Maple Smoked and Glazed Turkey Recipe
We did a turkey this weekend just to give you some ideas for your Thanksgiving bird. We smoked this guy in maple smoke for 5 hours and Patti made a maple glaze that was over the top.
It is recommended that you don’t stuff your turkey as Mom did when we were growing up. The stuffing does not get hot enough to kill any food-borne bacteria and slows down the cooking of the turkey. Plus, it’s harder to get out of the bird when you raid the refrigerator for leftovers. We did our stuffing in a cast iron Dutch oven next to the turkey. It picked up all the flavors of the smoke and was nice and moist.For the glaze Patti used some good quality maple syrup and melted it with butter and seasonings. Too easy, and you can add your favorite seasonings to taste. Rub the whole bird with a light coat of olive oil. (Always do this for the grill.) Then, we put a light coating of the maple glaze on the outside of the bird. You don’t want to go too heavy here because the sugars will burn. I just poured the remainder of the glaze into the turkey when I put it on the grill. Hands down this was the best turkey I have ever had. Every bite of this bird was sweet and juicy with a hint of the maple smoke.
Ingredients
- Turkey 16.9 pounds
- 1 cup 100% Maple syrup
- ¼ cup Butter
- Country Bob’s Seasoning Salt
- Cracked black peppercorns
- Olive oil
Directions
- For the glaze Patti used some good quality maple syrup and melted it with butter and seasonings. Too easy, and you can add your favorite seasonings to taste. Rub the whole bird with a light coat of olive oil. (Always do this for the grill.) Then, we put a light coating of the maple glaze on the outside of the bird. You don’t want to go too heavy here because the sugars will burn. I just poured the remainder of the glaze into the turkey when I put it on the grill. Hands down this was the best turkey I have ever had. Every bite of this bird was sweet and juicy with a hint of the maple smoke.To prepare the grill for cooking, check your pellet supply – top off or change flavors as needed. Scrape grill grates off. Set the temperature to 450 degrees and press the “Start” button. Give the grill about 15 minutes to reach temperature and the grates to burn clean.
- Note: You can set the start temperature anywhere you want. I do 450 (230c) for a quick cleaning burn.
- So after the grill comes up to temp and burns clean turn it back down to 350 degrees ((177c). Place your turkey breast side up directly onto the grill and bring the temperature of the bird up to 100 degrees (39c). I Use a Maverick Redi Chek ET 732 meat thermometer for this.
- Now, turn the grill down to 225 degrees (107c) until you reach an internal temperature of 170 degrees (80c) in the thick breast meat of the turkey, about 4-5 hours. Your cooking time will vary some with the outside temperature and the type of wood pellets you use.
- After you reach an internal temp of 170 degrees (77c), pull the bird. (USDA says 165 degrees (74c) but I like the way the meats flakes at 170 degrees (77c). Cover it with foil and let it rest 15-30 minutes. I use a Maverick ProTemp Instant Read Thermometer for checking meat temps.
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Nutrition Facts
| Amount Per Serving | %DV |
|---|---|
| Serving Size 919g | |
| Recipe makes 6 servings | |
| Calories 1227 | |
| Calories from Fat 289 | 24% |
| Total Fat 32.26g | 40% |
| Saturated Fat 13.01g | 52% |
| Trans Fat 0.0g | |
| Cholesterol 577mg | 192% |
| Sodium 659mg | 27% |
| Potassium 2646mg | 76% |
| Total Carbs 36.01g | 10% |
| Dietary Fiber 0.0g | 0% |
| Sugars 31.95g | 21% |
| Protein 186.43g | 298% |
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