Spatchcock turkey? Dry Brine and/or injection? How to avoid too much direct heat on a small pellet grill?

[drharps]

Last year I smoked a turkey (I have a pit boss 500 series) and it was dry. I have had issues with that in the past with other meats as I think the size of the smoker forces it to sit over the heat and dry out faster than a 'normal' smoker. (Case in point, meats cook in half the time.)

What recommendations do people have? I am thinking of either spatchcocking or leaving as is, putting on grate in a thin aluminum pan filled with a quarter inch of chicken broth to catch drippings and diffuse heat, and maaaaybe injecting. I'll also, if there's space, put an additional water pan. I'll smoke at lowest temperature.

Thoughts? Am I setting up for failure again? I've also debated smoking it on the resting shelf to avoid direct heat. Bad idea?

All advice is welcome and much appreciated by me and my guests!

 

[SMOKEOCD]

Poultry low and slow is what gets you a dry bird. I spatchcock at 325. Stick of butter under the skin with your favorite rub/seasoning. Rub whatever is left on your hands on the outside of the Turkey and season a little more.
Keep an eye on breast and thigh temps, pull when done.

 

[pineywoods]

Brine that bird to start with
Maybe start out an hour to hour and a half at around 200 degrees then up the smoker temp to 325-350 that will give you a good juicy bird with crispy skin.
Tip's brine doesn't use a lot of salt you can brine overnight then take it out and pat dry and it won't be too salty
Tip's Slaughterhouse Brine

 

[drharps]

Brine that bird to start with
Maybe start out an hour to hour and a half at around 200 degrees then up the smoker temp to 325-350 that will give you a good juicy bird with crispy skin.
Tip's brine doesn't use a lot of salt you can brine overnight then take it out and pat dry and it won't be too salty
Tip's Slaughterhouse Brine

I've always had good luck with a dry brine for baked turkey. Is there a reason to use wet brine for a smoked turkey that I'm missing? Or is it personal preference?

 

[Elf@shore]

Last year I smoked a turkey (I have a pit boss 500 series) and it was dry. I have had issues with that in the past with other meats as I think the size of the smoker forces it to sit over the heat and dry out faster than a 'normal' smoker. (Case in point, meats cook in half the time.)

What recommendations do people have? I am thinking of either spatchcocking or leaving as is, putting on grate in a thin aluminum pan filled with a quarter inch of chicken broth to catch drippings and diffuse heat, and maaaaybe injecting. I'll also, if there's space, put an additional water pan. I'll smoke at lowest temperature.

Thoughts? Am I setting up for failure again? I've also debated smoking it on the resting shelf to avoid direct heat. Bad idea?

All advice is welcome and much appreciated by me and my guests!

You tube : Mad backyard . has many videos, whatever yur looking for
I like him due to being simple and explains why !? He knows his stuff!
Back in the day, I cooked in over a half dozen restaurants, some solo.
He makes sense to me !, Not a BS wantobee.
Smoking is a new thing for me.
I have full trust in his judgement

 

[912smoker]

I never seem to have enough fridge space to dry brine so usually go with a soak in a bucket AND inject . Never had a dry bird.

Keith

 

[sandyut]

Brine that bird to start with
Maybe start out an hour to hour and a half at around 200 degrees then up the smoker temp to 325-350 that will give you a good juicy bird with crispy skin.
Tip's brine doesn't use a lot of salt you can brine overnight then take it out and pat dry and it won't be too salty
Tip's Slaughterhouse Brine

This is what you need to do. Slaughterhouse brine is my go to for all poultry.

 

[zwiller]

I've always had good luck with a dry brine for baked turkey. Is there a reason to use wet brine for a smoked turkey that I'm missing? Or is it personal preference?

ALL of this stuff is personal preference. I started with wet but moved to dry. Works fantastic. Most folks only know of wet brining. I would part the bird out, dry brine/rub a few days in advance with a good poultry rub like Weber Kickin Chicken, smoke 325F until breast 160F and dark is 185F. Pulling at proper IT will prevent dryness. Do not care for spatch, reminds me of roadkill but admit it works. Halve it if you want some Norman Rockwell vibe but parting is better.

 

[sandyut]

ALL of this stuff is personal preference. I started with wet but moved to dry. Works fantastic. Most folks only know of wet brining. I would part the bird out, dry brine/rub a few days in advance with a good poultry rub like Weber Kickin Chicken, smoke 325F until breast 160F and dark is 185F. Pulling at proper IT will prevent dryness. Do not care for spatch, reminds me of roadkill but admit it works. Halve it if you want some Norman Rockwell vibe but parting is better.

My wife did a dry brine turkey in the oven last year that was so good! I agree dry vs wet is personal preference.

 

[zwiller]

My wife did a dry brine turkey in the oven last year that was so good! I agree dry vs wet is personal preference.

Wet or dry both are tastier than non brined but if I am picky, wet brined poultry texture of meat and skin takes a hit. Honestly, I moved to dry for simplicity but found the results were better by happy mistake. See if you can get your wife to include some chicken bouillon in the rub this year.

 

[TARM]

Been wet and dry brining poultry for decades. Wet brining always gets you a moist bird but it's also much harder to get a crispy skin, in my experience ,not impossible though. By dry brining I have found gets you a moist bird but more intense turkey flavor and it's much easier to get a crispy skin. Regardless, I always dry the bird uncovered in the frig for at least 24 after brining.

After cooking whole birds for 30+yrs I have been breaking my birds down as of late. Cooks much faster, can use higher heat after initial smoke or immediately if in oven. I am talking 400°F + roasting. The breasts from a 21lb whole bird can be done in 30 min in an oven on roast to 150°F; another 15 min for bone in thigh/leg to 175°F. I did just this for this past TG. It was soooooo nice to have the oven free vs a whole bird or 2 for 4+hrs @ typical 325-350 temps. The breast meat can be sliced perfectly for a great platter presentation. Same goes for thigh meat. You can use huge birds or smaller ones as it does not really have a negative effect like whole birds.

Unless I need to make a centerpiece presentation bird I doubt I would ever choose to cook/smoke whole turkey again going forward. It also never made sense to me considering I need to stop breasts @150 to allow for rise but thigh and leg to at least 175.

This yr I did it in the oven... roast. Boneless breast and bone in leg, thigh seared skin in a bit of avocado oil in cast iron pan. Then into the oven @ 425 on roast. With the dry brine and drying the skin was crispy and breast was very moist. Total time between messing with skin searing and then roast till all meat including dark meat was done; 1hr!

Broken down there was no issue with room in the frig for brining and drying. Carving was stupid easy on the bias. We had only 6 people total this year, usually it's 3x that, yet they polished off all but 1lb of the turkey and we had a ham as well.
I might try injecting the left over turkey stock made from this carcass into the X-mas bird. I like using that veg stock but it taints the white meat color which can be off-putting to some. But straight turkey and herb/spice stock no full mirepoix maybe only onion and herb bouquet for a clear stock. Also will try running my Jaccard wheel over the skin to try to get even crispier skin. As always I paint my skin with a browning sauce, bitters, bourbon mixture that adds flavor but also gives a perfect golden brown skin.

Here is last year's "presentation" whole stuffed turkey I did with that mixture.