I know it's early to think about it.... Smoking a turkey on the 22 kettle?

[qrczak1]

The only thing to remember when you do not spatchcock the turkey is the clearance between the grate and the lid (especially, if you are putting the turkey on top of some veggies).

[Mojoman]

So the story is, I want to do a smoked turkey this Thanksgiving, and I don't really want to knock my budget to pieces and clog up what storage space I have with a WSM smoker or similar.... So.... How about it, what is the method folks are using to smoke a Turkey on their Weber 22" kettles, and what do I need to watch out for?

I typically won't even try a bird over 14lbs if I am smoking it so size shouldn't be a problem. I am figuring on filling the drip pan with apple juice, loading the coals up getting the temp right and while that is getting ready, brine, and inject the bird with the Cacheries Cajun Butter for Turkey, rub it down with butter and a blend of freshly ground poultry seasoning (Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme) combined with some special sauce rub that shall remain secret...

How long should a 14 lb bird smoke for? I am seeing from Butterball they recommend 30 minutes / lb which means about 7 hrs...

Should the bird be straight on the grate or in a foil pan? Looks like, and again this is from Butterball, straight on the grate.

And lastly, should the bird be rotated and if so how often? No mention of that but I suspect since the heat source is on the one side of the drip pan, that is unless I move the configuration where drip pan ins in the center and the coals are on both sides outside of the drip pan. I might have just answered my own question there...

Anyway, I am thinking about doing one this summer to try it out before it is critical for the holidays to get the method under my belt... THEN we do our proper holiday cook...

What other "holiday dishes" can be done on the Weber?

I've been smoking turkeys on my 22 for several years. It's actually very simple, and I've done as large as 20lbs with no problems.

First I brine for 12 hours: water, salt, brown sugar,  allspice, thyme, cloves. Bring to a boil, cool down and submerge the turkey. You can use a sealed large plastic bag in a cooler with ice.

I place a foil drip pan in the center bottom of kettle, with charcoal holders on each side. Fill both and add your wood chips. Place turkey on the center (might want to foil the wings if not tucked in and sitting over coals) Add charcoal and more wood chips as needed.

12 minutes per pound is what Weber suggests and works for me. Check internal temp before that. Sometimes the brine can actually speed up cooking time.

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