Smoked Turkey Brine Recipes

OUT OF THIS WORLD TURKEY BRINE

Steps:

• In a food-grade large bucket or container large enough to hold your turkey, mix together the water, salt, garlic, pepper, Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar. Store in a refrigerator, and soak turkey for 2 days before smoking or roasting.

SMOKED TURKEY RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat Traeger grill to 250 degrees.
• Rinse turkey inside and out in cool water, pat dry.
• Place turkey on a rack in a roasting pan.
• Melt 1 stick of butter in a bowl, then add in all of the spices/seasonings, whisk together.
• Rub the turkey all over with the butter mix, inside and out, and get it under the skin, too.
• Place the turkey in the roaster, UNCOVERED on the grill and close the lid. Set a timer for 2 hours. Do NOT open the lid during this time.
• When the timer goes off, add the second stick of butter to the bottom of the roaster, and cover the turkey.
• Turn the temperature up to 325 degrees, and roast for another 90 minutes. Check the internal temperature in the thickest part of the breast, it will reach 165 degrees when it's done. If it hasn't reached that after 90 minutes, cover and continue roasting, checking every 20-30 minutes until it does.

SMOKED TURKEY WITH BRINE RECIPE

Steps:

• Skin the garlic cloves and use a knife to crush each clove.
• In the clean 5-gallon pail, add all the brine ingredients together and mix well with a large wooden spoon.
• Clean your turkey and make sure the giblets are removed.
• Submerge the turkey in the pail of brine. Do your best to make sure the turkey is completely submerged.
• Store in your refrigerator for 48 hours, turning the turkey 180 degrees after the first 24 hours.
• After the 48 hour brine is complete. Remove your turkey from the brine, rinse and pat dry with paper towel and store in the fridge for 1 hour. The brine process is complete.
• Mix all the rub ingredients together and set aside for later.
• Fire up your smoker to 300F.
• Take your brined turkey out of the fridge and prep it for the smoker. Move the wings behind the body of the Turkey as shown.
• Tie the legs together with butcher twine.
• Apply the turkey rub liberally to the entire turkey. Then lightly brush some of the peanut oil over the entire turkey.
• Once the smoker hits 300F, place your turkey in the smoker and attach your meat probe into the breast of the turkey.
• After the first 1.5hrs, I'll check in on the turkey and see how it looks. I'll baste it with melted butter now and then. I'll sometimes spritz the turkey with a 50/50 mixture of apple cider vinegar as well. It helps attract the smoke to the skin.
• Once the Turkey reaches about 160F, I will remove it and quickly wrap in foil. The Turkey will keep climbing in temperature and reach the 165F while it is covered in foil. Let the turkey rest a minimum of 20 minutes under the foil. The longer it rests, the better.
• You are done and ready to carve the turkey. Enjoy.

BRINED SMOKED TURKEY

Steps:

• Mix salt, brown sugar, vegetable stock, apple cider vinegar, pickling spice, onion, carrot, peppercorns and bay leaves in a stockpot and bring to a boil until sugar and salt is well dissolved. Remove from heat and cool. In large pot or ice chest, add stockpot mixture to ice and cold water. Submerge turkey. Brine for 4 to 6 hours.
• Remove turkey from brine and dry well. Combine Worcestershire sauce and kitchen bouquet browning sauce together and brush on skin of turkey. Rub salt, pepper and paprika onto turkey skin. Stuff inside of turkey with orange quarters and tie legs together.
• Smoke turkey in smoker set to 250 degrees for about 7 hours. Checking internal temperature to be 170 degrees. Remove and let rest for 45 minutes.