Smoked Turkey

OK, I'm not sure what's going on with my ability to load photos, but, once again, I can't get the photo of turkey to load.  I have a feeling I'm just going to have to wait for Jim to get home to help.

So for this one, please use your imagination:  picture a fully cooked turkey.  BINGO! 

On an never-ending journey to try to make space in my freezer (while at the same time keep filling them up), I had a turkey and some baby-backs I have been wanted to smoke for a while (Jim says you should never smoke one thing at a time, load 'em up and let the drippings fall on the meat below). 

So I put the ribs on the top rack and the turkey underneath.  The smoker was set at between 225F & 250F.  I put the ribs curved-side down and the turkey breast-side up.  My turkey was 12.5 pounds and the rack of ribs was about 3 pounds.  I simply put S&P on the ribs and rubbed some chicken rub over the turkey and let it cook for about 3 hours.  The turkey breast should register 165F on your thermometer.  Mine took about 3 1/2 hours. 

For the ribs, I cooked them for 2 hours, took them out and covered them with BBQ sauce and wrapped them in heavy-duty aluminum foil.  After about an hour, I uncovered them and let them cook another 15 minutes to let the sauce caramelize.  You could certainly leave them covered if your prefer them a bit more "steamed."

All in all, it was the easiest smoking experience to date.  Little if any prep and I just let the smoker work its magic.  The smoker we have is not the top-of-the-line (you can get them with more racks, digital thermometers, timers, remote controls), but for the two of us and The Girls, it's a perfect $125 investment that has lasted us for years and does the job it's meant to do:  infuse that wonderful smoke flavor into your favorite meat, fish, vegetables, and fabulous side dishes like Mac 'n' Cheese and Smoked Baked Beans.  And we can use it 12 months a year.