Description
An absolutely delicious, flavorful Smoked Spatchcock Turkey recipe – perfect for Thanksgiving or any other holiday!
Ingredients
Scale
Smoked Turkey Rub:
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard
- 1 teaspoon smoked garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley leaves
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
- 1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
- 2 teaspoons dried sage leaves
- 1 teaspoons onion powder
Turkey:
- 12–14 lb whole turkey (fully thawed, giblets removed)
- 1/2 cup butter, softened + divided (feel free to use softened ghee)
- 1 batch turkey seasoning
- 1–2 red onions, quartered
- 2 cups chicken broth (or turkey broth)
- 1/2 cup dry white wine (optional)
- 2–3 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 2–3 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 navel orange, quartered
Instructions
- Preheat: Set the smoker to 225 degrees F.
- Dry Rub: Combine Turkey Dry Rub ingredients in a small bowl, set aside.
- Spatchcock Turkey: Place turkey on a large cutting board or rimmed baking sheet. Flip turkey so it is breast-side down. Take the kitchen shears, cut along both sides of the backbone (which will be running down the middle of the turkey) and remove. Flip over. Firmly press down towards the top of the breastbone with the palm of your hand, until you hear a crack. Check out our tutorial on How To Spatchcock a Turkey for even more details!
- Roasting Pan: Place onion, orange, chicken broth, white wine (if using), rosemary and thyme in the bottom of a large aluminum roasting pan. Place a wire rack on top of the roasting pan.* Place turkey on top of the wire rack, ensuring the breast-side is up.
- Butter + Season: Pat turkey dry with paper towel. Take 1/4 cup softened butter and rub into every nook and cranny (including under the skin where possible). Season outside of the turkey with the dry rub.
- Smoke: Place the roasting pan on the smoker and close the lid. Let smoke 60-70 minutes at 225 degrees F. Then turn the smoker temperature up to 350 degrees F. Let the turkey smoke until it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees at it’s thickest part. Melt the last 1/4 cup of butter and use to baste the turkey every 20 minutes.
- Rest: Remove the turkey from the smoker, baste one more time and then let rest 10-15 minutes. Move the turkey onto a platter or large plate and cover with foil again to continue its resting for another 10-15 minutes.
- Gravy: Use juices at the bottom of the pan and follow our tutorial on how to make smoked turkey gravy.
- Serve: Carve the turkey and serve immediately!
Notes
- Smoke Time: the ultimate cook time will vary a bit depending upon a myriad of factors such as outdoor temperature, wind, humidity, smoker hot spots, etc. That being said we tested this multiple times on a Traeger and it generally took approximately 2-2.5 hours total smoke time for a 12-14 pound turkey to come to temp (165 degrees F.).
- *Turkey Set Up: since I took these photos I have discovered that it works best if you elevate the turkey over the roasting pan by placing a wire rack across it. The smoke can surround the turkey much better this way and you still catch all those juicy drippings for gravy.
- Brine: here is an optional smoked turkey brine if you want to do that first – just be aware you would need to prep that the night before. We also have a dry brine option as well.
- Pellets: hickory and mesquite are my two favorites to use in this recipe.
- Dairy Free: if you can’t do butter, use some olive oil – but you don’t need a ton, just enough to coat the bird.
- Injection: if you really want to take things to the next level – try our Turkey Injection recipe for extra juiciness!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6oz
- Calories: 557
- Sugar: 0 g
- Sodium: 431 mg
- Fat: 31.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 0.5 g
- Protein: 67.1 g
- Cholesterol: 250 mg