Smoking a Turkey Using Your Gas Grill
Making a gas grilled smoked turkey is worth every second. Cooking your turkey low and slow in your gas grill can be one of the best ways to bring out the bird's subtle flavors, especially with the right brine and rub.
Servings: 6
Calories: 160kcal
Equipment
- A gas grill big enough to fit a turkey
- One full tank of propane
- Smoke box or small metal dish
- Wood chips
- Metal or glass pan for drippings
- Turkey baster
- Water
- Aluminum foil
- Meat Thermometer (digital or analogue)
Ingredients
- 1 15 pound turkey
- Your favorite poultry rub or spice blend
Instructions
- Once you have all of your culinary materials, begin by prepping your turkey.
- If you want to add moisture and weight to your bird, you can brine it using your favorite brine recipe, but this isn’t a requirement to get superb flavor.
- If you do choose to brine, make sure you do it in advance the night before. Use your favorite seasoning mix or rub, and get a good coat on all surfaces of the turkey.
- Now that your bird is on the grill, you’re halfway done with finishing your delicious, mouth-watering smoked turkey.
- This is where using a gas grill to smoke your turkey really pays off.
- The steady temperature and consistency, added with directional cooking, means that your grill is going to do most of the work, without much need for adjusting.
- Set a timer based on the size of your turkey, and monitor the temperature on your grill to ensure it stays steady around 300 degrees.
- Check your thermometers at halfway through and three-quarters of the way through, and baste your turkey as needed to ensure it stays moist.
- If you have the turkey sitting in the drip pan (it’s the best way!) you can always cover the pan with foil to help stop it from browning.
- You can do this after the first couple hours, when the turkey has absorbed as much smoke flavor as it will.
- If you do this, be careful because the pan will be hot!
- Once your turkey has reached 165 degrees at the thickest part of the breast and the innermost part of the thigh, you can remove it from the grill and begin letting the bird rest.
- At this point I will warn you, the temptations will be high to cut into your turkey and stuff your face full of smoky turkey goodness—but don’t! Just as important as the cook, resting your turkey is key to keeping it juicy.
- Once you take your turkey off the grill, it needs to rest.
- The rule of thumb here is 20-30 percent of the total cooking time.
- If you cooked the turkey in the drip pan, carefully take it out of the drip pan and place it on a large cutting board or platter
- Cover the bird lightly with foil, and let it do its thing.
- While the turkey is resting, you can take the drip pan off the grill if you didn’t cook the turkey in it, and make your gravy and start cleaning your grill.
- After the turkey has rested, you can carve just as you would a turkey cooked any other way.
- Serve and Enjoy
Nutrition
Serving: 100g | Calories: 160kcal