This smoked spatchcock turkey is perfect for Thanksgiving or any holiday meal! It's an easy way to get juicy meat and crispy skin every time. Flattening the turkey helps it cook faster and take in more smoky flavor. The Creole butter injection melts into the meat as it cooks, keeping it moist and tasty.
Follow our easy, step-by-step cooking process updated with video!
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Recipe Highlights
- ⏱️ Cook Time: About 2–3 hours (varies by turkey size)
- 🍽️ Serves: 8
- 👩🏽🍳 Difficulty: Easy to Moderate
- 🎯 End Result: Juicy, smoky spatchcock turkey with crispy skin and rich Creole butter flavor
Being from the South is a big part of who Marrekus is, and it always shows in his cooking, especially during the holidays!
Thanksgiving has always been a big deal for his family. His mom would have his grandad pick fresh greens, cabbage, and peas from the garden, and everyone helped in the kitchen. They always made two turkeys, one smoked or oven-roasted and the other deep-fried.
And the table was always full of favorites: double smoked ham, collard greens with ham hocks, cornbread dressing, baked candied yams, and even soul food spaghetti. For dessert, there was Southern sweet potato pie and banana pudding with Chessmen cookies.
Now, we keep those traditions going together with our children, no matter where we live! This year, we made all the classics: this smoked spatchock turkey, baked mac and cheese, Southern-style cabbage, cornbread, and plenty of sweets.
Why You'll Love This Smoked Spatchcock Turkey
- Easy for beginners: This recipe is simple to follow, and the spatchcock method makes it hard to overcook the meat.
- Great for any holiday meal: Perfect for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any time you want a turkey that looks and tastes amazing.
- Smoky, tender, and full of flavor: The Creole butter injection melts into the turkey as it cooks, making every bite moist and flavorful.
Jump to:
- Recipe Highlights
- Why You'll Love This Smoked Spatchcock Turkey
- Ingredients
- Equipment You’ll Need to Make This Turkey
- How to Spatchcock a Turkey (Video)
- How to Smoke a Spatchcock Turkey (Step-by-Step)
- Cooking Tips and Troubleshooting
- Side Dishes to Serve with Turkey for the Holidays
- Smoked Spatchcock Turkey FAQs
- More Holiday Dinner Ideas
- 📖 Recipe
Ingredients
- Turkey: A 12-pound turkey works well for spatchcocking and smokes evenly. Make sure it is fully thawed before brining.
- Turkey Brine: This is a wet brine made with water, kosher salt, and sugar to season the turkey and keep it juicy. The citrus (oranges, lemons, limes), onion, garlic, and fresh herbs infuse the meat with brightness and flavor as the turkey soaks.
- Creole Butter Injection: Melted unsalted butter is the base. Creole seasoning and soul food seasoning (aka "Soul Dust") adds spice and flavor. Injecting this mixture into the breasts, thighs, and legs keeps the turkey moist while it smokes.
See the recipe card below for full information on the ingredients and quantities.
Equipment You’ll Need to Make This Turkey
You don’t need anything fancy, just a few basics to help you spatchcock, brine, inject, and smoke the turkey the right way.
- Smoker or Grill: Use any smoker or grill you have. Just make sure it can hold a full turkey and keep a steady temperature.
- Meat Injector: You’ll need this for the Creole butter injection. We used the SpitJack Magnum.
- Large Pot: Needed for brining the turkey.
- Brining Bag (Optional): Helpful when working with large turkeys or if fridge space is tight.
- Poultry Shears: Used for removing the backbone and spatchcocking the turkey.
- Basting Brush, Aluminum Foil, and Other Basics: These help with brushing on butter, resting the turkey, and covering parts of the bird if needed.
How to Spatchcock a Turkey (Video)
How to Smoke a Spatchcock Turkey (Step-by-Step)
- Make the Turkey Brine for Smoking: Heat water in a large pot and dissolve the salt and sugar, then let it cool. Add the cut citrus, onion, garlic, and fresh herbs.
- Spatchcock the Turkey (Optional): Remove the backbone with kitchen shears, then split the keel bone if possible. Flatten the turkey by pressing firmly on the breast.
- Brine the Turkey: Place the turkey in a large container or brining bag, pour the brine over it to fully cover, and refrigerate for 4–24 hours.
- Rinse and Dry: When done, remove the turkey, rinse it well, pat it dry, and let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes before cooking
- Make Creole Butter Injection: Melt butter and mix with Creole or Cajun seasoning, Soul Dust Seasoning or soul food seasoning. Set aside a portion for basting.
- Inject the Turkey: Use a meat injector to inject the butter mixture into the turkey, focusing on the breasts, thighs, and legs.
- Smoke the Turkey: Preheat smoker or grill to 350°F. Add wood for smoke, then brush the turkey with the remaining butter mixture and season with Cajun seasoning. Place the turkey in the smoker or on the grill, cooking until it reaches 145°F–165°F in the breast, about 1 ¾ – 2 ¼ hours, basting every 30-45 minutes.
- Rest and Carve: Let the turkey rest for 20-30 minutes before carving.
Cooking Tips and Troubleshooting
- Tip for Even Cooking: If you spatchcock the turkey (remove the backbone), it will cook more evenly and faster. If you’re not comfortable doing this, ask your butcher to do it for you.
- Keep the Turkey Moist: Injecting the turkey with Cajun butter adds moisture and flavor. Be sure to inject it into the breasts, thighs, and legs, where it needs it most.
- Basting: Baste the turkey every 30–45 minutes with the leftover butter mixture. This helps keep the bird juicy and adds flavor throughout the smoking process.
- Temperature Control: Maintain a consistent smoking temperature (around 350°F) to ensure the turkey cooks evenly and reaches the correct internal temperature.
- Rest the Turkey: Let the turkey rest for at least 20–30 minutes after smoking to allow the juices to redistribute.
- Troubleshooting Uneven Cooking: If one part of the turkey is cooking faster than others (e.g., the breast is done but the legs aren’t), loosely tent the turkey with foil to prevent over-browning.
- Skin Not Crispy Enough?: If you want the skin to be crispy, you can raise the smoker’s temperature to around 375°F or finish it off by placing the turkey under a broiler for a few minutes after smoking.
Side Dishes to Serve with Turkey for the Holidays
Our favorite Thanksgiving side dishes include collard greens and ham hocks, cornbread dressing, or this old fashioned oyster dressing, plus our baked candied yams recipe, Southern baked mac and cheese, Southern cabbage recipe, and old-fashioned cornbread recipe.
Our favorite Thanksgiving desserts are caramel cake, Southern banana pudding with chessman cookies, Southern sweet potato pie, peach cobbler with canned peaches, and 7-Up pound cake.
Be sure to also check out our Soul Food Thanksgiving Dinner Menu for more ideas!
Smoked Spatchcock Turkey FAQs
Yes! You can make the butter injection up to 2 days ahead of time. Store it in the fridge and warm it up before injecting it into the turkey.
When smoking a spatchcock turkey, pull it from the grill when the thickest part of the breast reaches 145°-150°F. During the resting period, the temperature will rise by 10°-15°F, ensuring the turkey is juicy but still safe to eat.
The turkey is done when the thickest part of the breast reaches 145°F to 150°F. During the resting period, the temperature will rise by 10–15°F. Always use a meat thermometer to ensure accuracy.
Let the turkey rest for 20–30 minutes after smoking to allow the juices to redistribute. This helps keep the meat juicy and flavorful when you carve it.
More Holiday Dinner Ideas
Looking for more holiday dinner recipes? Try these:
If you tried these Smoked Spatchcock Turkey or any other recipe on our blog, consider leaving us a 🌟 star rating and let us know how it went in the 📝 comments!
📖 Recipe
Smoked Spatchcock Turkey
Ingredients
- 12 pound turkey thawed if frozen
Turkey Brine
- ¾ cup Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt if using table salt, use half this amount
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 oranges quartered
- 3 lemons quartered
- 2 limes quartered
- 1 head garlic peeled
- 1 white onion quartered
- 1 bunch thyme sprigs
- 2-3 sprigs rosemary
- 3-4 sage leaves fresh
Cajun Butter Injection
- ½ pound unsalted butter melted
- 4 tablespoons Creole seasoning
- 2 tablespoon granulated garlic
- 2 tablespoon granulated onion
Instructions
- Make turkey brine for smoking: Heat water in a large pot and dissolve the salt and sugar, then let it cool. Add the cut citrus, onion, garlic, and fresh herbs.
- Spatchcock the turkey: On a work surface, turn the turkey breast-down. With sturdy kitchen shears, cut down each side of the backbone to remove it (save for stock if you like). Working from the inside of the turkey and starting at the neck end, use a sharp knife to cut through the membrane and split the triangular keel bone that joins the two sides of the breast. (If you can’t cut through it, skip this part; the turkey will still be reasonably flat.) Flip turkey over and press down firmly until bones crack and the turkey is flattened.
- Pour or ladle cooled brine into a large brining bag or pot. Place turkey in brine solution, then refrigerate for 16 to 24 hours (about 1 ½ hours per pound of turkey).
- Remove turkey from brine. Submerge turkey in a pot or sink of fresh, cold water for 15 minutes to remove excess salt from the outside. Remove turkey from water, place on a large cutting board, and pat dry with paper towels.
- Make Creole butter injection: Melt butter and mix with Creole or Cajun seasoning, Soul Dust Seasoning or soul food seasoning. Set aside a portion for basting.
- Using a meat injector with the single hole needle, place the needle in the measuring cup and pull the plunger to fill the syringe with butter. Inject the turkey at approximately ½-inch intervals in the breasts, thighs, and legs, paying extra attention to the breast area and remelting the butter if needed.
- Smoke spatchcock turkey: Following the instructions for your smoker or grill, preheat to 350°, setting up grill for indirect heat grilling. Add in a few chunks of cherry or apple wood for smoke. (Or, for a gas grill, use wood chips, soak in water for about 30 minutes, and then add about a third at a time to the grill’s smoke box now, after 30 minutes of grilling, and then 30 more minutes of grilling).
- Line a sheet pan (about 12 by 18 inches) with foil. Brush turkey all over with reserved butter mixture (re-melt it first, if needed) and season all over with remaining 3 tablespoons Cajun seasoning. Set turkey breast side up on foil-lined pan with tips of drumsticks pointing out (turkey should not extend over sides of pan).
- When wood chunks start smoking, set turkey on pan in smoker or over indirect heat on grill. Cook, with smoker or grill covered, basting every 30-45 minutes with juices that gather in pan, until turkey reaches 145° to 165° in thickest part of breast not touching the bone, 1 ¾ to 2 ¼ hours. (Cooks with Soul likes to cook their turkey to 145° but some people prefer it more done.) Baste one final time, then remove from the grill.
- Let turkey rest 20-30 minutes before carving.
Notes
- Spatchcock for Even Cooking: Removing the backbone helps the turkey cook faster and more evenly. A butcher can do this for you if needed.
- Keep It Moist: Inject Cajun butter into the breasts, thighs, and legs to add moisture and flavor.
- Baste Often: Brush the turkey with leftover butter every 30–45 minutes for extra flavor and juiciness.
- Watch the Temperature: Keep your smoker around 350°F so the turkey cooks evenly and reaches a safe internal temperature.
- Let It Rest: Rest the turkey for 20–30 minutes after smoking so the juices settle.
- Fix Uneven Cooking: If one part cooks faster, loosely tent that area with foil.
- Crispy Skin Tip: For crispier skin, raise the heat to about 375°F near the end or finish the turkey under the broiler for a few minutes.
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