A smoked turkey will darken in color.
Smoking a turkey is an alternative cooking method to classic oven roasting, infusing the meat with a rich and earthy flavor. Before smoking a turkey, you must select high quality wood chips to use in your smoker. Apple or cherry wood chips are commonly used. You should also select a natural turkey, without flavor injections, and follow the manufacturer's instructions to defrost the bird. After you have your smoker and turkey ready, smoking the bird will require less than 10 minutes of preparation. Add this to my Recipe Box.
Instructions
1. Remove the neck and giblets from within your thawed turkey.
2. Fill a large bowl 3/4 full with your favorite turkey brine. Soak the turkey in the brine for 24 hours.
3. Prepare your smoker and build a fire to maintain a temperature of 230 degrees Fahrenheit. Be sure to follow the manufacturer's instructions carefully.
4. Place the soaked turkey into the smoker, in the center of the rack. Close the smoker and allow the turkey to cook for 30 minutes per pound of meat. For example, if the bird weighs 8 pounds, you will smoke the turkey for 4 hours.
5. Open the smoker and stick a meat thermometer into the breast of the turkey every 10 minutes after the initially smoking time. Turn off the smoker when the meat reaches a temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
6. Let the turkey rest in the smoker for 20 minutes before carving and serving.
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