Am one of thr last one's to do turkey in a bag?

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fxsales1959

Master of the Pit
Original poster
SMF Premier Member
Dec 17, 2019
1,290
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PembrokePines, FL
I've been in charge of Thanksgiving for going on 30 years. I still do turkey in a Reynolds plastic turkey bags. I tried to smoke a breast once (turkey) and didn't care for it. Thanksgiving is my one big dinner a year and i never want to F it up.
 
Yep 2 hours on the smoker then into a bag to finish, it works well. maybe doing 2 this year and may opt to do 1 full on in smoker, easy to do with a pellet smoker. If I do 2 I will only bag the baked bird
 
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Most people seem to want to cook turkeys around 350 F. And spatchcocking the turkey is very popular these days.

My smoked turkeys are awesome but the cook is old fashioned and unconventional so you probably don't want to do it my way. Maybe do a chicken first if you want. Also, my way results in rubbery skin which is basically inedible. But the trade off is amazingly juicy flavorful white and dark meat which is why I keep doing it. The breast meat literally squirts juice like a fresh orange. Everybody absolutely loves my turkeys which is why I keep doing them this way for 30+ years.

The skin is beautiful, a wonderful dark shade of brown. The turkey is gorgeous. But the skin is not edible :-)

Dry brine 1-2-3 days before. Sneak salt under the skin of thighs and breasts. Sprinkle salt inside the cavity. And on the skin.

Stuff cavity with chopped apples & onions.

Stretch out the loose skin and sew up cavities on both ends with mechanics wire so they are air tight or almost air tight.

Spread olive oil all over turkey

Sprinkle your favorite poultry seasoning on turkey. Pepper garlic and rosemary are good.

Place small sandwich bags of ice on breasts and let turkey sit on counter for at least two hours. You want the dark meat to come towards room temp while the white meat stays chilled. You can even go four hours safely if you want.

Don't truss the bird. You want the heat to get in there between the legs and wings.

Place a probe in the breast and a probe in the thigh.

Cook low and slow at 225 on your favorite smoker. I would use apple or hickory or both but there are lots of fruit woods that would be great. I use a water pan. I prefer a vertical smoker such as a drum smoker for a turkey. The advantage is the heat comes from below and hits the dark meat first.

It'll take roughly 35 mins per lb before it's time to pull the turkey. So a 12 lb turkey is 7 hours.

You want to pull the turkey when the breast hits 150-157. The dark meat should be reading above 175 at this point. Anything above 175 will be great. Double check with an instant read. But the critical and important thing is the breast temp. No higher than 157!

Rest a while. Get the rest of the food ready to serve. The breast temp will rise on its own to about 165 which will be perfect.

Use gloves. Remove breasts and slice against the grain. Meat will squirt juice like an orange.

Place carved meat on a board, not a plate unless the plate is pre-heated.

Try this first with a chicken this weekend to give you confidence. :-)

Good luck
 
Last edited:
Yep 2 hours on the smoker then into a bag to finish, it works well. maybe doing 2 this year and may opt to do 1 full on in smoker, easy to do with a pellet smoker. If I do 2 I will only bag the baked bird
Forgot to add your quote into my last post above
 
I run it about 170-180 and I will add a tube for more smoke, I am not really trying to cook it just add some smoke flavor that wont over power the seasonings . I use the liquid from the finished turkey to add into the gravy. Thats another great thing about using a bag. birds tend to take smoke easier than beef and pork on the pellet smoker maybe because of the fatty skin. I'm a hickory type person but any flavor that you like works great, have used apple before with great results
 
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I run it about 170-180 and I will add a tube for more smoke, I am not really trying to cook it just add some smoke flavor that wont over power the seasonings . I use the liquid from the finished turkey to add into the gravy. Thats another great thing about using a bag. birds tend to take smoke easier than beef and pork on the pellet smoker maybe because of the fatty skin. I'm a hickory type person but any flavor that you like works great, have used apple before with great results
Thanks for the info!!
 
So after the 2 hours on the smoker, then into the bag, is it just about the same cooking time in the bag? Or a little bit shorter due to the turkey being a little warmer from the grill?
 
Cook it like you normally would, I prefer a pop up timer thingy lol. I run the inkbird to back it up .
 
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ok, thanks for the info. hopefully will get to try this method out for a family christmas gathering coming up in early january
 
I think in the bag is the way to go.

Easy, consistent results.

Like others said, experiment with a new method prior to the event.
 
We do the large 20-25 bird in the bag. Light salt brine overnight. Stuff turkey, flour the bag, toss in a chopped onion, celery stalk, carrots. Oil bird and into the bag. 325F until done. We use one of those handled racks. When we remove the finished product, poke the bag and catch all of that golden juice for gravy. The birds are moist perfectly done all the time. I smoke a bone in breast the day before and reheat for the main event.
I pluck out that pop up thingy.

RG
 
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fxsales1959 fxsales1959 , glad you started this thread. The wife and I were visiting about the Thanksgiving turkey and she said she would like me to do the bird in a Reynolds bag. I have not done one in a bag in many years and need a refresher.
Watching, big time!
 
We have done alot of turkeys in bags...brining first was a game changer!

Ryan
 
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