Many consider Thanksgiving sides the main event, but when you take the right approach, turkey can hang with any cornbread, mashed potatoes, or stuffing recipe. This year, consider using a new technique and learn how to smoke a turkey. We'll guide you step by step, and may just introduce you to a new holiday tradition you'll keep for years to come.
Why Smoke A Turkey?
Perhaps the most popular reason for smoking a turkey is the flavor: A bird cooked in wood smoke takes on a more interesting character. Smoked meat embraces the complex, dusky, mellow campfire notes of barbecue without sauce, creating flavors that pair nicely with cool weather and Thanksgiving sides. But there are other reasons to take up smoking this year:
- It's foolproof. With a smoker, an overcooked turkey is almost impossible, resulting in perfectly moist and tender meat with a rich, complex flavor. Our method of smoking at relatively high heat (325 to 350 degrees F) also crisps the skin while retaining juiciness.
- It's easy. With the right smoker, turkey prep and smoking aren't much different from roasting.
- It frees up the oven. Moving turkey-cooking outside frees up valuable kitchen space, especially that never-enough oven real estate.
What You Need to Smoke a Turkey
To smoke a turkey, the only equipment you need is a smoker and meat thermometer. If you're new to smoking meat, a good place to start is with a plug-in pellet smoker, which stays within a tight range of the set temperature with little effort on your part.
For a plug-in pellet smoker, instead of feeding wood into a firebox at regular intervals, you fill the smoker's hopper with pellets, set the smoker to your desired temperature, and let it puff away. Some plug-in pellet smokers are very expensive, while others cost less than $100.
How to Prep Your Turkey for Smoking
Prepping a turkey for smoking is quite similar to prepping a turkey for roasting. Before firing up the smoker, follow these easy steps.
Step 1: Thaw and Temper
As you usually do before roasting, let your bird thaw (if frozen) and temper it, which involves setting out a refrigerated bird at room temperature for up to 2 hours. This allows your turkey to attain a uniform temperature inside and out. A cold bird requires a longer smoking time and can lead to uneven cooking.
Step 2: Spatchco*ck (optional)
There are two ways to configure a whole turkey for the smoker: as is or spatchco*cked, which is what we recommend for a faster, more even cook. For the spatchco*cking technique, you use shears to remove the turkey's backbone and then flatten the bird, spreading out its two halves.
Step 3: Oil and Season
Use paper towels to pat your turkey's surface dry, and then apply a thin coat of olive oil or melted butter. Next, pat on a blend of salt, pepper, and maybe even rosemary and garlic powder if you want, laying the rub thickly over the entire surface.
When it comes to seasoning a turkey for smoking, restraint is key. When smoking at relatively high heat, smoke has less time to flavor the bird, resulting in lighter smokiness, which is fitting for turkey's milder flavor. Keeping the rub simple helps to prevent your seasoning from overwhelming the turkey's delicate flavor.
You can skip this step if youbrined your turkeyahead of time.
How to Smoke a Turkey
With your turkey thawed, tempered, oiled, and seasoned; it's time to fire up the smoker. Here's what to do next.
Step 1: Preheat
When it comes to smoking a Thanksgiving turkey, we think high and fast is the way to go. Set your smoker to 325 to 350 degrees.
Many veteran smokers start a turkey at a lower temperature, closer to 200 degrees, and then turn up the heat and blast it for the second phase. This approach works well, but it adds to cook time and introduces a new variable.
We prefer smoking at a higher temperature because, on Thanksgiving, it's important to be able to predict when your bird will be ready. This is harder to do when starting at low heat and then moving to high.
Step 2: Smoke
Put the bird right on the grates at the center, with no need for a sheet pan. At 325 to 350 degrees, a spatchco*cked turkey takes 10 to 12 minutes per pound to smoke. For most turkeys, that means at least an hour and potentially several.
You might hear about injecting turkeys pre-smoke or basting them with butter during smoking. If you're using a spatchco*cked turkey, it smokes fast enough that these tactics aren't needed.
Step 3: Remove and Rest
The best way to know your smoked turkey is done is by taking the turkey's temperature. Insert the thermometer at the thickest part of its thigh and, when reaches 165 degrees, it's ready.
Rest your smoked bird on a resting rack, cutting board, or serving platter for at least 30 minutes to lock in juices and enhance its flavor. Leave the turkey uncovered while it rests to retain the crispy beauty of its smoky skin.
Still Need a Thanksgiving Turkey? These Retailers Have Fresh, Frozen, and Cooked Birds in Stock
