if it wasn't enough that we had turkey for lunch and supper on Thursday we decided to have smoked turkey for Sunday night supper for deer camp. we all head to the cabin the night before and normally snack all night. someone got the idea to do turkey and I said I would smoke one. here is the recipe and I can tell ya this is the juiciest turkey I have ever had. nothing compares to it.
3 qts apple juice
2 qts water
3/4 cup mortons kosher salt
1lb of brown sugar
3 oranges cut up in quarters
8 cloves of garlic
15 cloves
10-15lb turkey thawed preferably one with not solution injected into it. Check the label and it will say if it has a solution to enhance flavor. get one without.
Boil the apple juice, salt, and brown sugar to dissolve the dry ingriedients. only boil for one minute. no need to go any longer. Place mixture into food safe container preferably a 5 gallon bucket.
Crush cloves of garlic and peal and throw in while mixture is still hot. cool then add the turkey cloves and oranges. Squeeze orange into container and drop in the orange and peel. Add water till bird is covered which is roughly 2qts. If ya want use more apple juice. Let brine for three days. keep in fridge or in a cooler.
The morning your gonna cook it drain brine.
Get your smoker to 300 deg and smoke till breast is 165 and drumsticks are 170. Bird will continue to cook for a bit as well after finished. I smoked it with hickory wood in a propane smoker. I also put olive oil on the outside of the skin and then seasoned the skin with garlic powder and black pepper. if you are not big on smoked items brine your bird anyhow and cook it in the oven. Also don't be afraid to do this on wild game. Works great on chukar, pheasant, and other chicken type birds. Heck do it to chicken as well.
