Are you smoking for Thanksgiving?

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bdskelly

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Feb 3, 2013
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DFW North Texas
We will feed about 25+ family and friends on Thursday.

Mrs. BD is roasting 2 18 pound birds.  I typically smoke one bird just to mix it up. This year I got a request for pork butt.  As it just so happens I have one Wild Piggy butt left in the refer.

 http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/243943/piggy-to-be-continued

It's my last ham off of this piggy. It sure was good. I appreciate the sacrifice it made for many great dinners.  

The butt has been thawing since Saturday Night.  I'll inject it with Butchers Pork Injection and cover it with Jeff's rub.  ...been a while since I used Jeff's.  It works pretty good. 

Due to the hectic schedule i'll use the trusty  set and forget MES. Just don't have time to tend the big boy. 

What is on your menu for the Holiday? 

b
 
I have 2 birds that will be brined and spatchcocked and a 10lb carver ham that will be in the smoker.


There is a laundry list of sides. Ill be sure to document it all.
 
I have 2 birds that will be brined and spatchcocked and a 10lb carver ham that will be in the smoker.


There is a laundry list of sides. Ill be sure to document it all.
Going to smoke the whole dinner Bri? Awesome !
 
Roasted Turkey with lots of Gravy, this year and every year. I can smoke birds any other time but Thanksgiving the family wants what has been a tradition the last 25 years. Sides are Cranberry Sauce, Pecan Crumble topped Sweet Potato Casserole, Mashed 'Taters (extra cream and butter), Peas, Fried Corn, Sage Sausage Dressing, assorted Olives and my Wife's only contribution, a Broccoli, Cauliflower, Ritz Cracker and Velveta Chz Casserole. Pies are Pumpkin, Maple/Bourbon/Bacon Pecan (my fav), Apple Crumb and whatever Cream Pie strikes my Baker Daughters fancy...JJ
 
Two 12lbs turkeys and an18 lbs bird. Also wanting to try some good old box mac and cheese with bacon bits chopped up and smoked up for a few hours. Not sure if Im going to smoke directly over my grate or put in a turkey pan when I smoke on my uds. Any one have any luck with the pan? I figure with higher heat it may burn the bottom side of the bird. Plan on smoking right around 285....
 
 
Roasted Turkey with lots of Gravy, this year and every year. I can smoke birds any other time but Thanksgiving the family wants what has been a tradition the last 25 years. Sides are Cranberry Sauce, Pecan Crumble topped Sweet Potato Casserole, Mashed 'Taters (extra cream and butter), Peas, Fried Corn, Sage Sausage Dressing, assorted Olives and my Wife's only contribution, a Broccoli, Cauliflower, Ritz Cracker and Velveta Chz Casserole. Pies are Pumpkin, Maple/Bourbon/Bacon Pecan (my fav), Apple Crumb and whatever Cream Pie strikes my Baker Daughters fancy...JJ
It all sounds awesome Jim.  The Fried Corn and Pecan Crumble Sweet Potato Casserole really caught my eye. b
 
 
Two 12lbs turkeys and an18 lbs bird. Also wanting to try some good old box mac and cheese with bacon bits chopped up and smoked up for a few hours. Not sure if Im going to smoke directly over my grate or put in a turkey pan when I smoke on my uds. Any one have any luck with the pan? I figure with higher heat it may burn the bottom side of the bird. Plan on smoking right around 285....
Lot of folks smoke their birds in a pan. Al who posted just below you has a good thread on it that was posted last week. 

Good ol boxed mac n cheese.  Our kids will tell you they were raised on it.  LOL  b
 
Smoking a 15lb "all natural" turkey I brined for 72 hours in a curing brine. Took it out of the brine yesterday so it could dry overnight in the fridge. Will smoke today and reheat tomorrow. Wanna make it easy for tomorrow as it's nice to kick back and enjoy the day. Sides are stuffing, mashed potatoes and parsnips, broccoli and Brie casserole, cranberry sauce and sautéed Brussels sprouts.
 
Only thing that will have a touch of smoke, is my Chicken Sausage for the lasagna on Sat.

Happy Thanksgiving every one

Richie 
 
Only smoking one item for our family gathering.  I'm doing an 8 lb. bacon wrapped boneless turkey breast in the smoker.  Mrs. Red is baking the 11 lb. pre-smoked ham in the oven.  We've got 12 folks coming, plus Mrs. Red and myself...with all the traditional fixins and desserts, this will be more than enough to feed our bunch.

Happy Thanksgiving B!

Red
 
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I smoked one ~8 pound turkey breast (had a 10 pound ham in the smoker too for Thanksgiving at work) and roasted an 11 pound turkey  Monday for dinner with my family that night. All of us are working the rest of the week other than my wife and my mom (Dad and brother are both paramedics, sis is a nurse) so we had dinner early.

Grandma made chicken and dumplings, German chocolate cake, and an apple pie.

My aunt made a pecan and sweet potato casserole and cornbread salad as well as a sweet potato pie and a pecan pie.

Mom made corn, green beans, cornbread stuffing, mashed taters, marshmallow fruit salad, and mini cheesecakes.

It was way too much food but the leftovers have been tasty.
 
 
It all sounds awesome Jim.  The Fried Corn and Pecan Crumble Sweet Potato Casserole really caught my eye. 
Here is the recipe for the Sweet Potato casserole. The corn is frozen sauteed in butter until starting to turn golden and a bit shriveled. Add salt, pepper and a bit of sugar near the end. The frying removes some water and really concentrates the corn flavor and sweetness...JJ

Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Crumble

3Lb Sweet Potatoes

1/2C Brown Sugar

1/4C Maple Syrup

1/2C Melted Butter

2ea Eggs

1/4C Heavy Cream

1tsp Vanilla

1/2tsp Cinnamon

1/2tsp Nutmeg

1" Fresh Ginger, grated

Topping

!C Brown Sugar

1C Flour

1/2C Melted Butter

1/2C Chopped Pecans

1 1/2tsp Cinnamon

1" Fresh Ginger, grated

Bake sweet potatoes at 425°F until soft, 1 to 1.5 hours.

Cool 30 minutes on the counter. Peel and mash lightly.

Mix all filling ingredients and spread in a buttered 1 1/2 Qt baking dish.

Combine Topping  ingredients in a bowl and toss with a fork until Pea sized crumbs form.

Top the potatoes and bake a 350°F for 30 minutes. This is good hot or cold..
 
Since it is just my wife my son and me not a lot to cook , kind of gives me a break this year !

going to deep fry my turkey after a twelve hour brine and then injected with butter and garlic .

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving !

Happy smoking !
 
We had our kids and their husbands over for an early Thanksgiving on Saturday, 11/12/16.  Full blown Thanksgiving menu with a smoked turkey and all the sides. 

Menu:

Spring mix salad with cranberries, sliced persimmons, pomegranate seeds, slivered almonds, and a peach vinaigrette dressing.

Smoked Turkey covered with melted butter then seasoned with Litehouse Poultry Seasoning with Freeze Dried Herbs

Smoked russet quarters, sweet onions, garlic cloves, and bulk carrots with Litehouse Poultry Seasoning, butter, and a bottle of chardonnay wine.

Mashed russets potatoes.

Trader Joe's cranberry orange sauce.

Jellied and whole cranberry sauce (can you tell folks around here are picky about their cranberry sauces).

Sage seasoned, oven baked, cornbread dressing.

Turkey gravy made from the drippings in the veggies.

Hawaiian Rolls and butter.

Iced Tea (Black tea with bergamot)

Homemade Merlot Wine 2011 (from the family of one of my daughter's in-laws)

Homemade pumpkin pie and heavy whipping cream, sugar, and homemade Mexican vanilla extract.

Made a ginormous pot of turkey vegetable soup afterward just for my wife and I.  Froze half of it but we've both been so busy its about all we've eaten for lunch and dinner since Tuesday the 15th.  It is all gone now, including what we froze. 

We both decided we didn't want another turkey (I have three more in the freezer) but we want poultry for tomorrow.  I've got two 5.5 lb chickens brining as I type.  They'll get smoked on Thanksgiving.  I'm leaving the rest of the menu up to her.  I do know she's baking a cherry pie.  Chicken, salad, rolls, and pie.  Simple, but works for me! 
 
So this be my first, I have 2 12 lb turkeys, doing them on my Green Mountain Pellets Grill. I just started brining my turkey, going to do for 18 hours. Then I noticed that it had 8% Butterball moisture solution.
Should I not brine it? I saw on this forum that it's not needed?
And at 300° how long would it take me I see 3.5 to 4 hours?
Thanks
 
Smoking a 15lb "all natural" turkey I brined for 72 hours in a curing brine. Took it out of the brine yesterday so it could dry overnight in the fridge. Will smoke today and reheat tomorrow. Wanna make it easy for tomorrow as it's nice to kick back and enjoy the day. Sides are stuffing, mashed potatoes and parsnips, broccoli and Brie casserole, cranberry sauce and sautéed Brussels sprouts.
That sounds awesome!
 
Only thing that will have a touch of smoke, is my Chicken Sausage for the lasagna on Sat.

Happy Thanksgiving every one

Richie 
After Thanksgiving lasagna sounds pretty good Richie. 
 
Only smoking one item for our family gathering.  I'm doing an 8 lb. bacon wrapped boneless turkey breast in the smoker.  Mrs. Red is baking the 11 lb. pre-smoked ham in the oven.  We've got 12 folks coming, plus Mrs. Red and myself...with all the traditional fixins and desserts, this will be more than enough to feed our bunch.

Happy Thanksgiving B!

Red
God bless Red..  Enjoy your time with the fam. 
 
I smoked one ~8 pound turkey breast (had a 10 pound ham in the smoker too for Thanksgiving at work) and roasted an 11 pound turkey  Monday for dinner with my family that night. All of us are working the rest of the week other than my wife and my mom (Dad and brother are both paramedics, sis is a nurse) so we had dinner early.

Grandma made chicken and dumplings, German chocolate cake, and an apple pie.

My aunt made a pecan and sweet potato casserole and cornbread salad as well as a sweet potato pie and a pecan pie.

Mom made corn, green beans, cornbread stuffing, mashed taters, marshmallow fruit salad, and mini cheesecakes.

It was way too much food but the leftovers have been tasty.
A magnificent meal for sure!
 
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