Thinking about turkey on the pellet grill this year...

[DougCA]

I've only smoked beef and pork on my LG900. I was thinking of making a brisket for turkey day this year since I'm really over oven baked ham/turkey, but thought perhaps this would be an opportune time to try and smoke a turkey. It's just the two of us so a whole turkey is a lot of meat, but wanted some suggestions from my friends here. Should I get a small whole turkey? Any luck with smoking justturkey breasts? Not sure if they sell them uncooked, never looked. Most of the breasts I see are already cooked.

Any recipes for turkey recommended?

 

[smokerjim]

they do sell uncooked turkey breast,(very common) most of the time frozen but near thanksgiving you'll find them fresh, I would say just put your favorite rub on and smoke away, you might want to be sure to crank the heat up to at least 350 towards the end of the cook to crisp up the skin

 

[fivetricks]

B.r.i.n.e.

Brine is your friend with turkey. You can get really creative with it too :-)

 

[SecondHandSmoker]

I agree with smokerjim.
Go for the turkey breast instead of a whole turkey since it just the two of you.
You will still have plenty of left overs for sammies and such.

 

[motocrash]

Definitely do a whole breast.I do a few a year (apple wood smoked) and feed 3-4.You have to read the labels on them,most around here have been pumped with up to 15% solution.This is fine with me,my own brine is better (of course) but they are good nonetheless.

 

[mike243]

I like dark meat so it has to be a whole turkey, I plan on doing 1 for 2 hours of smoke then throw in a cooking bag and finish in the oven, a popup timer works no matter how you cook them

 

[DougCA]

thanks for the quick answers, everyone. any suggestions on temp? think I could do a brisket and turkey breast at the same time? what flavor pellets?

 

[smokerjim]

i'm a hickory fan, but i'm sure any flavor you like will work. as to the brisket they can take anywhere from 1-15 hours, the breast I would start at 225 to get some smoke for an hour then crank it up to 350-375 until done probably around 3 hours total give or take.

 

[civilsmoker]

I do our turkey on the pellet every year!

I start with a 10 to 12 lb fresh bird. Then I cut it up in parts then brine it. Smoke it at 325 starting off with putting the whole Brest on about 20 mins before the rest of the parts. If needed they go under the broiler for just a few mins to make the skin perfect. I don’t have a turkey pic on my phone but here is a chicken done the exact same way.

It makes for a very tasty T-bird!

We will be camping this year over thanksgiving so we will be doing the t-bird in our little portable pellet.

Ps edit. Mesquite for t-birds!!!

 

[DougCA]

B.r.i.n.e.

Brine is your friend with turkey. You can get really creative with it too :-)

Any suggestions? I've never done that before.

 

[civilsmoker]

This is one of the brines I use....

1gal + 1cup water to 1/2lb salt (use a food scale!). This makes a 6.3% brine. Any "salt by weight" will work, just don't use iodized salt. I usually brine T-bird parts 12-18 hrs, a whole turkey 24 to 36. I also like to add both white and brown sugar and other flavor enhancers. After brining I rinse it rubbing the surface to remove the brine liquid, dry it and dry season it (NO salt). Then I let it air dry on a rack in the garage fridge uncovered for at least an hour but prefer about 3-4 hours.

Be SURE your brine liquid is cold (38deg or under) before adding parts. It’s best to mix it up the day before brining and let chill in the fridge. Use an instant read to make sure. Also make sure your parts are fully submerged!

If you have a world market nearby they sell a nice turkey brine packet with instructions....they also have cheap brine bags if you don’t have a brine tub. Only brine in stainless, glass, or food grade plastic.....NEVER aluminum like the disposable pans at the store!

And I would STRONGLY recommend you do a practice bird before the big day! No need to mess that meal up!

Many on here are way more experienced in brining than me. Spend some time searching. Pops has tons of advice in his posts!

Edit....I will note that the part prep I use and described above is only a 2 to 2.5 hour cook for a 12 lb bird. Makes fixing the other stuff easy. So when you do your practice bird. Take notes on the time and all the prep....then use the same size bird on T-day and follow your notes!