A delicious twist on classic roasted turkey, this smoked turkey recipe adds flavor and tenderness to the meat that cannot be replicated any other way. A fantastic recipe to wow your Thanksgiving guests this holiday season, you’ll never go back to traditional roasting again.

Turkey is always on the menu for Thanksgiving. Typically raising our own turkeys, we almost always have a few fresh turkeys to turn into something delicious for the holiday table.

While I used to roast a Thanksgiving turkey, and it was delicious, I started making a smoked turkey a few years ago and it’s incredible. Added bonus, it’s not taking up all of my oven space!

The flavor of this smoked turkey is unbeatable. Full of deep, smoke flavor, crispy skin, and moist breast meat this turkey recipe is a show stopper and nothing short of amazing.

Ingredients and Supplies for the BEST Smoked Turkey

Turkey – a whole turkey that is under 15 pounds is best. This is because smoking a larger turkey will keep it in the danger zone of 40 to 140°F for too long.

If you’re feeding a crowd, like we usually are, I recommend using two or three smaller turkeys instead of one large turkey.

Turkey Brine – optional, but worthwhile if you have the time, I recommend putting the turkey in a wet brine overnight. This will provide a lot of additional flavor and moisture to the bird. This is our favorite simple turkey brine recipe.

Butter – This helps hold in moisture as well as give the bird a crisper skin.

BBQ Rub – Use your favorite seasoning from the grocery store or make my favorite rub for turkey that includes salt, black pepper, coriander, thyme, oregano, garlic powder, paprika, lemon zest, and brown sugar.

Garlic & Onion – a quartered onion and a halved head of garlic put into the cavity of the bird infuses amazing flavor as it smokes.

Lemon – a couple of halved lemons also thrown in the cavity while the bird smokes helps brighten up the flavor.

Fresh Herbs – I like to add a few sprigs of fresh thyme and rosemary inside the cavity as well.

Wood Chips and/or Fuel – be sure you have plenty of wood chips, propane, charcoal or whatever else you need before you get started. Running out in the middle is not a fun time.

My favorite wood for smoked turkey is apple wood, but cherry, pecan, maple, or hickory also work well.

Thermometer – an instant-read thermometer to make sure the bird is fully cooked is a great idea.

Smoker – you can honestly use a regular gas grill or charcoal grill for this recipe or any kind of smoker. We use our Traeger pellet grill and love the simplicity of it because I don’t have to watch it like a hawk, but if you don’t have a pellet smoker, that’s ok.

How much turkey per person?

When choosing a size, you’ll want to plan for 1 to 1 1/2 pounds of turkey per person keeping in mind that not all of the bird is consumable.

Remember, though that you don’t want a turkey larger than 15 pounds. The reason is that you need the bird to pass through the 40 – 140 degrees f temperature range within four hours to avoid food safety issues. This can be difficult to achieve at a low temp with a larger bird.

If you do choose to cook a large turkey, the best way to smoke it is spatchcocking it before smoking so that it will go through that temperature range more quickly.

Preparing a Turkey for the Smoker

Thaw the turkey. If you’re not using a fresh turkey, you’ll have to give your turkey time to thaw. Do not try to thaw a frozen turkey on the kitchen counter!

Instead, plan ahead and thaw it in the refrigerator. You’ll want to plan to thaw the bird for one day per 4-5 pounds, so a 15-pound turkey will take approximately 3 days to thaw, meaning you would want to put it in the refrigerator the Sunday before Thanksgiving.

Remove the giblets. After the turkey has thawed, pull the bird out of the packaging and remove the giblets from the cavity.

Brine the turkey (optional). While this is an optional step, I highly recommend it. Make the brine solution and place the turkey in it for 24-36 hours before you plan to smoke it.

If you do brine the bird, rinse the exterior of it with cold water after it is finished.

Pat dry and tie up the legs. To get a crisp turkey skin, you’re going to want to pat the turkey dry using a paper towels. Then, tie up the legs with butcher’s twine and tuck the wing tips behind the shoulder joint.

Add dry rub and place aromatics inside the cavity. Coat the entire turkey with melted butter or olive oil, then sprinkle it with your favorite barbecue rub. Place garlic, onion, lemon, and fresh herbs inside the cavity of the turkey.

Can you stuff a smoked turkey?

I do not recommend stuffing a turkey at all for food safety reasons, but certainly not while smoking. By the time the dressing is cooked through, the meat will be overcooked.

Instead, I recommend stuffing the bird with the aromatics mentioned, not fully stuffed just enough to infuse some flavor, and if you want some smoked stuffing, simply make it alongside the turkey in the smoker.

How to Smoke a Turkey

Once it’s prepared, it’s time to get cooking.

Preheat the smoker. Preheat an electric smoker to 250°F. If you’re using a gas grill, turn half of the burners to medium and leave the other half off. If you have a charcoal grill, preheat the coals until they are ashed over, dump them to one side, and open the vent about 20%.

Put the turkey on the grill. While you can absolutely put the whole bird directly on the grill grates, I recommend using a disposable roasting pan instead, it just makes cleanup easier.

Place turkey breast side up in the aluminum pan and put about a cup of chicken broth in the bottom of the roasting pan. If it evaporates during cooking, add a little more. You can use all of these drippings to make turkey gravy when it’s done cooking.

If you have a roasting rack to raise it up out of the liquid a bit, that’s great, but don’t fret if you don’t.

Smoke the turkey. Plan to smoke the turkey for about 30 minutes per pound or until it reaches an internal temperature of 165°F when an instant-read thermometer is inserted into the thickest part of the thigh and juices run clear.

Rest and carve. Allow the bird to rest for 15 minutes after removing from the smoker, then carve. If it’s done early, simply tent it with aluminum foil. If this makes the skin soft, put it under the broiler for a few minutes to crisp it back up.

How long does it take to smoke a turkey?

It takes quite a while to smoke a turkey, so you definitely need to plan accordingly. Cook time will vary depending on the smoker used and how consistently it holds a temperature.

Plan for approximately 30 minutes for each pound of turkey at 250°F. Meaning a 15-pound turkey will take approximately 7 and 1/2 hours to cook.

However, it is important to use a thermometer to make sure the turkey is finished, not a clock. It is done when the internal temperature of the turkey reaches 165 degrees f.

Do you need to baste the turkey?

I usually baste mine with a bit of the chicken broth and some additional melted butter every hour or so simply because no one enjoys a dry turkey. If you brined the turkey, you do not need to baste it, but I do it anyway.

Storing Leftover Smoked Turkey

Any leftover smoked turkey can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator and used within 3-4 days.

Smoked turkey can also be frozen. To freeze, place it in a freezer safe airtight container and freeze for up to 4 months.

To reheat smoked turkey, it is best to do so in an oven. If frozen, thaw first in the refrigerator, tightly wrap the meat in foil, and place in a 275°F oven until the temperature of the meat reaches 145°F to 150°F. Any warmer and the meat will begin to dry out.

If you try this smoked turkey recipe, I’d love to hear about it in the comment section below! Also, I’d love if you could leave me a five star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ recipe review on the recipe card below. If you want more recipe inspiration, make sure to follow me on Facebook or Pinterest!