I am going to smoke 2 whole turkeys for thanksgiving. I would love some help… smoking temp, wood, bird prep…any info would be much appreciated.
I’ve only done it once. Just salted the bird. Had a duck on the rack above it so the turkey was nearly glowing by the time it was done. I smoke around 225 usually with hickory and apple. It was too long ago to remember how long it took. Tasted fantastic.
I do mine in the BGE. Hardwood charcoal and Pecan for smoke. Brine it for a day or two in Water, Kosher Salt, Brown Sugar, Onions, Garlic, Orange Rind and Lemon quarters, Thyme Sprigs, Rosemary Sprigs. Make sure it’s good and dry before cooking. I put onion, celery and some lemon wedges inside. I sprinkle outside with S&P, Garlic powder and Paprika.
250 for me using Apple and Hickory mix. I spatchcock the bird to accelerate cooking. Figure on fifteen minutes or so per pound.
I’ve smoked a turkey on my WSM for the last 4-5 years. This is a link that contains the procedure I follow and really like. Whole Turkey - Apple Brine - The Virtual Weber Bullet
What will you be smoking it on? Technique and tips vary a bit depending upon smoker. Weber charcoal grill, BGE, stick burner, pellet burner, insulated smoker, they all need different approaches. In general, relax. It’s incredibly easy. Don’t have to brine the bird, doesn’t hurt but it’s not necessary to get a good result. Hickory is a bit strong for turkey, think about using fruit woods like apple or cherry. Get the bird close to room temp before smoking by leaving out for five hours or so. Mix some honey and water, 50-50, in a microwave to get the two liquids to dissolve and brush the outside. If using a Weber grill with the briquette baskets on either side, place foil on the sides of the legs to prevent burning them. Start with the breast down and then after about two hours flip the bird to get the mahogany color on the breast side. You will know when it’s done by looking for crease between the leg and carcass separating a bit and becoming translucent. Most guests prefer a light touch on the smoke. After the first hour and a half, additional smoke is not necessary.
Followed this website’s advice for the last handful of years, and the whole family agrees this is the best turkey ever.
It gives you the temperatures you need to achieve and all the science/reasoning behind it.
Get extra extra large rolling papers.
FWIW, I have found hickory…as even part of the mix too strong for turkey. Fruitwoods like plum or apple. Woods like cherry or maple…I think work best. Just my two cents…
happy turkey day
I like it strong. Mesquite, however, is over the top for poultry.
Doing eight legs, and four legs/thighs in a couple of hours.
Thanks for all of the info! I used the spatchcock method last night (thanks to Bill!). I rubbed an herb butter under the skin and put our house rub on it over night. I will be smoking the bird in my smokey mountain smoker with apple wood at about 225. I will try and post pictures tonight.
Methinks my BGE thermometer is on the fritz. I put my Turkey on at 6AM keeping the temp around 325°. @9AM my meat thermometer is registering 165° deep into the breast and the skin/meat is backing off on the drumsticks. 21-1/2lbs in 3hrs? Tried two different thermometers, the other reads 170°. Seems way too soon.
sure is pretty though!
I smoked this twenty pounder on my XL BGE with DigiQ set to 300 cooking temp and meat set to 165 at leg. Brined it for a day in OJ, salt, and herbs and then air dried it for a day. Honey and maple syrup glaze, smoked with just a small amount of peach and apple chips. Took almost four hours. Juiciest turkey ever and I’ve been smoking turkeys for a long time, though this is my first Thanksgiving with BGE.
looks great Mitch. I’ll cook a turkey on Saturday, going to dry brine it this morning
It had a really nice smoke ring, but, of course, I didn’t think to take a picture of that:)
Thanks Mel. That’s high praise coming from a cook (and photographer) such as you. The best part for me yesterday is that a friend came over who is about to pick up his XL BGE and he had never cooked with charcoal or lump before and had no idea how the BGE and DigiQ worked other than seeing what is available on the net. He was very excited to watch the whole process and being the lazy ass that I am, I had him sort the lump into big, medium, and small and build the fire and put the platesetter down over the burning fire (he grimaced at that one) and the only thing I did was install and set the DigiQ. We lowered the lid and the guage on the dome was reading 400 and I said, “let’s go in the house and have a scotch, and when we come out in twenty minutes, the temp will read exactly 300”. We had our dram of Lagavulin and came back out and his eyes were wide as saucers when I was proven correct.
Here are the pictures from start to finish. The meat was really tender and juicy. I used applewood and it came out way to smokey. I used a herb butter under the skin and our house rub on the skin. I will cook the same what next year without the smoke, with the butter, and with just salt and pepper. Thanks everyone for the help.
Does anybody brine AND inject their turkey? I brined, thought of injecting, but decided against it. Thoughts?
I stopped brining my turkeys due to salty turkey’s year after year. Also, from what I have read, less then 10% of the brining solution actually penetrates the turkey. It’s a lot of work for bad results IMO. I believe that your turkey will be moist if you cook it to the right temp. I have injected in the past and I didn’t like the results. The flavor was concentrated all in the injected areas.