Recipe by Chef Michael Williams
Smoked BBQ Turkey
- Prep time 30 mins
- Cook time 2 mins
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This recipe is a fun project that is all about roasting a turkey with the addition of smoke on the BBQ. It’s a great summer recipe or a change of pace for the holidays.
Ingredients
Directions
- Soak 5 or 6 cups of wood chips for about at least 1 hour.
- Remove the neck and giblets from the turkey and then rinse inside and out with cold water. Dry the inside and out.
- Now season the cavity with salt and pepper, add the veggies and then tie the legs together with string.
- Rub the outside of the turkey with the oil and then season with salt and pepper.
- Now let’s get the BBQ set-up. For this process the heat will be coming from one half of the BBQ while the turkey will sit on the other half, avoiding direct heat.
- Remove the grill from one half of the BBQ and place a large casserole or baking dish under the grill on the other half. Fill the dish with the broth and add the turkey neck.
- Now drain the water from the wood chips and make 2 pouches with heavy duty aluminum foil. I use two 12-inch long sheets of aluminum foil for each pouch. Lay the chips out so they are piled 1 ½ inch thick on the 1st sheet. Make sure to leave 2 inch around the outside clear of chips (so you can roll it up) and then place the second sheet on top.
- Now roll up each side. The pouch should be about 8 – 10 inches on all sides. After folding the pouch, make a few slits in the sides (air intakes) and a couple large holes on the top for the smoke to get out.
- Turn the BBQ on and place one of the smoker pouches on the hot side right on top of the BBQ deflector plate or briquettes, close the lid and wait until it starts smoking. Adjust gas to a heat of 325° F. Now it’s ready.
- Once it’s smoking, insert a thermometer in the thickest part of the turkey thigh and then place in the BBQ on the grill above the casserole dish/drip pan.
- Leave the lid closed as much as possible so you don’t lose heat or smoke. Turn the turkey 180 degrees half way through the cooking process (about 1 ¼ hours) so both sides cook and brown evenly. When you rotate the turkey, remove the old smoker pouch and replace with the second pouch for another round of smoke.
- Once the thermometer reaches 180° F, turn off the BBQ, open the lid and let the turkey rest for 15 minutes and then carve it up.
- You can take the pan drippings/ broth and half of the veggies in the turkey cavity and puree together in a food processor or blender until smooth. Now you have a nice smoky sauce for the turkey.
