1st time use!

[Shedguy]

I am going to smoke a turkey in the next few days.  I would appreciate any tips, someone has for me from start to finish.  I have never smoked anything.

[beefmann]

welcome aboard,

with turkeys you  can brine them, then smoke them... if you  have it ,.. use apple, cherry or oak... no more then 3 hours of smoke... smoke / cook at 225 F till an internal temp of 170 F... yes you  would need a thermometer to check internal temp,

rule of thumb here is 1 hour per lb of turkey at 225 F box temp.... one thing though,, if you  do cook the turkey in the smoker the whole time... the  skin becomes rubbery,,, you may want to  finish in the house oven at 375 - 400 F to crisp-en the skin..

hope this helps some

[Habanero Smoker]

Hi Shedguy;

Welcome to the forum

You can also search the forum under the Poultry section, for recipes and methods of cooking. Whole chicken and turkey are prepared the same way, the main difference in preparation would be the brining times. Also the cooking times will be longer.

If your turkey is already injected with a brine, when it was processed, there is no benefit in brining further. If it is not brined it will greatly benefit from brining. I find air drying the turkey for at least 8 hours (but no more than 12 hours) in the refrigerator helps a little with the rubbery skin problem, and will improve the smoke flavor. Prior to smoking/cooking let the turkey sit at room temperature for about 1 to 1.5 hours.