Since its the holiday season I've had a few people ask me about smoking a turkey. Smoked turkey in my opinion is the very best way to eat turkey. The smoke adds a flavor that you just can't get from an oven.
Smoking a turkey is really easy. When smoking a turkey you will not want to stuff the turkey. You are using low temps and the stuffing will not get hot fast enough to keep it out of the danger zone. I like to smoke my stuffing in a casserole dish the last couple of hours with the turkey.
I began with a 18 pound turkey. Use your favorite wood and let it enhance the flavor of you bird. (I used apple wood this year)
Set your smoker at 180 to 220 degrees.
Prepare Turkey. I use my own rub but you can use any you like. Old bay seasoning works nice.
Rub the bird with olive oil and then rub your seasoning into the skin.
Place bird on grill and and begin smoking. This will take upwards of 10 to 12 hours. Mist the bird with apple juice every couple of hours to keep the skin moist. After 8 hours start taking the temperature of the bird. I like to take the temp in the breast and the thigh. I don't like to trust the pop up thermometers. I never can seem to get them to pop up. The temperature of a finished bird should read 165 in the breast and 175 in the thigh and the juices should be clear. You can increase the temperature after 8 hours to speed up the cooking time. Just make sure to check the temp so you don't over do it. Once you get to temp remove the bird from smoker and enjoy.
Click on images to get a better view.
Smoked Turkey is very juicy and flavorful. You will never go back to a plan old oven turkey again. And there is no oil to spill over your floor and start a fire.
Good luck and happy holidays.
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