by Texas Homesteader ~ 
*contains affiliate link

Have you heard of cooking a chicken ‘spatchcock’ style? That’s simply where you open the whole chicken and spread it out flat. It cooks much faster that way.

But we were wondering if we could do the same thing with a larger bird. Perhaps our holiday Turkey? So we sat out to experiment.

(Note: Some links in this post will take you to other related articles for further information. But links preceded with * are affiliate links. If you click and buy something I could receive a tiny commission.)

How Long Does It Take To Thaw A Frozen Turkey?

According to Texas Farm Bureau, you need several days to thaw a frozen turkey:

(References at the bottom of this post)

We had two turkeys to experiment with. This should be fun.

First both turkeys were fully & safely thawed in the refrigerator. According to Butterball’s website, it takes about 24 hours of refrigerator thawing for every 4 lbs of turkey. 

After the turkeys were safely thawed it was time for RancherMan to spatchcock cut the turkeys. 

How Do You Prepare Poultry For Spatchcock Cooking?

To spatchcock poultry you are simply cutting the bird open to be able to lay it flat for cooking.

So first RancherMan removed the backbone section completely.

But don’t worry that meat & bone wasn’t wasted. I set it aside to make Homemade Turkey Broth using all scrap parts. No food waste!

How To Season A Turkey

Now that the turkeys were cut, he spread each turkey to lay them out flat. Here’s how I like to season a spatchcock turkey:

• • • Olive Oil Rubbed On Entire Surface of Cut Turkey

    • 1 Tablespoon Salt

    • 2 Teaspoons Cracked Pepper

    • 1 Tablespoon Paprika

    • 2 Tablespoons Dried Sage

To experiment with seasonings I used salt & pepper on both. Then on one turkey I sprinkled ground dried sage from my garden. On the other I used paprika.

But to be honest, to me neither the flavor nor color variations using each of those different seasonings were really noticed after the turkeys were smoked.

So I now use both for the most seasoning flavor, although I’d think just salt & pepper would probably be fine too. Whatever you like!

When the turkeys were seasoned he covered them and put them in the refrigerator while he prepared the grill.

He used the same grill preparation procedure that he used when he was Smoking Wild Pork Roasts.

Preparing Pecan Wood For Smoking Meat

We have several large pecan trees on our Homestead. And pecan wood is a perfect smoking wood.

So RancherMan cut some dead, seasoned branches into chunks no larger than about 1″x2″x2″. This should give the wood chunks plenty of surface area for smoking.

Remember you want the wood to be dry & seasoned, not green! If you don’t have seasoned pecan wood handy it’s easy to *Buy Smoking Wood too.

He took the pecan wood chunks & soaked them for about an hour to get them good & saturated. While the pecan wood is soaking, RancherMan turns his attention to the grill.

Preparing To Grill A Spatchcock Smoked Turkey

For meat smoking RancherMan prefers to use lump charcoal instead of briquettes. It burns pretty much the same but it’s much cheaper. Smoking meat takes lots of charcoal!

RancherMan puts the lump charcoal in the smoker box and lights it, waiting for it to ash over. It only took about 20-30 minutes for the charcoal to ash over & turn white.

Then the soaked pecan pieces and water were poured into a metal pan, which was placed on the rack over the smoking lump charcoal in the smoker box.

Then he closed the smoker’s lid to get the box to heat up.

What Is The Best Grill Temperature To Smoke Meat?

The ideal smoking temperature to smoke meat is somewhere between 225 – 250 degrees Fahrenheit.

(RancherMan will allow the temps to reach up to a max of 275 degrees Fahrenheit)

In no time the temps in his smoker had reached the perfect smoking temperature. Time to smoke those turkeys

How To Smoke A Spatchcock Cut Turkey

RancherMan brought the turkeys out of the refrigerator and splayed each spatchcock-cut bird on the hot grill, breast side up. 

It’s important to note that you cannot move the turkey once it begins cooking on the smoker. As the turkey smokes and cooks it becomes fall-apart tender.

It will come apart if moving the turkey is attempted. So be sure to place it where ya want it now.

RancherMan spaced both turkeys evenly on the grill’s surface to allow even airflow around each of them. Then he closed up the grill and let the smoking begin.

The smoker temps were monitored to keep them between 225 – 250 degrees.

About once an hour RancherMan will go to the grill and check on progress.

He’s looking to make sure the wood is still smoking, whether he needs to add some water to the smoker pan, and how the turkeys are looking.

How To Keep Your Turkey From Being Dry

One of the most important things about cooking turkey whether you roast or smoke the meat is to only cook it to the proper internal temperature but no longer.

Incorrect guessing of the turkey’s internal temperature is the most common reason for a dry bird. 

And I’ve found those little pop-up thingies you typically find on your Thanksgiving turkey to be inaccurate. If I rely on them my turkey is almost always overcooked.

So I only rely on a meat thermometer to track actual temperatures.

Test the temperatures by placing the thermometer in the meatiest part of the breast or thigh.

A probe with a data reader is good, or even an instant read to use when you bring the bird out for basting and such.

Be sure not to allow the probe to touch any bone, as that could skew your reading.

Easier Meat Thermometer To Track Meat Cooking

But how about this??!! Recently RancherMan bought a *Meater Wireless Thermometer.

It has two sensors – one on the tip placed inside the meat, and one on the opposite end to monitor the temperatures inside the grill.

And the signal transmits to an app on his phone for up to 165 ft. HOW COOL! 

So an app on his phone will actually closely monitor the temps for him – both inside the grill as well as inside the bird.

That means this wireless temperature probe keeps tabs on both the internal temps of the meat as well as the ambient temps inside of the smoker without RancherMan needing to open the lid.

As anyone who’s ever smoked meat knows, each time you open that lid you’re wrecking the internal temperatures of your smoker.

So the less you can open the grill’s lid, the more even your internal cooking temperatures are and the faster your turkey will cook.

NOTE: If you’re spatchcock grilling two turkeys, be sure to use the meat thermometer on the bird closest to the heat source. This will keep you from overcooking the farther turkey.

What Is The Safe Internal Cooking Temperature For Turkey?

According to the USDA, the safe internal temperature for cooking a turkey is 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

As I mentioned earlier, it’s important to only allow the internal temps to reach this temperature, as anything more can result in dry meat.

How Long Does It Take To Spatchcock Smoke A Turkey?

All in all it took RancherMan about 4.5 hrs to smoke both turkeys to an internal temp of 165 at the breast.

But your time will depend upon how closely your monitor the temps in your smoker, how large the turkey is & how many times you open the grill’s lid.

Use a meat thermometer to monitor meat temps and know when your turkey reaches a safe internal temperature of 165 degrees F.

Resting A Cooked Turkey

When the internal temps reach 165 degrees Fahrenheit at the thickest part of the breast. (without temperature probe touching bone) remove the turkey from the smoker.

Place the turkey in a shallow pan or platter & allow it to rest, tented under foil, for about 15-30 minutes.

Note: If you rest the turkey breast-side down, gravity may help the breast meat to be even juicier

After the meat’s rested, get to carving and enjoy your smoked spatchcock turkey. You’ll find it’s moist, tender and exploding with flavor. 

Benefits of Spatchcock Smoked Turkey

There are several benefits to spatchcock smoked turkey instead of oven roasting. First & foremost, (for me) the cooking mess is significantly lessened. No greasy roasting pans to wrangle.

And we often cook the turkey in advance, carve it and layer it attractively on a metal serving tray. We’ll cover the meat tightly with heavy foil and freeze.

Then we’ll bring it out of the freezer in enough time to allow it to thaw in the refrigerator. That way on the big day all we need to do is slowly warm it up and serve it.

So on the day of our holiday gathering there is no greasy roasting pan to deal with, no big kitchen cleanup. The carcass was dealt with days ago and the Homemade Broth has already been made. (and oftentimes even Pressure Canned)

That means we get to actually enjoy our holiday along with our guests instead of being shackled in the kitchen with a pile of greasy roasting dishes!

Family Favorite Thanksgiving Foods

Among other favorites for Thanksgiving there is always

• • Homemade Green Bean Casserole,

  • Garlic Sage Rice,

  • Southern Cornbread Dressing, gravy

  • Cherry Shtuff Dessert

  • And of course turkey

A more complete list of holiday food is at the end of this post. Check it out.

~TxH~

This post categorized in  

Tagged in                     

Want More Holiday Cooking Tips & Recipes?

• Holiday Cooking Shortcuts & Tips
• Enjoy The Holiday – Pre-Cook The Turkey

SIDE DISHES

• RancherMan’s Green Bean Casserole Recipe
• Quick & Easy Roasted Vegetables
• Zesty Ranch-Style Beans
• Rosemary Rice

DESSERTS

• No-Cook Cherry Dessert
• MYO Cherry Pie Filling Quickly
• Apple Pie With Home-Canned Apples
• Easy Instant Pot Cheesecake
• Pumpkin Bread (with Cake Mix Shortcut)
• Easy, Healthy Breakfast Muffins
• Honey-Sweetened Whipped Cream
• Double Pie Crust Recipe

BREAD

• No-Knead Skillet Bread
• Basic Beer Bread (flavor as you wish!)
• Quick & Easy Jalapeno Cornbread

INGREDIENTS

• MYO Sweetened Condensed Milk
• MYO Broth Easily!
• Easy Cream-Of-ANYTHING Soup Recipe
• Easier Peeling For Boiled Eggs
• How To Tell If Your Baking Powder Is Still Good

FOOD SAFETY

• What Do The Dates On The Food Labels Mean?
• Keeping Hot Dishes HOT In Transit
• Keeping Food Safely COLD

C’mon by & sit a spell!  Come hang out at our Facebook Page . It’s like sitting in a front porch rocker with a glass of cold iced tea.  There are lots of good folks sharing!  And you can also follow along on Pinterest, Instagram & Twitter

If you’d like to receive an email when a new blog post goes live, subscribe to our Blog!

References:

• Butterball: How Long To Thaw A Turkey
• Taste of Home: How To Spatchcock A Turkey
• USDA: Safe Internal Temps For Cooking Turkey

• 
• 
• 
•