My mother in law put some turkey legs in my freezer and wanted me to try smoking them. I told her I didn't have a lighter but maybe I could put them in my smoker and see what came out.
On Wednesday morning I put them in a ziplock bag with a lemon pepper marinade. About mid afternoon, I took them out of the bag, wiped the remaining marinade off, and applied my own Two Gray Hares New Mexico Green Chili Rub. I put them on a plate uncovered in the refrigerator to help them dry out before smoking them.
Yesterday afternoon I pulled them out of the refrigerator, patted whatever moisture accumulated off of them, and applied a little more rub. Using an oak and mixed fruit smoke, I heated my Masterbuilt propane smoker to 250 and put the legs in. I proceeded to raise the temp to about 300 for 15 minutes to help dry out the skin. I then dropped the temp to 225. I expected the legs to cook for about 3 1/2 hours but due to the small size of the legs they only took 2 hours. There were two legs that were appreciably smaller than the others, so I did not put them in at the start but waited an hour. I sprayed the legs with an apple cider/rum mixture twice. I took the larger legs to 170 and took them out. The smaller legs also were at the right temp so the timing worked well.
We had a family dinner last night. The legs were the hit of the evening. I have never had legs that tasted as good or were as moist as these were. The skin was not as crisp as I would like but was actually quite good eating (not rubbery). My mother in law says she is going to sneak more of them into my freezer anytime she finds them!
P.S. She already has put some cornish game hens in the freezer. Wonder what she wants me to do with them?
On Wednesday morning I put them in a ziplock bag with a lemon pepper marinade. About mid afternoon, I took them out of the bag, wiped the remaining marinade off, and applied my own Two Gray Hares New Mexico Green Chili Rub. I put them on a plate uncovered in the refrigerator to help them dry out before smoking them.
Yesterday afternoon I pulled them out of the refrigerator, patted whatever moisture accumulated off of them, and applied a little more rub. Using an oak and mixed fruit smoke, I heated my Masterbuilt propane smoker to 250 and put the legs in. I proceeded to raise the temp to about 300 for 15 minutes to help dry out the skin. I then dropped the temp to 225. I expected the legs to cook for about 3 1/2 hours but due to the small size of the legs they only took 2 hours. There were two legs that were appreciably smaller than the others, so I did not put them in at the start but waited an hour. I sprayed the legs with an apple cider/rum mixture twice. I took the larger legs to 170 and took them out. The smaller legs also were at the right temp so the timing worked well.
We had a family dinner last night. The legs were the hit of the evening. I have never had legs that tasted as good or were as moist as these were. The skin was not as crisp as I would like but was actually quite good eating (not rubbery). My mother in law says she is going to sneak more of them into my freezer anytime she finds them!
P.S. She already has put some cornish game hens in the freezer. Wonder what she wants me to do with them?
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