Santa Fe Smoked Turkey with Cornbread Stuffing

Ingredients:

1 12-18 pound turkey
1 basket Fogo Super Premium Charcoal
3 chunks apple wood
2 chunks alder wood

Brine
2 cups kosher salt
2 gal water

Rub and Baste
1 stick unsalted butter
2 tablespoons red chili powder
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 juiced lime

Cornbread Stuffing
15 oz box Krusteaz Honey Cornbread mix
1 large egg
2/3 cup milk
1/3 cup melted unsalted butter or vegetable oil
1/2 red pepper
1/2 orange pepper
1/2 yellow pepper
3 cloves garlic
1/2 juiced lime
1 package turkey neck/gizzards/liver and 1/2 cup broth from boiling

Green Chili Gravy
3 tablespoons Gold Medal Wondra Flour
1 cup water
1/2 cup Hatch Roasted Green Chili Sauce
1/4 milk
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 juiced lime

Directions:

Turkey Preparation
1 Mix brine by boiling salt in 2 quarts water until dissolved. Place turkey in to a large food safe container. Add 1.5 gallons cold water, followed by the salt water. Refrigerate between 24 hours and 36 hours.
2 Four hours prior to smoking the turkey drain and rinse turkey under cold water to remove excess salt. Pat dry with paper towels and allow to rest while preparing injection mix.
3 Mix injection ingredients over low heat thoroughly to insure that no clumps exist. Allow to cool before injecting.
4 Inject the turkey - Draw the injection mixture into a meat syringe and inject it into the turkey. Inject about 1 teaspoon per site into several places on each breast, wings, thighs, and drumsticks.
5 Stuff cavity of turkey with cornbread stuffing.
6 Refrigerate until ready to cook.
7 Boil turkey neck and gizzards covered with water for 3 hours or until meat on neck pulls away easily. Add turkey liver to neck and gizzards during the last 20 minutes. Separate broth and meat and reserve for stuffing.

Smoking Turkey
1 Fill BigGgreenEgg with enough Fogo charcoal to last 6-8 hours.
2 Mix wood chunks in to coal to evenly distribute. Do not place all on top of coal.
3 Ignite coal and use plate setter and grill grate for indirect cook. Target temperature at grate level at 230° F. Optionally use water pan if smoking at 250°+ F. Set temperature control unit. Allow enough time to reach temperature and smoke to change from thick white/gray to blue/clear.
4 Put turkey on grill grate and insert meat temperature probe in to thickest part of breast.
5 Baste turkey every hour for the first 3 hours. Rotate turkey if legs or breast is cooking to fast.
6 Foil legs and wings an hour after the last baste of sooner to prevent from drying out.
7 Pull turkey at internal meat temperature of 165°F. Tent with foil for 15-30 minutes. Temperature will rise almost 15°.  Separate neck/gizzards/lever from broth. 


Cornbread Stuffing
1 Mix cornbread package ingredients according to package directions. Reserve 1 tablespoon butter or oil to saute vegetables.
2 Bake 10 minutes longer than package instruction, cool at room temp.
3 Cube backed cornbread in to 1/2 inch pieces. Allow to dry overnight.
4 Dice peppers in to 1/4 inch pieces.
5 Finely dice garlic cloves.
6 Saute vegetables over high heat, mixing well, until peppers are well coated in oil and bright colored. Add to cubed cubed cornbread in large bowl.
7 Pull turkey from neck bone, being careful that no bone fragments remain. Dice with gizzards and liver in to 1/4 inch or smaller pieces. Add to bowl.
8 Juice 1/2 lime in to bowl and mix well. Reserve lime peel.
9 Loosely stuff turkey cavity with cornbread stuffing. Do not pack. Add the lime peel to stuffed turkey.
10 Pour 1/2 cup broth in to remaining stuffing and place in to a appropriate sized baking dish and cover. Again do not pack.
11 Bake at 350°F for 1.5 to 2 hours. For a dark stuffing crust, bake uncovered last 20-30 minutes uncovered.

Green Chili Gravy
1 Mix 3 tablespoons Wondra flour with 1 cup cold water in sauce pan over medium high heat.
2 Continue to stir as mix begins to boil and add 1/2 cup chili sauce.
3 Boil for 1 minute until gravy begins to thicken.
4 Optionally add milk to thin to desired consistency and creamy finish.
5 Optionally add honey and or lime juice to reduce the heat of the green chili.


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Inspiration and some of the chili ingredients were from The Shed in Santa Fe, NM. If you like heat and are in the area then it is worth your effort to stop in for lunch or dinner.

Cooking Times (source - The Online Grill)
Aim for 30 minutes per pound of meat, at 225°F. Your turkey will be ready when the internal temperature of the meat reaches 165°F.

Always aim for internal temperature, not time.

Estimated cook times
235° - 30 to 35 minutes per pound
250° - 25 to 30 minutes per pound
275° - 20 to 25 minutes per pound