Whole Turkey (Brined & Smoked)

SteelCitySmoke814

I have followed this recipe (http://www.smoking-meat.com/november-10-2011-smoked-buttermilk-brined-turkey) for 4 years now with some slight alterations, and I wanted to post for others to try.  My family and I have come to love this now that we host Thanksgiving.  It's gone over great every year.  Perhaps some of you can squeeze this in for Christmas!

Ingredients - instead of listing them all again, please refer to the site referenced above.  Instead, I'll list things I do a tad different here:

1.  I think the roasted garlic is definitely optimal in the flavored butter.  It's not a tremendous extra hassle.  Throw it in the oven when you set the butter out, or a day or two before even.  I usually set my butter out 2 days early, and make it a day before I'm doing the turkey.

2.  I use about half of the amount of rub in the flavored butter recipe.

Process - similarly, instead of listing them all again, please refer to the site referenced above.  Here are things I do a bit different than the original recipe:

1.  Instead of throwing chunks of butter in the cavity (I usually only use about 1/2 of the butter recipe under the skin or a touch more), I melt the butter int he microwave, and then brush the melted butter all over the skin on the outside.

2.  I smoke the turkey at 325 degrees instead of the recommended 240 in the original recipe.  Personal preference, I just like what the higher temperature seems to do for the skin.

I have found using the flavored butter is a great idea rather than trying to maneuver seasoning/rub/whatever under the skin.

Every year I'm surprised how fast this turkey cooks (this past Thanksgiving my 21 lb bird took maybe 2-2.5 hours).  Don't worry if it's done early.  I transfer it into a simple cooler until it's time to slice/serve.  You can also keep it "warm" in an oven set to its lowest temperature (my oven's minimum is 170).  For some reason, my turkey(s) have never come close to the "estimated cooking time" charts that you can find littered around the Internet.

Happy Holidays!