Brining a Turkey for the Smoker

[justme4910]

I'm going to brine a turkey for the first time this year,I've bought 2 frozen turkeys and have one thawing in the fridge right now,this will be the experimental one for Thanksgiving ,I was bragging about how good I have gotten at using my smoker,so now I'm in charge of the Turkey this year , I should have kept my mouth shut and used mamaws Broaster,it is old and still cooks a great bird so the pressure is on this year


I'm going with a brine to help stop the bird from being so dry in the Smoker,I've been having problems with birds coming our dry in it ,so i am going to try this basic brine and smoke a Turkey this week end,here is the recipe for it

http://www.food.com/recipe/easy-turkey-brine-519817

if anybody has any experience using a smoker on one,I would appreciate any advice on what worked for you ,I plan on getting the bird out of the brine and laying some seasoning to it the night before I smoke it,so I'm not worried about using the recommended seasoning in the brine

that and there a picky bunch about spices,so i will keep it pretty basic and it is either the rosemary or thyme that I don't like lol I can't remember which one

 

[Becky]

Wow that sounds interesting, I am really looking forward to hearing how you get on! I haven't smoked a turkey before, but I have brined one - I used this recipe from Nigella: http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/spiced-and-superjuicy-roast-turkey (worth noting that you really couldn't taste the spice)

My brother keeps talking about wanting to smoke a turkey in his smoker, but his smoker isn't massive and you have to add hot coals on a fairly regular basis - given how long a turkey would take to cook it just wouldn't be practical. He cooks lovely chicken in it though - it's incredibly juicy.

 

[CherylTorrie]

I haven't used a smoker either but I have done a turkey in a fryer and it came out yummy. The brining and dry rub seem to be the right track though. Hard for a turkey to become dry after it's been brined overnight. Be sure to attach pictures when you are done. There is nothing nicer than a well cooked Thanksgiving dinner with the Turkey as it's Star.

 

[justme4910]

I have the Turkey soaking in a brine now,I'm waiting till later tonight and then I will get it out and pat it dry and then add some seasoning and smoke it tomorrow

hopefully it will come out good

 

[justme4910]

it has been brined and will sit over night with the seasoning rubbed in

 

[justme4910]

hmmm guess I should of taken a picture of the different spices I used,encase it is really good,I will forget between now and Thanksgiving what all I used

 

[CherylTorrie]

I am anxious to see the final picture and hear how it tastes. There is nothing like a well prepared turkey picture. Something about the big bird that brings back wonderful family memories and makes me smile.

 

[justme4910]

here is a picture,it is dry looking on the skin,I ran out of charcoal

and I'm finishing it in the oven,it doesn't have much more cooking to do

 

[CherylTorrie]

That looks so Yummy. How did it taste? Was the brining enough to keep it moist? My son loves smoked turkey but I don't have the patience for it and it's very hard to get just right. He'll get fried turkey again this year.

 

[Becky]

Gosh that looks beautiful!

 

[justme4910]

I let it rest for about an hour wrapped in foil,after I got the temperature up in the oven and found out I had the probe in the wrong place,when I sliced it up the meat was not done around the inside of the thighs, so I baked them a little longer,with the drumsticks and some meat that I got off the bone

it did taste great,I could taste the Orange just a little bit and will add another Orange and a Lemon or two,the next time I brine one,the recipe was for two gallons and I used 3 and a half gallons,I was surprised at how well it came out,so i guess I will be Brining turkeys from now on and I will brine a ham and smoke it for Christmas and will let ya'll know how that comes out

and your suppose to add a 1/4 cup of salt for each gallon of water extra and I assume it is the same for the Brown Sugar,I barely had a cup of Brown Sugar,so i ran out of that too I was surprised that i couldn't taste the salt at all

the skin was tough as shoe leather,that is the only compliant I have with it and that was probably my fault,I was low on charcoal and didn't realize it till after I had started smoking it lol and uuuuh mmm I had all ready had a couple of adult beverages and wasn't going to drive to town to pick some more up

so I ran the temp about 15 degrees lower and cooked it way to long and still had to finish it up in the oven,but it taste great,so I have it pretty well figured out what to do to it for the family gathering come Turkey Day

 

[justme4910]

Wow that sounds interesting, I am really looking forward to hearing how you get on! I haven't smoked a turkey before, but I have brined one - I used this recipe from Nigella: http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/spiced-and-superjuicy-roast-turkey (worth noting that you really couldn't taste the spice)

My brother keeps talking about wanting to smoke a turkey in his smoker, but his smoker isn't massive and you have to add hot coals on a fairly regular basis - given how long a turkey would take to cook it just wouldn't be practical. He cooks lovely chicken in it though - it's incredibly juicy.

as long as he can fit the Turkey in it,it should work Becky,I smoked mine for around 5 hours at 210 degrees Fahrenheit,which was on the low side,i should of had it at least at 225,the next time,I'm going to try and get the temp up higher and only smoke it for 3 to 4 hours and then finish it in the oven,till i hit my temperature marks

 

[justme4910]

these are the temps I'm looking for

turkey temps for smoking

175-180 in the thighs,165 breast

Let it thaw then brine

from butterball
1. Insert a meat thermometer between the turkey’s thigh above the drumstick without hitting bone.
2. When the thermometer reads 180 degrees F, you’re done! (If it’s stuffed, check the center of the stuffing to make sure it’s 165 degrees F as well.)
3. In addition, make sure the turkey’s temperature is at 170 degrees F in the deepest part of the breast and 165 degrees F in the center of the stuffing.

i actually am trying to get the thigh temp to 190 degrees,i did have my temp probe in the wrong part of the thigh,you want it in the meat of the thigh,close to the body of the bird and not touching the bone and i checked the temp on the breast to make sure it was done also