Smoked Turkey with Orange Honey Brine

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If you have a smoker and you’ve never smoked a holiday bird before, you need to change that.

We love Thanksgiving for so many reasons. One of the best things about this beautiful holiday is the food, all that glorious food. From the classic sides like mom’s dressing, best-ever mashed potatoes, and gourmet green casserole. These are all amazing. But, the star of the feast, in most cases, is the turkey. This is our favorite method of cooking the bird.

An overhead view of a whole smoked turkey that is resting on a platter of parsley and orange slices and a carving knife nearby.

How To Make a Smoked Turkey

 

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The Tools and Ingredients You Will Need

The tools you will need are as important as the ingredients. Here’s what you’ll need to have on hand:

The Tools

Smoker – We get perfectly cooked smoked meats every single time with our Smokin’ Tex Electric Smoker. Use Promo Code “LOON10” for a 10% discount!
ChipsWood chips or pellet chips for your smoker.
Digital thermometer – This is essential to ensure you have a perfectly cooked turkey. Click this link and when you order, you’ll automatically receive a How To Feed a Loon discount!
Poultry Rack – Not 100% necessary, but it makes transporting the bird from the kitchen to the smoker easier. Any type of roasting rack will work.
Brine bag – We recommend a bag that will hold a 20 to 2- lb bird and has a zip top.

The Ingredients

Turkey – 14 to 17 lb. Seek out a fresh turkey. You can find them at your local meat market or search for farms near you. If using a frozen turkey, allow it to fully thaw, preferably in your fridge, before brining.
Oranges – You’ll need the juicy and the squeezed oranges.
Honey – Go with a good quality honey.
Salt (for brining)– Kosher is perfect.
Spices – Ground ginger, ground cumin, ground mustard, ground cloves, ground allspice.
Apple cider – Often found in the produce section of your supermarket. You’ll need about a gallon and a half. Apple juice can be substituted if you can’t find apple cider. 
Unsalted butter – Room temperature.
Seasonings (for the bird) – Salt and pepper.

EXPERT TIP: For maximum flavor, puncture the skin numerous times on the top of the bird, place it in the brine bag, and then spoon some of the marinade under the skin near the breast. Pour the rest of the marinade over the bird and then add enough apple cider to cover the bird. Placing the brine bag in a cooler before doing all of this is helpful.

A person pouring a orange juice and maple marinade from a glass bow over an uncooked turkey that is snuggled into a brine bag in an upright cooler.

Tips for Making the Perfect Smoked Turkey

Fresh Is Best – We can’t stress this enough. We have cooked, roasted, fried, and smoked turkeys in many different ways over the years. The one thing that has always made a big difference with any method of cooking the bird is if it is fresh or frozen. Fresh is always extra tender, juicy, and flavorful. Google where you can find a fresh turkey near you.

Allow Plenty of Time to Marinade – The marinade is flavorful and will also help tenderize the turkey. For maximum taste and texture, allow the bird to rest in the marinade for at least 12 hours, or up to 24 hours.

Don’t Overdo It with the Smoke – Poultry will absorb a decent amount of smoke. We recommend no more than 6 ounces of smoking right at the very beginning. Otherwise, the skin will be too smokey tasting and even the meat will have a strong smoky taste.

Monitor the Internal Temperature – This is critical for producing a perfectly cooked, juicy, and flavorful turkey. Place a digital thermometer in the thickest part of the breast. Check several different locations. Don’t remove the bird from the smoker until you reach 160 to 165°F.

EXPERT TIP: Be sure to get the softened butter under the skin as well as all over the bird. This will ensure a flavorful, and deeply golden/brownish color on the fully smoked bird.

A person using his hands to rub softened butter all over the exterior of an uncooked whole turkey resting on a roasting rack.

How To Serve

There is so much to love about this smoked turkey. One of them is that you can pull it out of the smoker and let it rest for at least an hour before slicing into it.

Slice it at the table, or, give yourself a break, and slice it well before serving. Use either a large, sharp knife or even better an electric cutting knife.

Once the turkey is sliced and arranged on your platter, cover it tightly with foil. It will stay warm for an hour to an hour and a half. Perfect for getting all the other dishes finished and ready to serve!

EXPERT TIP: Placing a pan of water on a grate underneath the turkey will keep the air moist, which will make a juicier bird. Every hour or so, feel free to spray a combination of apple juice, apple cider vinegar, orange juice, and/or water on the skin. This also helps keep it from drying out.

Two images with the first being a whole turkey resting on a rack that is on a grate inside an electric smoker and then the second image is after the turkey has been smoked and fully cooked.

Other Centerpiece Roast Recipes for Your Thanksgiving Feast

Here is a collection of centerpiece roasts that we have served over the years for our Thanksgiving feast and they were all delicious and well received. Choosing which one is the challenge!

These are all absolutely amazing in their own right. But, in the meantime, isn’t this smoked bird calling your name?

A straight-on view of a whole smoked-turkey that is resting on a white platter lined with fresh parsley and orange slices.

Thanksgiving is so special for so many reasons.

First and foremost, it is the perfect occasion for family and loved ones to gather and reflect on how much we all have to be thankful for.

And, of course, there is the food. You have options for preparing your centerpiece turkey. If you have a smoker, you very well may want to try this recipe. We smoke a turkey almost every Thanksgiving, and it is perfect every single time.

We love serving this alongside our gourmet green bean casserole, dressing, mashed potatoes, and turkey gravy.

Happy Thanksgiving, friends!

An overhead view of a black dinner plate filled with slices of smoked turkey topped with gravy and next to a mound of mashed potatoes, green beans, and dressing.

Ready to make the best Thanksgiving turkey on the block? Go for it!

And when you do, be sure to take a photo of it, post it on Instagram, and tag @HowToFeedaLoon and hashtag #HowToFeedaLoon!

A straight-on view of a whole smoked-turkey that is resting on a white platter lined with fresh parsley and orange slices.

Smoked Turkey with Orange Honey Brine

Smoking your turkey ensures you get a perfectly cooked bird with a touch of smoke flavor. The brine adds amazing flavor and helps to tenderize the turkey. Give yourself enough time to let the bird sit in the marinade for 12 to 24 hours.
Print Pin Rate
Course: Entree
Cuisine: American
Keyword: how to smoke a turkey, Smoked Turkey
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 7 hours
Marinating time: 12 hours
Total Time: 19 hours 15 minutes
Servings: 8
Calories: 496kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 6 large navel oranges
  • ¼ cup honey
  • 3 tbsp Kosher salt
  • 2 tbsp ground ginger
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 2 tsp ground mustard
  • tsp ground cloves
  • ½ tsp ground allspice
  • 1 14 to 17 lb turkey preferably fresh, giblets and neck removed from the cavity
  • gallons apple cider
  • 6 tbsp unsalted butter room temperature
  • salt and pepper

Instructions

  • Make the brine by mixing together the juice from the oranges with the honey, salt, ginger, cumin, mustard, cloves (ground), and allspice. Stir until the salt is mostly dissolved. Set aside.
    6 large navel oranges, ¼ cup honey, 3 tbsp Kosher salt, 2 tbsp ground ginger, 2 tsp ground cumin, 2 tsp ground mustard, 1½ tsp ground cloves, ½ tsp ground allspice
  • Use your fingers to gently pull the skin away from the top of the turkey. Now, use a fork to puncture the turkey over the top and the legs. Stuff the cavity of the bird with the squeezed orange halves.
    1 14 to 17 lb turkey
  • Place your brine bag in a medium to large cooler. Place the turkey in the bring bag, legs facing upwards.
  • Spoon some of the marinade under the skin of the top of the turkey. Pour the rest of the marinade around (and on top) of the turkey. Pour in enough apple cider to cover the turkey. Close the brine bag and close the cooler. If your cooler will fit in your refrigerator, place it there. If not, add ice over the top of the brine bag and keep the cooler in a cool spot in your house. You may need to add more ice every now and then. Allow the turkey to rest in the marinade for 12 to 24 hours.
    1½ gallons apple cider
  • Add about 6 ounces of wood chips to the wood box of your smoker.
  • Gently remove the turkey from the brine bag and pat it dry with paper towels. Leave the orange slices in the cavity.
  • Rub the softened butter all over the top of the bird and the legs. Liberally sprinkle salt and pepper all over the bird.
    6 tbsp unsalted butter, salt and pepper
  • Add a pan filled about halfway with water on the bottom grate of the smoker.
  • Place the turkey on a poultry rack (optional) and place on the grate above the pan of water. Add the smoke box, close the door, and turn the smoker to 225°F.
  • Smoke for about 30 minutes per pound until an internal temperature of 160 to 165°F. Add apple cider and water (or a combination of water and apple cider vinegar) in a spray bottle and spray the bird every couple of hours or so.
  • Once the internal temperature reaches 160 to 165°F, bring the bird inside and let it rest for at least 30 minutes, or up to 1½ hours. Slice and serve at once, or, cover and serve within a couple of hours.

Notes

See the video near the top of the blog post for visual guidance. If you liked the video, please subscribe to our YouTube channel
If you are using a frozen turkey, we recommend thawing it in your refrigerator for several days before brining. For a quicker thaw time, place the turkey (still in the packaging) in a sink (or tub) filled with cool water. The turkey will be thawed within 6 to 8 hours.  Remember...a fresh turkey is best and won't be frozen. You can find fresh turkeys at farms, meat markets, and specialty food markets. 
The turkey is wonderful served warm or at room temperature. Leftovers are wonderful and will keep in the fridge (covered) for up to 1 week. They can also be frozen for up to several months. 

Nutrition

Calories: 496kcal | Carbohydrates: 104g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 23mg | Sodium: 2650mg | Potassium: 934mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 86g | Vitamin A: 537IU | Vitamin C: 69mg | Calcium: 117mg | Iron: 2mg
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