Happy Thanksgiving! Ate way too much! Got up at 4:00am this morning and fired up the smoker to cook a 20lb turkey. But, had a great time with family and friends.

I have a Masterbuilt gas/wood smoker. I used mesquite chips with gas today. I used a homemade rub (chili powder, smoked paprika, sugar, kosher salt, garlic powder, onion powder - pretty simple). Because it was such a large turkey, I started it off at 350F to get it past the "danger zone" as quickly as possible. It got to 145F within a few hours - faster than I would have thought it would have. I pulled it off the smoker at 155F and put it in a cooler and let it finish up in there (it'll keep cooking and get ya another 10F covered in a cooler). I did add some charcoal to it in order to get the smoke ring (just a chemical reaction with the nitrogen dioxide from the charcoal).

I'm not sure "why" this one finished up so quickly. General rule is 30 min/lb at normal smoking temps. Since we forgot to take it out of the freezer until Tuesday night, I knew it would still be a bit frozen, and there was ice still on the inside. I was thinking that would cause a stall and take a couple extra hours (hence me getting up at 4 to get started).

But, it turned out great. Very juicy, excellent smoke flavor, crispy skin. I always use the same rub every time I smoke one, and the turkey is always devoured (even by those that say they hate turkey). I don't ever brine it - total waste of time and energy. If I smoke a turkey breast, I'll use the same rub but actually make a marinade for them to sit in the night before (lemon juice, soy, olive oil, minced garlic, and mustard powder).

Last edited by MeridianOMRebel (11/28/2019 6:28 pm)