Smoked Turkey Recipe

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This Smoked Turkey recipe has amazing smokey flavor, is super moist, and very easy to make! My smoked turkey is great for Thanksgiving but is also perfect for other times of the year.

When my family has a gathering for a special occasion, a smoked turkey is on the menu because everyone loves the awesome smokey flavored meat.

Smoked Turkey in a Brinkmann Smoker Grille — Smoked Turkey

This turkey recipe can be made in any smoker such as a pellet smoker, a Masterbuilt smoker, Traeger Smoker, Pit Boss or a Brinkmann smoker.

No heating up the oven and kitchen to make an oven turkey! This best smoked turkey recipe will become your new holiday tradition.

Thanksgiving turkey is a holiday meal that is well worth the extra steps. An entire turkey is brined overnight, then covered in a special blend of spices and slowly smoked until it has tender and juicy turkey meat.

If you have never had a smoked turkey for Thanksgiving, you are missing out! My step-by-step instructions is even easy enough for the novice chefs who have never made a smoked turkey before.

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Supplies Needed for Smoke Turkey

Electric Smoker with appropriate wood chips or smoker pellets
Whole Turkey (Frozen Turkey or Fresh Turkey)
Salt (Kosher Salt or Table Salt)
Water
Seasoned Salt and Pepper (Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Smoked Paprika, or Your Favorite Turkey Rub will also work!)
Celery, Quartered Onion, and Apples
Cooking String

How to Clean the Turkey

Make sure to clean the fresh turkey properly before it’s cooked. Remove anything that might be on the inside of the turkey cavity.

It’s not uncommon to find a “turkey giblets bag” that contains the turkey neck, gizzards, liver, and heart. In a clean sink, take your thawed turkey and carefully clean all the guck out of the inside of the bird making sure not to splash water all over the place.

With your fingertip, scrape each side of the spine to remove as much guts as you can. Discard any bits and rinse the inside of the turkey clean with cold water.

Clean the inside of your turkey before cooking.

Remove the guck for both sides of the spine. — Clean the inside of your turkey before cooking.

Smoked Turkey Brine Recipe

Do not skip this step! Make sure to brine your whole turkey overnight. This gives your cooked turkey extra flavor and also helps to make it juicy and tender.

We like to use a “food only” 5-gallon bucket. Add cold water to the clean bucket making sure to not fill more than halfway. Remember that you have to add the turkey and not have the water spill all over the place.

If you are smoking a smaller turkey, add about 1 cup of salt to the cold water. When making a medium to larger sized turkey, add about 1 ½ to 2 cups of salt to the cold water and stir to dissolve.

Carefully, place the cleaned turkey into the salt brine. Make sure the whole turkey is covered with cold water.

A Whole Turkey Soaking in a Smoked Turkey Brine Solution.

Place the bucket into a refrigerator overnight or for 24 hours. Make sure to keep the brined turkey cold. The last thing that you want is for the turkey to spoil because it was not held at the proper temperature.

Soaking Wood Chips

If you are using a smoker that requires wood chips, you will want to soak them in water. This can be done the night before or the morning that you plan to smoke the turkey.

Just don’t forget to soak them! We have gotten in the habit of when the turkey is placed in the bucket to brine, we start soaking the wood chips in water. The type of wood chips that you use is a personal preference.

Soaking Wood Chips in a container before using them in a smoker grill. — Soaking Wood Chips

How to Prepare the Smoked Turkey

Gather all the ingredients that is needed to smoke the turkey. You will want your favorite seasoning.

We like to use Lawry’s Seasoned Salt and Morton Nature Seasoning. To give the smoked turkey some extra flavor, stuff it with celery stalks, apple slices, and onion pieces.

Stalks of Celery, A Whole Onion, and a Few Apples on a Cutting Mat. — Stalks of Celery, A Whole Onion, and a Few Apples

Remove the turkey from the salt brine and let the excess water drip from the bird. Do not rinse the turkey.

Place on a clean work surface such as a cutting board, a baking sheet pan, or a roasting pan. Using your favorite seasoning, sprinkle a generous amount on the inside of the cleaned turkey.

Place several stalks of celery, the sliced apples, and onion pieces inside the turkey. Sprinkle some of your seasoning on the inside of the wings and leg creases.

Tuck a few pieces of the onion and apple slices into the wing and leg creases. Then season on top and all sides of the turkey.

With cooking string, tie the wings close to the turkey so the apple and onion stay in place. Tie the legs together with string or the attached holder if one is provided.

Tying the Turkey Wings together with Cooking String. — Cutting a Hole in the Turkey Wing.

Seasoning the Whole Turkey with Lawry's Seasoned Salt. — Seasoning the Whole Turkey with Lawry’s Seasoned Salt.

A Fully Seasoned Whole Turkey Ready to go into the Smoker Grill. — Seasoning the Whole Turkey with Lawry’s Seasoned Salt.

How to Smoke a Turkey

Preheat your desired smoker. Every smoker is different so follow the manufacture settings. The grill temperature should be between 225°F and 350°F.

We like to use the Brinkmann smoker for our smoked turkey. It uses a drip pan (which we cover the edges with aluminum foil for easy cleanup), soaked wood chunks, and a cooking grate.

A Drip Pan Wrapped in Foil for a Brinkmann Smoker Grill.

A Brinkmann Smoker Grill — A Drip Pan Wrapped in Foil for a Brinkmann Smoker Grill.

Place your desired pellets, soaked wood chips, and water (if needed) into the smoker. I like to use competition blend pellets for our Rec Teq smoker pellet grill.

If you like a sweeter piece of smoked turkey, then use apple wood, cherry wood, or pellets such as cherry or apple. Other great pellet or wood chips choices would be hickory wood, walnut, or oak wood pellets.

Add the rack to the smoker. Once the smoker is at the right temperature, place the prepared turkey onto the smoker rack.

If you have a digital temperature probe, insert it into the turkey breast close to the bone. Close the lid and let the turkey cook.

How Long to Smoke a Turkey

How long to smoke a turkey is a loaded question. Every smoker is going to vary on smoking time.

This size if the turkey will factor in on the cooking time. The temperature outside will affect the cooking process.

Cooking time for smoked turkey is going to vary! When we use our Brinkmann smoker, it takes about 4 hours to smoke a medium sized turkey.

Use an instant read thermometer to check the exact temperature of the smoked turkey. The internal temperature of the smoked turkey should be 165°F at the thickest part of the whole bird.

Checking the Temperature of a Smoked Turkey.

Make sure to check several places on the cooked bird to insure it’s 165°F. You want the perfect smoked turkey to have a crispy skin.

The turkey skin should be a deep golden-brown color. Let the cooked turkey rest before cutting into it.

Check out this “Cooking Time Guide for Smoked Turkey” by Charbroil.

How to Hold Your Own Smoked Turkey

Did your best smoked turkey cook faster than you thought? Utilize your oven space and turn it on low or a warm setting. Place in a warm oven until you are ready to carve the turkey.

How to Serve the Smoked Turkey

Do not cut the smoked turkey until you are ready to serve it. Use a sharp kitchen knife and a carving fork to cut the turkey.

Have a large serving platter ready to arrange all the turkey meat pieces on. Start by removing the leg and thigh pieces off by cutting at the joint.

Next, cut the turkey wing pieces off and placing them on a large serving tray. Slice pieces of the turkey breast meat and arrange them on the platter.

Continue working all the way around the turkey carcass until you have removed as much of the smoked meat as possible. If desired, remove the meat from the legs, thighs, and wing pieces. Serve right away with your favorite side dishes.

Smoked Turkey Pieces on a Serving Platter.

Smoke Turkey Tips

Make sure to soak the whole turkey in the salt brine to achieve a perfect smoked turkey recipe with minimal fuss.
Keep it simple! Less is more, so don’t try fancy techniques like injecting the turkey meat.
No need to add brown sugar to the outside as the turkey cooks.
How much turkey meat will I get from a perfect smoked turkey? Check out this article from Dolly Domestic Blog – How Much Meat Does a Turkey Yield?
Do not cover a smoking turkey! You want the turkey to infuse flavor from the smoke around the cooking turkey.
No need to use paper towel to pat dry turkey. The spice rub will stick to a wet turkey better.
A meat thermometer is a must. Do not rely on the pop-up timer or the recommended cooking time.

What to Serve with a Smoke Turkey

This is some of my favorite recipes that pairs beautifully with my smoked turkey. I am certain you’ll enjoy them! Try my mashed potatoes, homemade gravy, cranberry stuffing, and mashed butternut squash.

I love the collection in this Top 20 perfect Thanksgiving recipes which has an assortment of side-dish recipes! If you want to keep it super simple, try this simple and easy kale salad which is also a great addition to a turkey dinner!

Another great side dish is diced potatoes in air fryer. Want to top your sliced turkey with a little something? Add amazing flavor with a dollop of this garlic scape pesto.

Looking for a fun craft to do with the kids as the turkey is cooking? Make these amazing turkey cookies and your kids will want to devour them all!

And let’s not forget this beautiful chocolate truffle cake for dessert or this amazing red velvet marbled pound cake!! For a classic fall dessert, try this pumpkin cake roll. It’s one of my favorites and my family devours every crumb!!

If you have a really large crowd and want to make different bird options, then try my oven turkey recipe or my smoked chicken spatchcocked bird recipe.

The perfect holiday cocktail is a must! Make sure to include this pumpkin spice margarita, whiskey slush, and spiced rum apple cider slushy.