The Bird and the Rub

I decided to smoke a turkey this year for Thanksgiving. I purchased a 15 lb. Butterball and decided this year not to brine it. I’ve read that the only time you really “need” to brine a turkey is if it’s an organic, natural bird — Butterball-type turkeys are already treated and injected prior to packaging, so there’s nothing for a brine to add.

If you’re working with a natural, non-injected bird, brining is worth it. My method: a cup of salt and a half cup of brown sugar stirred into enough cold water to fully submerge the turkey, bird in breast-side down, refrigerated overnight, then rinsed about an hour before it goes on the smoker. Honestly the hardest part isn’t the recipe — it’s finding something big enough to hold the bird and the brine that still fits in the fridge. I use an old cooler for that, which also doubles as a rest cooler for brisket and pork.

On the Smoker

I smoked it on my 18″ Weber Smokey Mountain, using a dry water pan lined with foil for easy cleanup, with a catch container on the bottom rack to collect drippings for the gravy. My goal was to mimic an oven preparation — target smoker temp of 325°F, using a mix of cherry and apple wood. Both give a mild smoked flavor, and personally I think the cherry really helps with color.

To monitor temp, I used my Inkbird 4-probe device, though I only used three probes this time — one for the grate temp, and the other two for the breast and thigh. Based on oven-style cook times, I expected the turkey to take close to 4 hours to reach the proper internal temperature. This next photo was taken about 2 hours into the smoke.

This was an easy smoke to manage — I monitored the temperature from the app on my phone while my wife made all of the sides for dinner.

Finishing and Resting

To get it over the finish line, I removed the door from the Weber, which let extra air in and got the coals burning hotter. It doesn’t seem like it should work, raising the temp by removing the door, but it does — and it got the turkey to my target finish temp of 165°F in the breast and 175°F in the thigh.

It was removed, lightly covered with foil, and rested about 15 minutes before carving. I’ve never been a big fan of carving a turkey, but I managed the task. It was very moist and tender, with an incredible smoked flavor.

The Full Spread

My wife made sweet potato casserole, broccoli and cheese casserole, mashed potatoes, and homemade stuffing. We also had rolls and canned cranberry sauce, which we prefer over fresh. Gravy was jarred, but I added some of the drippings I’d captured from the smoker to kick it up a notch.

This was plate #1 for me, followed by plate #2 which equaled, I ate too much, as usual. As you can see, I am a big fan of black pepper.

Being a 15 lb. bird with only three of us eating, we had turkey for many meals the week that followed.

Want to try just the breast instead of a whole bird? I’ve done that too — including the time it didn’t go as planned. See Turkey — Fowl or Fail?