Turkey Brine Recipe:
2 gallons of tap water
1 cup Brown Sugar
1 cup Molasses
1 cup Honey
1 ½ cup Salt
¼ cup The BBQ Rub
3-4 Bay Leaves
Fresh Thyme Bundle
1 TBS Whole Peppercorns
In a large stock pot bring 1 gallon of water to a boil and add the brown sugar, molasses, honey, salt, bbq rub, and bay leaves. Once the ingredients have dissolved turn off the heat and allow the mixture to cool. Make this the night before and refrigerate until time to brine.
Place the turkey inside a big pot or ziplock bag and pour in the brine. Toss in the thyme bundle and peppercorns.
Top the turkey off with an additional gallon of water and the entire bird should be covered. Brine 24 hours.
The next day remove the turkey from the brine and rinse under cool water. Allow it to drain and pat off any excess water with paper towels.
Turkey Stuffing:
2-3 Apples
1 Onion
2 Stalks of celery
Cut a couple apples in half and stuff in the cavity. Also add onion and celery. This will add mass to the turkey helping it cook evenly and gives it some additional flavor.
Turkey Rub Recipe:
1/2 cup Kosher Salt
1/2 cup Granulated Garlic
1/2 TBS Poultry Seasoning
Spray the outside of the turkey with cooking spray to help the seasonings stick to the skin and keep the outside from getting to dark. Apply the seasoning mix to the outside making sure to cover everything (you might have some rub left over); then apply a light layer of whatever BBQ rub floats your boat.
Turkey Butter Injection:
1 stick real butter
1 cup chicken broth
1 TBS Hot Sauce
1 tea Granulated Garlic
1 tea Cajun Seasoning
Melt the butter in a sauce pan and add the chicken broth, hot sauce, garlic, and Cajun seasoning. Whisk the ingredients together and remove from heat once incorporated. It doesn’t need to come to a boil.
Inject the breast in multiple places as well as the thigs and drumsticks. Tie up the legs and wings to keep them close to the bird.
Smoke the turkey at between 275-300 degrees. Higher temps make for a better bird. The outer skin turns a beautiful mahogany color and is almost crispy. For smoke, use pecan or a fruit wood like cherry. It’s pretty easy to over-smoke a turkey, so go easy on the wood. Place the turkey on the smoker and set a timer for 1 ½ hours. As long as you maintain the temp, there’s not much to do, just let it cook.
After the hour and a half rotate the Turkey but never flip it. It should stay breast side up the entire smoke.
It takes about 3 ½ hours to smoke a 10-12 lb turkey but checking the internal temps is key. It has to hit at least 165 in the breast and 175 in the thigh.
When you stick the turkey, juices should run out clear. There should be no trace of blood or pink colored liquid.
Start checking the internal about the 2 ½ hour mark just to see where it is. At this point if the outside is starting to get dark, lay a piece of aluminum foil over it. The foil acts as a tent and will prevent the skin from browning any further.
Once I see a temp of 165 in the thickest part of the breast and the juices are running clear out of the thigh (175 internal), the turkey is done…. Almost… you want to let it rest for at least 15 minutes before carving. If you go at it too soon with the knife, all of the juices will run out onto your cutting board and you’ll have dry turkey. Be patient and let things cool off for a few minutes.
