Spatchcocked Maple Brined Turkey

By Traeger 

Spatchcocking your turkey not only saves cooking time and space on your grill, it also ensures a perfectly crisp skin every time. So what’s a spatchcocked turkey? It’s a preparation method where you remove the backbone and split the breastbone to flatten out the turkey so it cooks quicker. The maple bourbon brine adds amazing flavour too! 

Important! Do not use a self-basting or kosher turkey for this recipe as they have already been treated with a salt-solution. 

Pellets: Traeger Maple BBQ Wood Pellets 

Ingredients (Serves 8)

For Your Turkey:

• 1 fresh or thawed turkey (12-14 pounds)

• Traeger Pork & Poultry Rub or salt and pepper

• 1 cup butter (melted)

• ¼ cup pure maple syrup

• Lady apples, orange wedges or kumquats, for serving

• Fresh sprigs of thyme and sage for serving

For Your Brine:

• 1 ½ cups kosher salt

• ¾ cup bourbon

• ¾ cup pure maple syrup

• ½ cup brown sugar

• 1 onion, peeled and quartered

• 4 strips orange peel

• 3 bay leaves, crushed

• 2 tablespoon black peppercorns

• 1 tablespoon whole cloves

Steps:

1. To make the brine: use a large stockpot and combine 5 quarts of hot water, brown sugar, onion, bay leaves, kosher salt, bourbon, orange peel, cloves, peppercorns and ¾ cup of the maple syrup, then stir until well mixed.

2. For the turkey: add 3 quarts of ice to your sink or a large bowl and thoroughly rinse the turkey inside and out under cold running water. Discard the giblets and gravy packet.

3. Add the turkey to the brine and weigh down with a bag of ice to keep it submerged. Refrigerate 8 to 12 hours (or overnight) then drain, pat dry, and discard the brine.

4. To Spatchcock the Turkey: Use a large knife or kitchen shears to cut the turkey open along both sides of the backbone, cutting through the ribs and remove the backbone. Open bird and split the breastbone to spread the turkey flat to allow for even roasting.

5. Combine the remaining ¼ cup of maple syrup with the melted butter and divide in half. Brush half of the mixture on the turkey and sprinkle it with Traeger Pork & Poultry Rub (or salt and black pepper). Set aside the other half of the mixture.

6. Set your Traeger Pellet BBQ to 175˚C / 350˚F and preheat for 15 minutes with the lid closed. Roast your turkey until the internal temperature in the thickest part of the breast reaches 75˚C / 165˚F (about 2-3 hours). For the last 30 minutes of cooking brush with the remaining butter-maple syrup glaze.

7. Allow your turkey to rest for 15 to 20 minutes before carving. Garnish, with fresh herbs and or kumquats and dig in!