# Smoked Turkey Breast (Hickory Smoked)



## Bearcarver (Jul 5, 2018)

*Smoked Turkey Breast (Hickory Smoked)*

I can honestly say I never did one of these, but since Mrs Bear got it FREE with her “Giant” Holiday shopping points, I couldn’t resist.

I seldom do any Poultry, because that’s one of Bear Jr’s specialties, and he shares with us when he makes some.
So I did a bunch of searching On line, On YouTube, and on SMF, and I came up with my plan.

So I pulled it from the freezer on Tuesday, and decided to Prep it Friday.
It was pretty much thawed, except there was still a solid hunk of ice in the cavity, but I coated it with EVOO, and covered it with a Rub I got from a Buddy of mine. I put it on a Wire Cooling rack, in a foil pan to keep my MES from getting all full of fat drippings.
Then I covered it with plastic wrap, and put it in the fridge for another overnight rest.

*NOTE: * When I put things on Wire cooling racks in a foil pan, the meat is able to get smoked all the way around, and it doesn’t sit in it’s own fatty juices. If you lay it right in the pan, the bottom doesn’t get any smoke, and the stuff it’s sitting in is considered by many to be “Yucky” stuff. Been doing this with my Prime Ribs for years, and it works Great!

*Then Saturday morning the Fun Began!!*
8:45 AM———Preheat MES to 240°, and fill two rows of my AMNPS with Hickory Pellets, and light one end.
9:30 AM———Place Turkey Pan on position 3 (of a 6 position Smoker, and AMNPS on bottom rack, on right, with Dumper out 3”.
12 Noon———After 2.5 hours of cycling from 230° to 248°, I sterilized my meat probe & inserted it into the thickest part of the Breast.
12 Noon———111° IT
12:30 PM——-125° IT
1:00 PM———135° IT
1:30 PM———142° IT
2:00 PM———149° IT  —Bump Heat up to 275° (From here forward my MES cycled between 271° and 280°)
2:30 PM———156° IT
3:00 PM———163° IT  ——-Checked with Instant Therm & some places were only at 157° & 158°.
3:45 PM———All reading were between 166° and 172° IT.
Killed Heat, open door until Temp went down to 100°, & leave in Smoker for 20 minutes.

Pull, Slice, and Eat.

Then the rest is some Great Sammies of cold Breast meat, and a lot more I didn’t take Pics of an a bunch I froze for another time.

BTW: The skin was plenty Crispy, with only a final 1.75 Hours of 275° in my MES 40.


Enjoy the Pics,

Bear


One Seasoned 8.81 Pound Turkey Breast on a wire cooling rack, in a foil pan:







Two rows of AMNPS filled with Hickory Pellets, and Lit":






Smoking Nicely & ready to go in my MES:






Through the Looking Glass:






Bonus Pic;  New mulch in our Pet Cemetery.
Our babies were:
Shadow--Black Lab Mix for 12 1/2 years.
Bozo--Black & White Kitty for 17 1/4 years.






Perfect Smoke rising from my Top Vent:






All done---Nice Color!!






After resting---Time for slicing:






Two main portions removed:






Nice slices & Crispy Skin:






Bear's first Helpings: Sliced Breast, Pickled Red Beets, and Mashed Taters with Cream of Chicken Soup gravy:






*NEXT NIGHT*

Some MW on a couple of Steak Rolls:






A layer of nice Thick slices of Turkey, with a good amount of CBP:






Close them up & add some Pickle Chips:






FINI.


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## oldsmokerdude (Jul 5, 2018)

I love me some smoked turkey breast. Thanks for sharing. Now I'm hungry.


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## joedube70 (Jul 5, 2018)

Looks good!
Nice Job!


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## crazymoon (Jul 5, 2018)

Bear, Great job on the breast and your plate looks delicious!


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## zippy12 (Jul 5, 2018)

Great looking bird!


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## daricksta (Jul 5, 2018)

Bearcarver
, you've inspired me. Some years ago I also smoked a turkey breast in my MES 30 and it turned out great. Like yours, the skin was crispy. I think I got good color on the skin but your turkey breast looks textbook. Great job.

I've got a 12 lb. whole turkey in the freezer (I think it's 12 lbs.--at least) which I think will see the inside of my smoker next week. I'm going to try your wire rack inside a foil pan idea. I'll place it on the 3rd rack inside my 4-rack smoker.

With results like your turkey breast, I don't understand why you don't smoke more of them. Would've loved to have eaten those turkey sandwiches on steak rolls.


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## SmokinVOLfan (Jul 5, 2018)

Man I love a good smoked turkey. For someone who rarely does poultry you knocked that one out of the park! Great crispy skin. Those sandwiches have my mouth watering! Points!


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## gary s (Jul 5, 2018)

Excellent job my friend, you haven't lost your touch at all. Looks perfect to me.
Like for sure

Gave me an idea !!  may do a few of those for the wedding too ??   

Gary


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## gmc2003 (Jul 5, 2018)

Nice looking breast Bear, I've got one on the WSM as I type. I hope it turn out as well as yours did.

Point for sure.

Chris


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## xray (Jul 5, 2018)

That turkey breast looks awesome! I can’t believe you never done one, because those pics look like you’ve been doing them for years.

LIKE!


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## SmokinAl (Jul 5, 2018)

Looks real good Buddy!
Nice color on that skin!
Al


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## Bearcarver (Jul 5, 2018)

oldsmokerdude said:


> I love me some smoked turkey breast. Thanks for sharing. Now I'm hungry.



Thank You Dude!!
Bear




crazymoon said:


> Bear, Great job on the breast and your plate looks delicious!



Thank You CM !!
And Thanks for the Like.

Bear


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## browneyesvictim (Jul 5, 2018)

Top notch Bear! What would that MES do without you?!


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## Bearcarver (Jul 5, 2018)

joedube70 said:


> Looks good!
> Nice Job!



Thanks Joe!
Bear




zippy12 said:


> Great looking bird!



Thank You Zippy!!
And Thanks for the Like.

Bear


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## GaryHibbert (Jul 5, 2018)

Not too shabby for your first turkey breast John.  Not too shabby at all!!!  Looks absolutely perfect.
I never eat poultry skin, but I think I just might be tempted to try some off that bird.  It looks darn good.
POINT
Gary


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## Bearcarver (Jul 6, 2018)

daricksta said:


> Bearcarver
> , you've inspired me. Some years ago I also smoked a turkey breast in my MES 30 and it turned out great. Like yours, the skin was crispy. I think I got good color on the skin but your turkey breast looks textbook. Great job.
> 
> I've got a 12 lb. whole turkey in the freezer (I think it's 12 lbs.--at least) which I think will see the inside of my smoker next week. I'm going to try your wire rack inside a foil pan idea. I'll place it on the 3rd rack inside my 4-rack smoker.
> ...




Thank You Rick!!
On that Pan placement, I put things on the highest rack that has enough headspace.
This Breast had to go on my third rack of my 6 position MES.
If I would have used my Old Gen #1 MES, I would have used the second rack from the top.
And Thank You for the Like.

Bear


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## Bearcarver (Jul 6, 2018)

SmokinVOLfan said:


> Man I love a good smoked turkey. For someone who rarely does poultry you knocked that one out of the park! Great crispy skin. Those sandwiches have my mouth watering! Points!




Thank You Vol Fan!!
Beginners Luck!!
And Thanks for the Like.

Bear


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## tallbm (Jul 6, 2018)

Looks great!
I have a feeling I'll be smoking some as well here soon.  I'll likely debone, remove skin, and brine then smoke.  I LOVE having the nice smoke flavor on all sides of the meat!  

Keep up the good work! :)


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## idahopz (Jul 6, 2018)

Nicely done! How do you keep the glass so clean? I don't have a smoker, but have a wood stove with glass door and it is very difficult to keep clean.


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## Bearcarver (Jul 6, 2018)

idahopz said:


> Nicely done! How do you keep the glass so clean? I don't have a smoker, but have a wood stove with glass door and it is very difficult to keep clean.




Thank You PZ !!
I gotta Trick for You!!!  Eazy Peazy!!
By far the best way to clean your wood stove door glass, is by using a Wet paper Towel dipped in your stove ashes.
Then scrub it until it's loosened up (Not long). Then use a couple wet paper towels, and finish with a Dry one.
Works Great !!  Try it.
And Thanks for the Like.

Here's my Step by Step on cleaning the glass:
https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/cleaning-mes-window-without-any-chemicals-at-all.113467/

Bear


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## Bearcarver (Jul 6, 2018)

gary s said:


> Excellent job my friend, you haven't lost your touch at all. Looks perfect to me.
> Like for sure
> 
> Gave me an idea !!  may do a few of those for the wedding too ??
> ...




Thank You Gary!!
Yup---Easy Prep, Easy Smoke, and Easy Slicing!!
And Thanks for the Like.

Bear


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## idahopz (Jul 6, 2018)

Bearcarver said:


> Thank You PZ !!
> I gotta Trick for You!!!  Eazy Peazy!!
> By far the best way to clean your wood stove door glass, is by using a Wet paper Towel dipped in your stove ashes.
> Then scrub it until it's loosened up (Not long). Then use a couple wet paper towels, and finish with a Dry one.
> ...



Bookmarked !That's perfect and so easy!  No problem getting ashes from my stove, the door of which looks almost exactly like yours (mine is an old Quadrafire)

Much appreciated John!


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## Bearcarver (Jul 6, 2018)

idahopz said:


> Bookmarked !That's perfect and so easy!  No problem getting ashes from my stove, the door of which looks almost exactly like yours (mine is an old Quadrafire)
> 
> Much appreciated John!




Let me know how you like how it works when you try it.
I couldn't believe how good it works when I tried it!!

Bear


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## Bearcarver (Jul 6, 2018)

gmc2003 said:


> Nice looking breast Bear, I've got one on the WSM as I type. I hope it turn out as well as yours did.
> 
> Point for sure.
> 
> Chris




Thank You Chris!!
Yours will be Great! I'm gonna look for it !
And Thanks for the Like.

Bear


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## daricksta (Jul 7, 2018)

You're welcome, Bear. You're still showing us all how it's done.


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## Bearcarver (Jul 7, 2018)

xray said:


> That turkey breast looks awesome! I can’t believe you never done one, because those pics look like you’ve been doing them for years.
> 
> LIKE!



Thank You Xray!!
Beginners Luck, I guess.
And Thank You for the Like.

Bear


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## Bearcarver (Jul 7, 2018)

SmokinAl said:


> Looks real good Buddy!
> Nice color on that skin!
> Al



Thank You Al !!
Yup---Came out even better than I expected!
And Thanks for the Like.

Bear


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## Bearcarver (Jul 7, 2018)

browneyesvictim said:


> Top notch Bear! What would that MES do without you?!



Thank You Victim!!
My Gen #1 went months without me in the first half of 2013.
They can take it!

Bear


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## Bearcarver (Jul 8, 2018)

GaryHibbert said:


> Not too shabby for your first turkey breast John.  Not too shabby at all!!!  Looks absolutely perfect.
> I never eat poultry skin, but I think I just might be tempted to try some off that bird.  It looks darn good.
> POINT
> Gary




Thank You Much, Gary!!
And Thanks for the Like, my Friend.

Bear


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## Bearcarver (Jul 8, 2018)

tallbm said:


> Looks great!
> I have a feeling I'll be smoking some as well here soon.  I'll likely debone, remove skin, and brine then smoke.  I LOVE having the nice smoke flavor on all sides of the meat!
> 
> Keep up the good work! :)




Thank You Tall !!
I thought about Brining, but this one was already enhanced, so I figured I better not. It was Plenty Moist.
And Thanks for the Like.

Bear


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## Bearcarver (Jul 8, 2018)

@jaxgatorz,
Thank You for the Like.

Bear


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## ab canuck (Jul 8, 2018)

Bear that is a great looking smoke and meal, Thanks to this ever so helpful sight we started doing turkey on the smoker and it has become another favorite of the family. The list keeps growing... Point on that, And sammies with leftovers, mmmmm.... Just can't go wrong with that!


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## kit s (Jul 8, 2018)

Great looking T breast.
Like the dinner combo too.
Sammies oh ya they do make fine sammie....like to make regular and BLT's with it also


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## WaterinHoleBrew (Jul 8, 2018)

Nice Bear!  Crispy skin, tender & juicy on the inside!  Looks perfectly cooked & the meals look real tasty!


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## Bearcarver (Jul 8, 2018)

ab canuck said:


> Bear that is a great looking smoke and meal, Thanks to this ever so helpful sight we started doing turkey on the smoker and it has become another favorite of the family. The list keeps growing... Point on that, And sammies with leftovers, mmmmm.... Just can't go wrong with that!




Thank You Sir!!
And Thanks for the Like.

Bear


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## Bearcarver (Jul 9, 2018)

kit s said:


> Great looking T breast.
> Like the dinner combo too.
> Sammies oh ya they do make fine sammie....like to make regular and BLT's with it also




Thank You Kit!
Yup---I might be strange, but I prefer the Dark meat during the meal, but for Sammies I go strictly with the White Meat.
So this Breast is for All Sammies, after the first meal.

Bear


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## Bearcarver (Jul 9, 2018)

WaterinHoleBrew said:


> Nice Bear!  Crispy skin, tender & juicy on the inside!  Looks perfectly cooked & the meals look real tasty!




Thank You Justin!!
I knew you'd like it.
And Thanks for the Like.

Bear


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## HalfSmoked (Sep 27, 2018)

Damn how did I miss this? Great looking turkey breast there Bear.

Warren


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## kelbro (Sep 30, 2018)

Looks fantastic! 

You didn't mention brining. Was that breast already 'enhanced'?

Thanks


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## Bearcarver (Oct 1, 2018)

kelbro said:


> Looks fantastic!
> 
> You didn't mention brining. Was that breast already 'enhanced'?
> 
> Thanks



Thank You!!
Yes, the Breast was enhanced, so I didn't inject or brine it.
It was very moist throughout.

Bear


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## kelbro (Oct 1, 2018)

Bearcarver said:


> Thank You!!
> Yes, the Breast was enhanced, so I didn't inject or brine it.
> It was very moist throughout.
> 
> Bear



Thanks. Planning one for this coming weekend.


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## Watson (Oct 6, 2018)

OK Coach.  I have borrowed your recipe, made some adjustments and will report back tomorrow on the results. 

Thanks for your posts!  
They are really are a ton of help.


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## PAS (Nov 16, 2018)

Just now found this, looks wonderful!!  I havent tried one yet.  When you say the breast was enhanced I got some visuals but prolly not what you meant!  What does it refer to in this sense?


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## Bearcarver (Nov 16, 2018)

PAS said:


> Just now found this, looks wonderful!!  I havent tried one yet.  When you say the breast was enhanced I got some visuals but prolly not what you meant!  What does it refer to in this sense?



Thank You, PAS !!
No Silicon involved.:D
* Enhanced meat *can be defined as fresh, whole muscle meat that has been injected with a solution of water and other ingredients that may include salt, phosphates, antioxidants, and flavorings. 
*Regular meat* can be defined as fresh, whole muscle meat that has not been injected or marinated.

Bear


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## PAS (Nov 16, 2018)

Thank you Bear!  Always a learning experience.


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## Sir_McGyver (Nov 26, 2020)

Bear, I took your turkey procedures and smoked my first turkey breast this year. I have to say that I was a bit worried, thinking that it would be dried out or not done properly...Man was I wrong!











*Bird before going to the smoker and when it was in the box.*





*at 2 1/2 hours in, just before I put in the remote temp probe*





*Just before I begin the slicing operations...*​Everything came out great...The breast was quite moist, and when I cut into with the electric carving knife, the smoked aroma that came from the bird was mouth-watering. The wife has volunteered me to do a whole turkey for next year when family can join in again...Guess I'll be practicing some in the mean time.

Thank you so much for your "Step by Steps"...your work helps us beginners turn out a darn good meal...

SirMcGyver
Phoenix, AZ


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## HalfSmoked (Nov 27, 2020)

Nice looking bird and I'm sure it was tasty.

Warren


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## Bearcarver (Nov 27, 2020)

That's Great, Sir!!
Looks Perfect---Awesome color!
Thanks for the nice comments.

Bear


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