Description: Some people write off turkey as dry and boring. At The Feedlot, we embrace it. Turkey is a past time favourite for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter and more. If you follow these simple steps and put in the right time and love, we assure you it's a game changer at the dinner table!
Ingredients:
- 1 whole fresh turkey (of your size)
- 1/2 stick of butter
- 1 TBSP apple cider vinegar
- 2 TBSP honey
- The Feedlot Forager
- The Feedlot Cattle Call
- 1 TBSP Worcestershire
- 1 TBSP fresh garlic
- 1 1/2 Cup apple juice
- 1 TBSP fresh or jared garlic.
- Two nights before your desired cook, brine your turkey. Brining should be done for no less than 12 hours and ideally 24 hours. Note, you need to keep the bird cold in an esky with lots of ice. Whilst we aren't providing a brining recipe here, just give it a quick search and use whatever you like. The process, not so much the recipe, matters most.
- After your desired brine time, pull the bird and pat dry.
- In a small pot, mix the butter, apple cider vinegar, honey, 2 TBSP of Forager, 1 TBSP of Cattle Call, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and apple juice.
- Let simmer and stir constantly for 5-10 minutes. Do not boil. Once finished, use a fine mesh strainer to thoroughly strain the liquid and set aside to cool.
- Once the injection mix is at room temp, use an injection gun to inject the turkey throughout the entire bird. Make sure you get all the meat and all cavities. A good quality injection gun will make this step a breeze! Pat dry, put on a wire rack over a cookie sheet and place in the fridge. You will want to allow the exterior skin to dry for roughly 12-24 hours.
- 30 - 45 minutes prior to smoking, bring the bird out of the fridge and let it come to room temp. Spray with oil and season heavily with Forager.
- Fire up your smoker and aim for 275F/135F. Be sure to use an orchard wood for that soft sweet smoke.
- Smoke for roughly for 2.5 hours spraying the entire outside with oil every 30 minutes. This will help crisp up the skin.
- After 2.5 hours, turn your pit up to 400F/200C for roughly the remaining 30-45 minutes. This will further help crisp of your skin. You are aiming for an internal temp of 160F/70C in the breast and 165F/74C in the leg/thigh. Do not pull from the smoker until you reach this temp otherwise, the turkey will be undercooked and not suitable for serving. Try to avoid going over as the meat will begin to dry out.
- Pull turkey and lest rest 15-20 minutes. Slice or pull to serve!
Serving Size:
- 8-10
Hot Tip:
- Keep in mind, the size of your bird will determine cooking length. It's important you reach the right internal temps so it's cooked all the way through. Also, if you are looking for a little spice try our new Heatwave rub!