Wampus smoked a turkey

TWO turkeys this past weekend actually.

I know there's been plenty of other turkey cook threads these past weeks, but I recorded the entire procedure for future reference as this has become my "go to" smoked turkey recipe.

So this was the Wilkerson Family turkey this year:







I didn't take any photos of anything but the finished bird this year.

BUT....then I cooked one on Saturday for a neighbor friend and I did it the same way and I DID record that one.


SO, here's how I pulled it off......

I always brine well enough in advance to give the turkey an overnight rest once it comes OUT of the brine to give the skin time to dehydrate.

SO, the turkey(s) got a 24 hour soak in this brine recipe:

1 gallon water
1 cup table salt
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup whole peppercorns
2 lemons, halved and squeezed
2 oranges, halved and squeezed

After a 24 hour bath, the bird was rinsed, patted dry and left to hang out in the fridge overnight ON A RACK in a pan.

The first thing I did is light the pit.
I want it cruising at 325 by the time the turkey's prepped and ready.
My family bird was a 20 lb'er. After a google search, according to THIS SITE a 20 lb bird will take 4.5 hours at 325. (NOTE: I use the "oven roasted at 325" chart and called mine UNSTUFFED). So, I planned on taking the bird off the smoker 1 hour before dinner time.




Now back to the turkey....

Brined, rinsed and rested:


I melted 1 stick of butter and injected the entire breast and a little in the thighs and legs as well with the melted butter:






INJECTED:




I got two of these from the grocery (it contains sage, thyme and rosemary).......



and finely chopped one.....



I melted a 2nd stick of butter and mixed the chopped herbs with it......



Then I halved some aromatics (I usually go with onion, lemon and oranges) and along with that OTHER package of herbs....





STUFFED the entire cavity of the turkey with all of those herbs (left whole) and the other aromatics......



Then I trussed up the turkey, using THIS VIDEO as a guide....



Then, I rubbed all over the whole bird with the melted "herb butter". I know what you're thinking. "From the photo above, it looks like the farker buttered BEFORE trussing."

Well......umm....yeah. TIP: Truss THEN rub. Otherwise you'll end up trashing your lovely herb butter and have to redo it. (I think I have to remind myself of this tip EVERY YEAR......AFTER I truss and redo the butter that is... :doh

Anyway......here it is all trussed up, rerubbed with herb butter and then given a nice dusting of kosher salt and black pepper.....





The smoker was on the money, so on it went.

I didn't use the Turkey Cannon this year since my family bird was a full 20 lbs (which is too big for the cannon), plus I really like how a trussed and aromatic stuffed bird turns out.

ON the UDS.....



I chose 2 chunks of cherry with 1 chunk of oak for smokewood.

Then I shut the lid and DID NOT OPEN IT for a full 3.5 hours!

No temp probes, no peeking, nothing. Just left it alone while it held steady at...




I ended up putting my family turkey on right at 8:30.
Planned on it coming off at 1.
Checked it at noon.

Temps in the thigh were between 160-165.
Breast temp was between 140-145.

Closed it up for another 30 minutes and it came off at 155 IT in the breast and about 170 in the thigh.





Now......the photos of the turkey at the very beginning of this thread were of MY finished 20 lb turkey as cooked on Thanksgiving.

The rest of the prep photos, etc., are of a 15 lb turkey that I cooked on Saturday. Here's the finished photos of THAT turkey.....








As I said, THIS has become my "standard" turkey technique.
Everyone around the table this year said it was the best turkey yet.
I don't know about THAT, but it was dang tasty!

The butter injection really adds a richness and great flavor and moisture to the breast and keeps it from drying out.
The fresh herbs make all the difference in the world.
The aromatics both in the brine and stuffed in the cavity also bring another level of flavor to the party.


Overall, I can't think of a better way to eat turkey.


Hope you all had a blessed and joyful Thanksgiving!!!!!

sdgoodspeed said:

Looks really good. May have missed it but what wood did you smoke with?

Click to expand...

2 chunks of cherry, 1 chunk of oak.

castlepines said:

No kidding. It looks like a proprietary barrel from Mossy Oak.

Wampus, do your turkeys come from the store already injected with the standard 8-12% solution before you brine?

Click to expand...

Usually, yes.

I went on a long hunt for a "natural" or NON enhanced bird last year or the year before and found how hard it was to find one that is NOT previously "enhanced" with a solution.

Both of the turkeys I did this year were just your standard variety "enhanced with up to 8% solution" birds. I still brine em with good results.