There are two reason this recipe could be called “Texas-Style.” First is the wet rub used and second is that it’s smoked with mesquite wood. I suppose if you used Maple it would be New-England style and if you used Hickory it would be Southern style, but you’d also have to use a different rub. To get a fully cooked bird that doesn’t dry out in the smoker, you need to spatchcock the turkey, which is a process of flaying the bird open to expose more surface area. If you don’t already know how to do this, watch a U-tube video. It’s not hard but does require a good pair of kitchen scissors.
Ingredients
- 1 12-15 lb Turkey – fully thawed
- Olive oil – for drizzling
- Kosher salt and pepper
- Turkey Rub
- 50 g Brown sugar
- 2 TBL Cummin – ground
- 2 TBL Coriander – ground
- 2 tsp Oregano – Mexican if you can find it
- 2 tsp Paprika – sweet is preferred but any will do
- 2 tsp Chili powder – Hatch red chili is best
- 2 TBL White wine vinegar
- 6-8 sprigs of fresh oregano, sage, thyme, and/or rosemary
Process
- Mise in Place – measure and prepare your ingredients prior to starting.
- Prepare Turkey
- An hour before smoking, spatchcock the bird, rinse the carcass and pat dry.
- Drizzle both sides of the turkey with olive oil and generously season with salt and pepper.
- Mix the rub in to a paste and slather both sides of the bird with the rub. Best to wear plastic gloves for this.
- Smoking the bird
- Heat smoker to around 350 F (175 C) and wood chips – mesquite is best but any will do, just not pine.
- Place bird with breast up (rib cage down)
- Smoke ~2.5 hours until thigh temperature is at 160 F
- Allow bird to rest 20-40 mins before slicing.
- If you slice the bird without resting the juices will flow out and you’ll be left with dry meat and fowl is already on the dry side. Plus, letting the bird rest will finish off the cooking process.
