Bourbon Turkey Brine For Smoking Turkey! Perfect With Jim Beam Apple Bourbon

This Bourbon Turkey Brine For Smoking Turkey mixes the flavor of the fruit in the brine with the Jim Beam Apple Bourbon flavor perfectly!! Now I fell in love with Jim Beam Apple in my Jim Beam Bourbon Smoked Pork Shoulder. It was logical that a bird was the next thing I did with it.

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This Bourbon Turkey Brine paired with a butter injection is amazing! The turkey is perfect for Thanksgiving, holiday, or weekend meals! I made this on my Pit Boss Pro 1100.  Now I picked mine up from Lowes, but Walmart and Amazon carry other Pit Boss options or Pit Boss websites themselves. 

Pit Boss Pellet GrillsTraeger Pellet GrillsZ Grills Pellet Grills

 

Bourbon Turkey Brine Ingredients: 

• Turkey
• Water
• Ice
• Brown Sugar
• Jim Beam Apple Bourbon
• Oranges– You can cut these into quarters or cut into slices. Either way will work.
• Lemon– Cut Into Quarters or into slices, either way, will work.
• Ground Cloves
• Whole Peppercorns
• Bay Leaves

Bourbon Turkey Brine Butter Injection Ingredients:

• Butter-I used salted butter but you could use unsalted butter either will work.
• Minced Garlic– You could do garlic powder in place of minced garlic. I prefer the minced as larger chunks of garlic will be in the turkey as it cooks.
• Metal Injector-Learn from my mistakes the plastic barreled injectors break really fast.

Bourbon Turkey Brine Rub Ingredients: 

• Olive Oil
• Johnny’s Seasoning Salt
• Montreal Steak Seasoning
• Lawry’s Garlic Salt
• Thyme

Plus have one more stick of butter on hand to stick inside the turkey cavity while it is smoking.

How To Make Bourbon Turkey Brine For Smoking Turkey:

Safely thaw your turkey and remove the innards. 

If you chose to rinse off your turkey and set it aside while you prepare the brine.

Gather your brine ingredients and cut your lemons and oranges into quarters.

Clean a cooler or large container to fill with water, and make sure the plug is in so it doesn’t leak. If you don’t have a cooler, a stockpot or bucket will work.

Add your brine ingredients to the cooler full of water.

Submerge your turkey, and add more water if necessary.

Make sure while your turkey is brining to store, it is in the fridge or ice water. You don’t want the temperature to rise and grow bacteria. 

The day you are ready to smoke your turkey remove your turkey from the brine. I set mine in a pan to allow it to dry off a bit while I prepare the rest. 

How To Make A Butter Injection For Smoking Turkey:

Your smoking tools are just as crucial as a good smoker, I have gone thru several plastic injectors over the years! When we made the Beef Brisket With A Whiskey Injection, we broke another! This time around, the old lady had enough and order a Metal Injector from Amazon! 

I used the big tip for the metal injector, I knew the turkey skin would be tougher.  Plus, larger areas of meat to inject and take the injection as well.

Place your turkey on a large cookie sheet; or baking sheet. The pan will catch excess butter and rub. Use the pan to carry the turkey to the smoker as well for easy transport.

In a microwavable bowl, place your stick of butter and your minced garlic.

Cover the bowl with a paper towel and microwave until the butter is melted.

Use your injector to suck up the butter and inject the turkey with the melted butter.

Repeat all over the turkey until the butter is gone. 

How Long To cook A Turkey For

Now this will vary some smoker to smoker. The most common practice is to smoke for a couple of hours at 225 and then turn the temperature up to 350 to decrease the remaining cooking time. When turning the temperature up, you can cover the turkey with foil if you like.

• You can start smoking on a smoke setting for an hour or two before increasing the temperature.
• 225 degrees Fahrenheit for ~30 minutes per pound of meat.
• 250 degrees Fahrenheit for ~25 minutes per pound of meat.
• 325 degrees Fahrenheit for ~12 minutes per pound of meat.

For Example, a 15-pound turkey at 225 pounds would be about 450 minutes. Divide that by 30 to get 7.5 hours of cook time.

The most important part is not to smoke for time but for temperature. You will want to use a meat thermometer to ensure your bird reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees before serving.

How To Thaw A Turkey

How long your turkey takes to thaw will vary based on the site. The graphic below is a general guide to thawing a turkey based on size. Be sure to always keep your turkey in food safety guidelines.

How To Smoke bourbon brined smoked turkey:

After injecting the butter into the turkey, rub your turkey with olive oil or melted butter. 

Sprinkle your turkey with a bit of Montreal Steak Seasoning, Johnny’s Original Seasoning Salt, Thyme, and Lawrys Garlic Salt.  

Next, I placed a stick of butter in the turkey cavity, you can add in other stuffing if you want to. This will help keep the inside moist and flavor the turkey more.  

Start your smoker up, I used Mesquite Pellets in my hopper. You can use any flavor.

Money and time-saving tips from the old lady. If you order pellets online from Walmart and spend $35, they will drop them off at your door for free!! Their everyday price on pit boss pellets is amazing, plus the expert grill brand has a great price. (see them ->here)

Set your smoker at a smoke setting and place the turkey in the smoker once you are rolling smoke.

Place your turkey on the lower temperature side of the smoker; mine is the left side of the smoker.

Allow the turkey to smoke for 1 to 3 1/2 hours on the smoke setting.

Turn your smoker up to 225 and smoke until an internal temperature of at least 165 degrees. Use a meat thermometer to do this, or probes if your smoke came with them.

Remove and serve! 

How Long To cook A Turkey For

Now this will vary some smoker to smoker. The most common practice is to smoke for a couple of hours at 225 and then turn the temperature up to 350 to decrease the remaining cooking time. When turning the temperature up, you can cover the turkey with foil if you like.

• You can start smoking on a smoke setting for an hour or two before increasing the temperature.
• 225 degrees Fahrenheit for ~30 minutes per pound of meat.
• 250 degrees Fahrenheit for ~25 minutes per pound of meat.
• 325 degrees Fahrenheit for ~12 minutes per pound of meat.

For Example, a 15-pound turkey at 225 pounds would be about 450 minutes. Divide that by 30 to get 7.5 hours of cook time.

The most important part is not to smoke for time but for temperature. You will want to use a meat thermometer to ensure your bird reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees before serving.

How To Thaw A Turkey

How long your turkey takes to thaw will vary based on the site. The graphic below is a general guide to thawing a turkey based on size. Be sure to always keep your turkey in food safety guidelines.

How To Store Leftover Turkey

Once the leftover turkey is cooled, store it in an airtight container or Ziploc bag in the fridge for up to five days. You can freeze leftover turkey for up to three months in an airtight container to freezer bag.

Storing leftovers properly requires the right tools! My preferred storage method is if the leftovers can be sealed in a food saver. If not, then an air-tight container or Ziploc bag for the fridge is the way I go. The air-tight container and a freezer Ziploc bag are the next best bet for freezing the leftovers. I also use a food scale to measure portions into serving sizes.

Freezable storage ContainersFood SealerFreezer BagsFood Scale

 

What To Serve With Smoked Turkey:

Any of the classic turkey dishes will go with smoked turkey. I love to smoke versions of classics as well. You can see my full list of side dishes for smoked turkey -> here that go with smoked turkey.

Bread: Cheesy Garlic Pull Apart Bread, Garlic Parmesan Biscuit Pull Part Bread, English Muffin Garlic Cheese Bread, Easy Cheesy Monkey Bread, Honey Wheat Dinner Rolls, Honey Rolls

Smoked Appetizers: Smoked Cream Cheese, Easy Smoked Queso Dip, Easy Smoked Refried Bean Dip

Smoked Side Dishes: Smoked Baked Potatoes, Smoked Green Bean Casserole, Smoked Sweet Potato Casserole, Smoked Baked Potatoes, Smoked Loaded Cheesy Potatoes, Smoked Deviled Eggs, Smoked Loaded Baked Beans, Creamy Smoked Macaroni And Cheese, Smoked Loaded Cheesy Potatoes

Grilled Side Dishes: Cheesy Grilled Asparagus, Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms, Grilled Loaded Twice Baked Potatoes, Grilled Corn On The Cob,

Desserts: How To Smoke A Pie, Coca-Cola Chocolate Cake, Crescent Roll Peach Dumplings, Pumpkin Bars

The Best Leftover Smoked Turkey Recipes:

I love to use leftover smoked turkey in other recipes! From Pot Pies to soup to a casserole, there are no limits. I even use my Pit Boss Grills and Blackstone griddle to make leftover dishes too!! Check out all my tried and true leftover turkey recipes ->HERE.  

Other Liquors To Use For Whiskey Injected Turkey:

• Makers Mark
• Jack Daniels Honey 
• Bird Dog Peach Whiskey