Smoked Turkey
Ingredients
- 1 young turkey
- Fruity smoking pellets (apple, pear, pecan or olive). Cherry can be too bitter.
- 8-16 cups vegetable broth (heat to dissolve ingredients)
- 1/2 cup kosher salt
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon dried rosemary
- 1 tablespoon dried sage
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme
- 15 peppercorns
- 5 cloves garlic, sliced
- 3 whole bay leaves
- 1 brining bag
- 2 gallons water
- 4 tbsp butter
- 1 butter injector (optional)
- 1 wireless thermometer (optional)
Instructions
Brine the turkey 12-24hrs before smoking. This helps with keeping the bird moist while on the grill. Combine all brining ingredients in 8-16 cups of warm water and stir until dissolved. Place the turkey into a large brining bag, add all ingredients, seal and let rest overnight or longer in a cool place.
Preheat the smoker to 300F. Meanwhile spatchcock the turkey to spread it apart and make it easier / faster to cook. Pat the turkey dry inside and out with paper towels. Melt one stick of butter with garlic and any other desired spices and use an injector to insert liberal amounts of butter inside the most meaty areas (breast, legs, even wings).
Spray the outside of the turkey with olive oil to give it stickiness then cover with your favorite spices. Place the turkey on the smoker and spray with cooking oil again for good measure. Smoke the turkey for 1hr then check it. Drizzle the outside with some more melted butter to keep the bird moist. Insert a temperature probe into the meatiest part and set the alarm for 165F.
After 2nd hour of cooking check on the turkey again. If the inside has not yet cooked to 165F but the outside has begun to darken too much, cover loosely with aluminum foil to prevent further charring. Follow this video for good method: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PEAQ_YopGk