Smoked Turkey With A Citrus Brine

Just look at this gorgeous dark crispy-skinned smoked turkey fresh out of the smoker. You are going to love the smoky taste of this brined turkey recipe!

We love a good simple and sweet recipe and this one does just that by using a wet brine that keeps the meat juicy and flavorful.

Turkey meat, which can easily tend toward dryness by the time it is fully cooked, benefits greatly from a brine soak, especially when you want to cook a turkey whole, low, and slow.

We used citrus fruit and bay leaves to flavor the brine and infuse the turkey meat. A little bit of patience is key here, but oh so worth it!

🦃 Ingredients

📝 Simple Ingredients

Turkey and Seasonings – We used lemon pepper for the seasoning to match the citrusy brine, but you can use your favorite dry rub or seasoning mix.

Citrus Brine – This method of soaking poultry in a salty liquid brings intense moisture and flavor to the meat. It actually changes the physical structure of the meat’s proteins to hold more water. We added oranges, lemons, bay leaves, and brown sugar to our wet brine.

⏲️ What You’ll Need to Smoke this Turkey

Smoker. Our Big Green Egg is the house favorite but all of them will work.

Disposal aluminum pan for drippings. The juices collected in the drip pan help not only to avoid a mess but also to keep the inside of the smoker moist. You can also use the turkey drippings to make a scrumptious gravy!

Sheet Pan and Baking Rack.

Large Container for Brining. We used a cooler because it fit the bird and we were able to put it in the refrigerator to keep that nice, cool, safe temperature.

Smoking Wood. Any smoking wood type will work with turkey. We used apple wood chips.

🔥 How to Make the Wet Brine

Step One: Combine hot water, salt, brown sugar, and bay leaves into a large stockpot. Stir well until salt and sugar have fully dissolved. Add in the cold water and stir well.

Step Two: Place the turkey into a large container. A cooler like the one shown works really well. Pour the brine over the bird, making sure it is fully covered. Add water to make sure it is covered if needed. Add in the cut-up lemon and oranges.

Step Three: Place the cooler into your refrigerator and brine the turkey for 12-24 hours.

How to Smoke a Turkey

Step One: Remove the turkey from the brine and rinse it thoroughly. We run water over the turkey directly in the sink. If you think you’re done rinsing, do it again. It is really important to get any salt out of the cracks and crevices.

Step Two: Place the rinsed turkey on a roasting pan with a raised baking rack nestled inside and pat it dry with paper towels. Preheat your smoker to 250°F while allowing the turkey to air dry.

Step Three: Rub the outside of the turkey with olive oil (or melted butter) and lemon pepper seasoning (or any dry rub you prefer).

Step Four: Add your wood to the smoker. Place the roasting pan containing the turkey on the grill grates and close it up to smoke until it reaches an internal temperature of about 145-150ºF.

Note: Some people like to spray or baste the turkey with chicken broth several times during the smoking process to avoid the bird from overdrying. This is not necessary if you wet brined the turkey.

Step Five: Turn up the grill/smoker to 350ºF. Continue cooking until the internal temperature reaches 165ºF deep in the thigh meat area. This hotter temperature at the end will help to darken and crisp up the skin.

Note: Let the turkey rest for 20 minutes before carving. If your turkey finishes smoking early, you can tent it with aluminum foil to keep it warm for longer. Be aware this might also soften up the skin a little but you can crisp it back up with a fast broil in the oven.

❗ Recipe Tips and Tricks

Make sure your turkey is thawed before you begin the brining process. Thawing a whole turkey takes one day for every four pounds of turkey at just under 40ºF.

That means a 16-pound turkey is going to take 4 full days to thaw in your refrigerator. The last day of the thawing process can take place as it soaks in the brine as long as you keep a close eye on the temperature.

This whole smoked turkey recipe works for all types of smokers including an electric smoker, a pellet grill, a gas grill, or a charcoal grill. You just have to use an initial smoking temperature of 250°F and crank it up to 350°F when the internal temperature of the turkey reaches 145-150ºF.

🧑‍🍳 Leftovers and Reheating

Raw turkey can be frozen for up to three months in its original packaging.

A fresh turkey can be kept in the refrigerator in its original packaging for up to two days past the sell-by date.

Leftover cooked turkey can be refrigerated and used in recipes for up to two days in an airtight container or a freezer plastic bag.

Cooked turkey can be frozen in airtight containers for future use and will keep for up to three months. It should be discarded if it shows signs of freezer burn.

Anything cooked inside the bird cannot be eaten safely, and really does very little to flavor the meat but it sure does smell good. Since your smoker is outside there isn’t much point.

Serving Suggestions

Whole turkey is a wonderful protein and you can serve it in a thousand different ways. Traditional Thanksgiving sides are always wonderful, but you could also change it up with rice and beans, a fresh salad, or a lovely risotto.

Grilled Corn and Black Bean Salsa, Grilled Honey Acorn Squash, or Oven Roasted Honey Gold Potatoes are all dishes we think your family will love.

Need more inspiration? Check out this well-rounded selection of BBQ sides! Or perhaps you’d want to try one of our favorite side dishes for barbecue chicken that would work just as well with turkey and other poultry meat.

More Smoked Turkey Recipes

These smoked turkey recipes are insanely delicious and if you take a quick peek you’ll also notice they’re quite easy to pull off. As long as you have the proper equipment and willing to do some minimal prep work you’re good to go!

• Smoked Turkey Legs – A fast smoke with perfect results that’s easy to scale up.
• Smoked Turkey Wings – There’s a special appeal to smoked turkey wings and they’re ready in just a few hours!
• Smoked Turkey Breast – The delicate breast is even better after wet brining and the cooking time is really short.
• Smoked Spatchcock Turkey – Learn how to flatten the turkey for easier application of seasoning and faster smoking.

❓ Recipe FAQ

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