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Cooking a turkey for Thanksgiving is something everyone should be responsible for at least once in their life. Talk to several different cooks and they all have their own method of cooking a turkey including smoking, frying, baking, and spatchcock. At the end of the day, you want to serve a turkey that is moist, delicious and looks beautiful. This recipe will walk you through roasting a turkey for Thanksgiving on a Big Green Egg. This is not about smoking a turkey, though this does have a hint of smoke flavor. Now sit back, grab a nice glass of Beaujolais nouveau, and enjoy this post for Big Green Egg Thanksgiving Turkey.
Big Green Egg Thanksgiving Turkey
Get yourself started with a fresh turkey, Lane’s Signature Brine, and your favorite BBQ rub (I used Dizzy Pig’s Mad Max rub).
Making the brine couldn’t be easier than with Ryan Lane’s new product. The Apple Cider Vinegar gives this brine the perfect flavor profile for the turkey. Just mix 3 cups with 2.5 gallons of water and you are good to go.
Place the turkey in the brine, cover, and refrigerate overnight (12-24 hours).
Brined Turkey
After 24 hours remove the brined turkey from the bucket and rinse well ensuring all the salt is removed.
Pat the brined turkey dry with paper towels and place back in the fridge for another 24 hours. This will dry the bird’s skin helping you to achieve that crispiness everyone loves.
After 24 hours remove the bird from the fridge while you set up the Big Green Egg. To ensure the breasts cook at the same time as the thighs/legs place a Ziploc bag full of ice on top of the turkey breasts (trust me on this).
Set up your Big Green Egg for indirect cooking using a ConvEGGerator
. Place several chunks of hickory wood in with the charcoal to give your bird a hint of smoke.
Pick your favorite BBQ rub for the turkey to add some extra flavor to the skin. Mad Max from Dizzy Pig is a great choice as the flavor profile is built just for turkey with garlic, salt, sugar, and lemon peel.
Rub the outside of your bird with olive oil or with softened butter and then apply the rub.
Use a drip pan on top of the ConvEGGerator filled halfway with chicken stock, white wine, and some aromatics. This will catch all the drippings from the turkey as it cooks and can be used later for the gravy.
Once the Big Green Egg is up to 325° and is stabilized it is time to place the bird inside. Set the turkey on the grilling grate above the drip pan sitting on top of the ConvEGGerator.
You want the bird to measurer 165° in the breast and thigh using a digital thermometer. Check the turkey every hour to measure the temp and baste it with the drippings. This 14-pound bird took 2.5 hours until it was ready. Once it measures 165° pull the turkey off the Big Green Egg and place on a carving board.
Let the turkey rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
Big Green Egg Thanksgiving Turkey
Ingredients
- 12-14 pound turkey
- 3 c of Lane's Signature Brine
- Your Favorite Rub, I used Dizzy Pig Mad Max
- 1 Lemon, sliced
- 1 Apple, quartered
- 1 Onion, halved
- Bottle of white wine
- Chicken Stock
- Butter or Olive Oil
Instructions
- Clean the turkey and keep trimmings, neck, etc. to the side for gravy
- Mix 3 c of Lane's Signature Brine with 2.5 Gallons of water
- Place the turkey in the brine and let sit for 24 hours in a refrigerator
- After 24 hours pull the turkey from the brine and rinse well
- Pat dry and place the turkey (uncovered) back in the fridge for another 24 hours to let the skin dry
- After 24 hours take the turkey out of the refrigerator and place a Ziploc bag full of ice on the turkey breasts (this will help the breasts cook at the same time as the thighs/legs)
- Prep your Big Green Egg for indirect cooking and set to 325°
- I used a few chunks of hickory wood to add smoke flavor to the turkey
- Place a drip pan half full of chicken stock, white wine, and your favorite aromatics to catch the drippings
- Remove the ice from the turkey and rub all over with olive oil or softened butter
- Liberally add the BBQ rub to your turkey
- Stuff the turkey's cavity with the apple, lemon, and onion
- Once the BGE is up to temp place the turkey in on the grilling grate over the drip pan
- Check progress every hour waiting for the turkey to come up to 165° measured in the breast and thigh
- When you check on the bird you can use a turkey baster to draw juices from the drip pan and baste the bird inside and out
- I had a 14-pound bird for this cook and it took me 2.5 hours until it was ready
- Pull the turkey when the temp measures 165° and allow it to rest 10 minutes before slicing and serving
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Do you eat the skin on a cooked bird or is it too tough and salty due to the brining?
Skin is amazing and must eat!
Hey Chris, avid follower of your recipes! You help make our parties the talk of the neighborhood! Going to smoke a Turkey this weekend for a “Friendsgiving” party. I have the standing turkey roaster from Big Green Egg. Any concerns about using that for this recipe? If recommended, should I fill it with anything (chicken stock, apple cider vinegar, beer, etc…)?
Thanks in advance!
Thanks Jared! The standing toaster will work fine. Definitely fill it with something like wine or stock with some aromatics in there too. Just keep basting the bird from the top to keep it moist as it cooks.
Question.. how long would you guess it might take for a 28# turkey?
5.5 hours estimated
Chris. Can you give me some direction on how to make the gravy? How do I bring together pan drippings with the giblets that are set aside? I assume I put them all together in a pot for a period of time. Can you walk me through it?
The giblets and turkey neck could be used if you are not using the pan drippings. In other words, you can roast neck and giblets then simmer in stock and aromatics to get base for your gravy. If you are using the pan drippings as outlined in this post you don’t need neck or giblets as you are getting the roasted turkey flavor from the actual turkey. Hope that makes sense. As for actually making the gravy… strain the drippings, separate the fat, use the fat with flour to make roux, slowly add in the drippings to the roux to make gravy.
Can you brine and inject?
Yes
Thank you for sharing your recipes and helpful advice.
Thanks for the kind words!