that's large enough to give someone a concussion, easily portable thanks to the bone, and dripping with delectable juices and smoky flavor. A far cry from your aunt's overcooked Thanksgiving turkey, these behemoths of bird meat would be enough to send a medieval Guy Fieri straight to Ye Olde Flavour Towne.

But aside from giving you the chance to feel like Henry VIII grabbing a snack between beheadings, why is a turkey leg at the fair so delicious? As with so many other meat recipes, the answer has to do with salt and fire. 

Turkey legs are thoroughly wet-cured before being smoked, meaning they are left to rest in a saltwater solution much like the one used to smoke hams. This is why, if you've ever eaten a turkey leg from a ren faire, you might think it tastes more like pork than poultry. It's pretty on-brand considering that medieval societies cured their meat to preserve it, as wet-curing is exactly how to make a piece of meat last without the wonders of modern refrigeration. 

To fully cook a turkey leg, you need just enough heat to get the skin dry and crispy while still keeping the inside succulent. That's where a smoker can really up your BBQ game. By using indirect heat from smoke, the turkey legs cook slower than they would in an oven. However, they also retain a much richer flavor and a much better texture. (It's the same reason you should keep your grill lid shut when barbecuing chicken.) When it comes to a turkey leg, smoking also enhances its enticing pink color, thanks to the rosy blush, or "smoke ring", that appears when nitric oxide interacts with myoglobin-rich proteins.

If the Faire (or Disney Park) did this all in front of the customers, you'd be waiting at the concession stand for a very long time. Luckily, the turkey legs are cured and smoked elsewhere before being frozen and transported. After this, they just need to be reheated in the oven until they come out hot, juicy, and ready to serve. Huzzah!