Smoked spatchcocked turkey grilling inspiration weber grills. The only problem is that, given their size, it can sometimes be hard to cook a turkey evenly by smoking or even fit it into your smoker, certainly more difficult than cooking turkey breast there are plenty of ways to get around that problem, though, one method being spatchcocking. Remove the heart and giblets from the turkey and reserve. But the tradeoff in terms of juiciness, even cooking, and crisp skin is worth the odd appearance. My mom has been making spatchcock turkey for years in fact, i started this post for you guys 4 years ago. Smoked turkey is a delicious alternative to a traditional roasted turkey and it frees up space in your oven. There are a lot of reasons for spatchcocking your turkey vs. Spatchcocked turkey is rubbed down generously with our citrus turkey rub, given an aromatic kick with a parsley, rosemary, thyme and herb paste and slow roasted for some beautiful, rich color.
The basics for butterflying a turkey couldnt be simpler. Heres how to make a thanksgiving turkey that boasts the crispiest skin and juiciest meat, and cooks in a fraction of the time it normally takes to roast a conventional bird. The technique is called spatchcocking, and it really works. Stir together oil, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. For more on this simple trick and other thanksgiving tips, check out our. Smoke the turkey over low heat 225 275 f for approximately 11 minutes a pound. Mark bittman demonstrates how to spatchcock a turkey. I spatchcocked, dry brined, and seasoned the turkey, then smoked it until it reached my target temperature. How to spatchcock a turkey for thanksgiving martha stewart.
Smoked at 250 for 3 hrs then uped the temp to 350 until internal temp of 165. Give the oven about 5 to 10 minutes to heat up completely. Press down on the breastbone until the turkey lies flat. This method does require a little elbow grease, a lack of squeamishness, and a good pair of kitchen shears, but in the end itll get you the best turkey youve ever tasted. The food labs stepbystep guide to smoking a turkey. Just want to time it right for my thanksgiving dinner. By spatchcocking the turkey first, you flatten the cooking surface, allowing for faster cook time and lots of smoke flavor. I agree that this could have been a fluke or i think maybe a 5. Nov 18, 2012 you can hold the turkey when it hits the 150 for 30 minutes, then put it back into the oven to crisp the skin further. The total cook time should be about an hour and a half. Place the turkey in the refrigerator, uncovered, for 24 hours. By removing the backbone, the turkey is grilled flat, increasing the surface area of exposed meat thus speeding up the grilling time. A spatchcocked turkey is fantastic for even and fast cooking. In a little more than an hour, you can have a perfectly roasted 12pound.
By following these tips for smoking a whole turkey your guests will be begging you for your secret recipe and if you want a detailed recipe, check out our smoked spatchcock turkey recipe. Spatchcocking, or butterflying, a whole turkey is the best way to get the juiciest meat and the crispiest skin in half the time of traditional turkey roasting methods. While a higherheat 450f oven cooks a bird quite quickly, the flattened profile of a spatchcocked bird ensures that your turkey will roast more quickly and evenly than an intact turkey. I spatchcocked, dry brined, and seasoned the turkey, then smoked it until it reached my target. If you are considering spatchcocking a turkey, follow this stepbystep guide for the perfectly roasted bird. Smoked spatchcocked butterflied turkey olivers markets.
Increase temperature to 400 degrees f 200 degrees c and roast until skin. Spatchcock smoked turkey recipe on the grill how to bbq right. All youve got to do is cut out the turkeys back with a pair of solid poultry shears. For the wet rub, mix vegetable oil and seasonings into a thick paste. Essentially, its a fancy term for butterflying your bird and roasting, grilling, or smoking it while its laid out flat. Spatchcocked smoked turkey simple and delicious recipe. Nov 19, 2017 how to prepare a succulent, smoky, spatchcocked turkey.
Part of that is just that im also a perfectionist, and to me being an. Remove from oven and allow turkey to sit about 20 minutes before carving. Once the spine is removed, flip the bird over and turn the thighs and legs out. Cut out the spine with the turkey laying breast down. There are actually just five keys to perfect smoked turkey. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour 30 minutes, rotating baking sheet every 30 minutes. On a cutting board, combine garlic, parsley, thyme, rosemary, and scallions. Its also great if youre limited on shelf space in your smoker. Nov 15, 2018 spatchcocking or removing the backbone is great for larger birds. Because the bird is laid out flat, the dark meat of the thighs and legs are exposed to more of the heat of the oven and are able to cook at the same rate as the white meat. A 10 lb turkey will cook in about 45 minutes on a 450 degree grill. Last year, i spent thanksgiving with my friend mary from barefeet in the kitchen and she makes the absolute best roast turkey with wine and herbs.
A goal of smoking any large turkey or chicken, at least in my opinion, is to do a quick brine. This smoked spatchcock turkey is seasoned cajun style with sweet heat rub to reinvigorate the classic. In this smoked turkey recipe, i will show you how to speed up the process of smoking a turkey by butterflying it, commonly called spatchcocking the turkey. Ok, so i plan on spatchcocking around a 20 lb turkey on my electric smoker. Flip the turkey upside down so the breast is on your cutting board with the opening to the larger cavity facing toward you using poultry or kitchen shears, start at the larger cavity end and cut along either side of the backbone so the bone can be removed. Oftentimes a food lab recipe will take dozens of tests and weeks of experiments to really nail, but this one turned out to be pretty straightforward, requiring only two solid days of smoking.
To do this, take a large knife or meat shears and cut the turkey open along both sides of the backbone. With both hands, press down on the breast to snap the breast bone allowing the turkey to lie flat. Nov 23, 2016 a 10pound turkey should be done in an hour in the oven. In this smoked turkey recipe, i will show you how to speed up the process of smoking a turkey by butterflying it, commonly called spatchcocking. Spatchcocking allows the turkey to better absorb the smoke and cooks them more evenly and quicker than traditional methods. That way you can fit the spatchcocked turkey on a large baking sheet. Turkey learn to smoke meat with jeff phillips smoking meat. Spatchcocking a turkey gives you easier access to all of the meat on the bird, making it much easier to apply your brine.
Place the chicken, breastside down, on a cutting board. Spatchcocking your birdthat is, cutting out the backbone and laying it flatsolves all of these problems, and then some. Butterflying or spatchcocking the bird to help it cook more evenly and develop crisper skin. Turkey should be completely submerged in liquid place a plate on top of the bird if necessary to keep it covered with the liquid. And since the legs are on the outside, they will reach the 180f temperatures that are ideal for dark meat, and at the same time the breast will reach the preferred 150160f temperature range thats best suited for the white. Sweet heat cajun spatchcock turkey pit boss grills recipes. Using your smoker to cook the turkey comes with a few hidden benefits besides delivering a beautiful end product. A 10pound turkey should be done in an hour in the oven. When you create a succulent smoked turkey at home, youll not only feel satisfaction for a job well done, but youll satisfy your hunger pangs with a gourmet treat. How to spatchcock a turkey to roast turkey faster savoring. The wet rub will stick to the meat better and it will help moisture retention. Anyone have any idea how long itll take to smoke a turkey of that size using the spatchcock method.
Freeze for other uses such as homemade chicken stock or chicken soup or discard. How to spatchcock and roast a turkey without smoking up your. Questions regarding spatchcocking and smoking a turkey. Tylers superfast roast turkey chef and restaurateur tyler florence loves using the technique to make his superfast roast turkey. Spatchcocking this means cutting out the backbone and flattening the legs so that parts of the carcass cook evenly. Place turkey, skin side up, on grate over unlit side of grill. To make a spatchcock turkey, begin by removing the big birds backbone. The great thing about spatchcocking removing the backbone is a much quicker cooking time that always yields tender and juicy meat. How to smoke a turkey spatchcock style meadow creek. Besides, if you want to be civilized about it, youll be. How to spatchcock a turkey and smoke it when low on time.
Pat turkey dry with paper towels, then immerse turkey in cooled brine. I prefer using pacific pellet gourmet bbq apple andor hickory wood pellets. This opens up the turkey allowing it to cook a lot more evenly, makes it easier to carve and often helps the skin to get more crispy especially if you are able to cook it a little. To spatchcock a whole turkey first remove the tail. The most commonly used reason is that a spatchcocked turkey will yield a crispier skin.
You can hold the turkey when it hits the 150 for 30 minutes, then put it back into the oven to crisp the skin further. Before you begin the spatchcocking process, you need to prep the chicken. Applied under skin, and over skin, to a spatchcocked bird. I definitely prefer apple, cherry, or hickory for smoked turkeys. Nov 07, 2019 spatchcock smoke roasted turkey will be the star of your thanksgiving spread this year. On top of that, cooking a spatchcocked turkey on your traeger grill gives you nextlevel woodfired flavor because it lets the smoke hit even more of the meat. I am using my yoder ys640s pellet smoker fired with pecan pellets. Ensure you have plenty of propane, gas, pellets, etc. Also, if youre oven roasting your spatchcocked turkey, i recommend spatchcocking two small turkeys 12 to 15 pounds than doing one large turkey. A whole spatchcocked turkey looks like it belongs on a pornography set rather than on your thanksgiving table. Cook at 225f for 3 or 4 hours, until the internal temperature of the breast is 165f. When ready to cook, set temperature to high and preheat, lid closed for 15 minutes.
Make sure it is fully defrosted and around 15 pounds or less for food safety reasons. Heres how to make a thanksgiving turkey that boasts the. Cut down on your cook time with this simple, spatchcocked version of a thanksgiving classic. Start by patting the turkey dry with paper towels, then place it breast. Place the turkey breastskinside up on the cooking rack and arrange the legs. Ill be doing a simple rub and buttersage mix under the skin. Cut thigh meat off bone angle your knife as you go. Smoked spatchcocked turkey grilling inspiration weber. This method keeps the meat moist, and you can cook your whole bird in less than an hour. Kick traditional to the curb with this woodfired take on turkey. Nov 15, 2018 the cooks at havens kitchen, a cooking school, cafe and event venue in new york city, swear by spatchcocking when it comes to turkey. By removing the turkey back from the turkey, you are able to get a jump start on making your turkey gravy. If you like a darker skinned turkey, use a mixture of soy sauce and butter to brush the turkey instead of basting.
I prefer using pacific pellet gourmet bbq apple and or hickory wood pellets. Traeger smoked spatchcock turkey is a delicious and easy way to cook a turkey that is as juicy as it is tender. Spatchcocking allows you to cook your turkey at a higher temperature than you normally would. Dec 31, 2019 spatchcocking this means cutting out the backbone and flattening the legs so that parts of the carcass cook evenly. Nov 17, 2018 traeger smoked spatchcock turkey is a delicious and easy way to cook a turkey that is as juicy as it is tender. Pat skin dry and rub olive oil over the entire turkey. Rinse the whole chicken, inside and out and pat dry with paper towels. How to smoke turkey in an electric smoker charbroil. There are three things everyone wants in a thanksgiving turkeycrispy skin, juicy. Spatchcocking a turkey has many advantages and minimal disadvantages. Spatchcocking a turkey is my favorite way of smoking a turkey on my mak 2 star wood pellet smokergrill. Cutting the bird in this way before you cook it ensures that the thighs and breasts cook evenly. Dec 17, 2014 if you have never spatchcocked a chicken or turkey, i say it is a real must. Oct 22, 2014 hold drumstick and slice meat off bone, if desired.
How to spatchcock and roast a turkey without smoking up. Nov 05, 2019 there are a lot of reasons for spatchcocking your turkey vs. While there is no spatchcock turkey cooking time chart, the turkey will cook in almost half the time. In this cook i am cooking a 16pound heritage breed turkey from fossil farms. Spatchcocked turkey with herbed butter smoking meat. For juicy, evenlycooked turkey with a crisp, golden brown skin, spatchcocking is the answer. Tuck the wing tips under the turkey and place on the roasting rack. Spatchcock smoke roasted turkey will be the star of your thanksgiving spread this year. Spatchcock turkey smoking meat forums the best barbecue. There is nothing more impressive than a beautiful whole roasted bird with crispy golden skin to elicit the oooooooohs and. In a little more than an hour, you can have a perfectly roasted 12pound turkey.
Place the bird in your smoker and adjust temperatures to 325350f. Nov 06, 2012 spatchcocking your birdthat is, cutting out the backbone and laying it flatsolves all of these problems, and then some. If you have never spatchcocked a chicken or turkey, i say it is a real must. Once the bird is open, split the breastbone to spread the. Hold drumstick and slice meat off bone, if desired. Let your turkey come to room temperature while the oven gets toasty. Smoked my first spatchcocked turkey smoking meat forums.
We smoke poultry at 300325, at that temp your spatchcocked turkey will take about 6 or 7 hours to get to 165 breast, 175 thigh. How to spatchcock a turkey bon appetit bon appetit. How to prepare a succulent, smoky, spatchcocked turkey. Season the brined turkey with a mix of spices and herbs. This method makes it possible to cook the bird a little faster than smoking a whole turkey. Although spatchcock recipes typically instruct cooks to heat their ovens to 450f, we roasted our spatchcocked turkey at 325f. If youre smoking a whole turkey, use a dry rub in the cavity and a wet rub on the outside. There is lots of flavor and collagen in the backbone of a turkey so save it to make amazing homemade turkey gravy. If youre smoking a spatchcocked turkey, dont worry about the size. As the cooked turkey rests, use the pan drippings to. While yielding fantastic results on its own, i find smoking the bird at a lower temperature makes it even better.