Smoker and BBQ

Cajun Smoked Turkey Brine

6 quarts Water
2 cups Sugar
1 cup Salt
½ cup Cajun Seasoning (recipe below)
6 cloves Garlic
2 stalks celery cut into quarters
1 Medium Onion quartered
4 Bay leaves
1 Tablespoon Whole Black Peppercorns
1 bundle of Fresh Poultry herbs (Rosemary, Thyme, & Sage)
Juice of 2 lemons

For the brine, start with 2 quarts of water in a large pot over medium high heat. Add sugar, salt, and Cajun seasoning (recipe is below). Bring this mixture to a boil and stir occasionally until the dry ingredients dissolve.

Pour the mixture into a gallon container and add the remaining ingredients. Top the mixture off with 2 quarts of water and let it steep for an hour at room temp.

Place the turkey in an XL ziplock bag; you can find these in the storage container section of Walmart or Lowe’s. Pour the brine over the turkey and add 2 more quarts of water to completely cover the bird.

Squeeze as much air out of the bag as possible and store the bag in a cooler. Place a couple bags of ice on top and below the turkey to weight it down in the brine and keep it cool.

Cajun Smoked Turkey Butter Injection

14oz can of Chicken Broth
1/4 cup melted Butter
2 Tablespoons Killer Hogs Hot Sauce
1 teaspoon Cajun Seasoning

Cajun Smoked Turkey Seasoning

¼ cup Killer Hogs AP Seasoning (or a good quality All Purpose seasoning)
2 Tablespoons Paprika
1 Tablespoon Dried Oregano
1 Tablespoon Dried Thyme
1 Tablespoon Onion Powder
1 Tablespoon Dried Parsley
½ Tablespoon Cayenne Pepper
½ Tablespoon White Pepper

Let the turkey hang out for a few minutes while the grill comes up to temperature.

Cajun Smoked Turkey

I’m using my Yoder pellet smoker for this cook but you can use any smoker set up for indirect heat. Run the pit at 300⁰ and use your favorite wood for smoke, pecan is my favorite on turkey.

Cajun Smoked Turkey

Place the turkey on the pit and smoke it for about 3 ½ hours. To keep the skin from drying out and turning too dark, spray the outside every hour with additional cooking spray.

If it does start to turn dark, you can lay a piece of aluminum foil over the turkey. This will shield the heat and stop the browning process.

Cajun Smoked Turkey

After 2 hours on the pit, you want to start monitoring the internal temp. I use a DOT thermometer from Thermoworks set for 165⁰ in the breast.

Once the alarm goes off you know the turkey should be done. Verify the temp reading in the opposite breast and the thigh – I use my Thermapen for this.

Cajun Smoked Turkey

Turkey is done when it hits 165 in the breast and 175 in the thigh/leg areas.

Remove the smoked turkey from the pit and cover loosely with foil for 20 minutes before carving.

Cajun Smoked Turkey

This Cajun Smoked Turkey is incredible, the brine packs the flavor into the meat and the injection keeps it super moist. It is spicy but not hot and the skin on the outside is just as good as the meat.