This beginner-friendly Traeger spatchcock smoked turkey recipe turns out perfectly tender with crispy skin — NO BRINE NEEDED! Learn how to pellet smoke it in this simple step-by-step guide…
This smoker recipe is perfect for a BBQ dinner any time of the year – but especially on Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter or game day!
See this guide to thawing a turkey…
Quick look at this recipe…
Ready in about 2 hours of smoke time, here’s an overview of the steps…
- Prep turkey and pat it dry with a paper towel.
- Spatchcock turkey by removing the backbone and pushing down on the breast to flatten it.
- Make and add compound butter (optional).
- Season turkey with olive oil and BBQ rub.
- Chill turkey (optional) for 30 minutes, to overnight.
- Preheat smoker to 275 degrees F. Add a small loaf pan with water to corner of smoker if desired.
- Smoke spatchcock turkey at 275 degrees F for 1.5 hours (and start the baste…).
- Make baste and brush on turkey while it smokes (optional).
- Raise smoker to 350 degrees F. Brush again with baste and smoke until done (~2-2.5 hours total).
- Rest and carve.
Beginners to smoked foods – scroll down for a detailed and printable step by step recipe (with video!).
Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make it.
For the turkey
- 11 LB whole turkey (or use a larger 12, 13, 14, 15 LB turkey and increase smoke time)
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- ½ cup BBQ rub, or poultry seasoning
Compound butter (optional)
- 2 tbsp butter, unsalted, softened
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- 1 tsp chopped rosemary
- 1 tsp chopped thyme
Basting butter (option 1 – honey BBQ glaze)
- ¼ cup BBQ sauce
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp butter, salted
Basting butter (option 2 – classic garlic herb flavor, for a more dry, crispy skin)
- ½ cup butter, salted
- 2 tbsp garlic, diced
- 1 tbsp parsley, freshly chopped
- ½ medium lemon, juice freshly squeezed
Above is what your spatchcock smoker turkey will look like with the honey BBQ baste, if you choose to use it.
Also check out this guide to smoked turkey breast…
How to smoke spatchcock turkey step-by-step
- Prep turkey. Remove it from the bag. Remove inside parts and discard. Pat turkey dry with a paper towel.
- Spatchcock turkey. Use kitchen shears or a really sharp chef’s knife to cut along each side of the backbone of the turkey. Remove and discard the backbone. Flip the turkey so the breast side is up. Push down in the center of the turkey breast to flatten it.
- (optional) Add compound butter. Mix together compound butter ingredients. Use your fingers to loosen and gently separate the skin of the turkey breast from the meat. Smear compound butter between skin and turkey breast.
- Season turkey. Drizzle spatchcocked turkey with olive oil and massage it into the skin. Add dry rub and massage it into the skin.
- (optional) Chill turkey before smoking it. While you don’t need a full-on brine for this recipe, it’s recommended to let the spatchcocked turkey sit in seasoning for 30 minutes to overnight.
Remove turkey from the refrigerator 30 minutes before smoking it.
- Preheat Traeger smoker (or whatever pellet grill you’re using) to 275 degrees F.
If desired (for extra moisture) add a small loaf pan filled with water to the corner, on top of the smoker grates, to remain in the pellet grill while smoking spatchcock turkey.
- Smoke spatchcock turkey. Once preheated, add the spatchcock turkey directly to grill grates, breast side up. Tuck the wings into the side of the bird so they cook more evenly.
Smoke spatchcocked turkey at 275 degrees F.
It’s going to smoke for about 1.5 hours at this temperature, but during that time, you’ll start the baste…
- (optional) Prep baste for turkey. You don’t have to baste the turkey, but it will add a lot of flavor to the skin. To make it, add all the basting ingredients to a small pan.
30 minutes into smoking the turkey, place the pan in the smoker to melt.
30 minutes later, stir the baste to combine the ingredients. Brush half of the baste on the spatchcock turkey in the smoker.
Continue to smoke the basted turkey for an additional 30 minutes… which lines up perfectly with the 1.5 hours you initially smoke the turkey at 275 degrees F.
- Raise the temperature of the smoker to 350 degrees F.
For the second time, brush the spatchcocked turkey with the remaining baste (you can also save some baste to add to the finished turkey after it’s done resting).
Add a thermometer to the turkey if desired and smoke it until internal temperature (measured in the thickest part of the turkey thigh) reaches at least 165 degrees F in the breast and 175 degrees F in the thigh.
The total smoke time for spatchcock smoked turkey in the SipBiteGo demonstration was about 2 hours.
- Rest smoked spatchcocked turkey for at least 30 minutes, under tin foil if desired. Carve and enjoy!
See how to smoke a whole chicken…
FAQs
Spatchcocked turkey is a turkey that is no longer in its whole shape. In a previous recipe post, I smoked whole turkey with the pellet grill, for you to compare.
Instead, the spatchcocked turkey has its back bone removed and is flattened out. Therefore, it cooks in a flat layer directly on the grill grates. This means there is no hollow center cavity in the turkey when you cook it, which allows for more room for the hot heat of the smoker to flow around the spatchcocked turkey in the Traeger.
You have quite a few options. You could use Hickory Pellets for smoking this spatchcock turkey recipe, they’ll be a bit stronger, but I love them for Turkey and in things like smoked burgers. For a lighter smoke flavor, try these Turkey Traeger Pellets. (see my thoughts on turkey pellets)
More Tasty Grill + Smoker Recipes
- Smoked mac and cheese
- Smoked cream cheese
- Smoked brisket flat
- 321 ribs
- Beer can chicken on the smoker
- Smoked wings
- Smoked tomahawk steak
- Traeger tri tip
- Smoked turkey breast
- Smoked turkey legs
- Whole smoked turkey
- Smoked Traeger pizza
- Smoked onion rings
- Traeger smoked ham
- Smoked whole chicken
- Smoked jalapeno poppers
- Smoked corn on the cob
- Traeger beef ribs
- Smoked leg of lamb
- Smoked shrimp
- Roasted chicken
- Grilled chicken wings
- Grilled skirt steak
- Flank steak marinade
- Grilled potato wedges
- Smoked pulled pork
- Want more? See my lineup of easy smoker recipes
See this Traeger Flatrock grill review.
See my favorite smoker tools and seasonings in my Amazon Storefront.
Meat thermometer recommendations
Every home chef needs a reliable meat thermometer to cook food perfectly.
On Sip Bite Go, you’ll often see me using:
- Meater thermometer – a fancy wireless thermometer that connects to a phone app – gifted to me from a Traeger partnership.
- ThermoPro digital thermometer – which has a wire that connects the thermometer to a display box outside the oven/grill.
It’s like being psychic! The great thing about either of the thermometers above is that I don’t have to take the food out of the oven to know the temperature.
How to use ‘em… What I do is stick the digital thermometer in steak, pork, chicken, whatever… Then put the food in the oven, on the smoker, or grill.
While the meat cooks, it reads the temperature so I know exactly what temp meat is as it’s cooking. Without having to take it out and check. It’s really difficult to overcook food when you know exactly what temp it is inside!
Want to get better at home cooking?
I’m here to help you put together delicious meals, right at home. If you have any questions, drop them in the comments.
Also see this guide to brining a turkey…
Chat soon!
– Jenna
Next, browse the Sip Bite Go recipe collection…
Traeger Spatchcock Smoked Turkey Recipe | Sip Bite Go
Ingredients
For the turkey
- 11 LB whole turkey or use a larger 12, 13, 14, 15 LB turkey and increase smoke time
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- ½ cup BBQ rub or poultry seasoning
Compound butter (optional)
- 2 tbsp butter unsalted, softened
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- 1 tsp rosemary fresh chopped
- 1 tsp thyme fresh chopped
Basting butter (option 1 – honey BBQ glaze)
- ¼ cup BBQ sauce
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp butter salted
Basting butter (option 2 – classic garlic herb flavor, for a more dry, crispy skin)
- ½ cup butter salted
- 2 tbsp garlic diced
- 1 tbsp parsley fresh chopped
- ½ medium lemon freshly squeezed
Instructions
- Prep turkey. Remove it from the bag. Remove inside parts and discard. Pat turkey dry with a paper towel.
- Spatchcock turkey. Use kitchen shears or a really sharp chef’s knife to cut along each side of the backbone of the turkey. Remove and discard the backbone. Flip the turkey so the breast side is up. Push down in the center of the turkey breast to flatten it.
- (optional) Add compound butter. Mix together compound butter ingredients. Use your fingers to loosen and gently separate the skin of the turkey breast from the meat. Smear compound butter between skin and turkey breast.
- Season turkey. Drizzle spatchcocked turkey with olive oil and massage it into the skin. Add dry rub and massage it into the skin.
- (optional) Chill turkey before smoking it. While you don’t need a full-on brine for this recipe, it’s recommended to let the spatchcocked turkey sit in seasoning for 30 minutes to overnight. Remove the turkey from the refrigerator 30 minutes before smoking it.
- Preheat Traeger smoker (or whatever pellet grill you’re using) to 275 degrees F. If desired (for extra moisture) add a small loaf pan filled with water to the corner, on top of the smoker grates, to remain in the pellet grill while smoking spatchcock turkey.
- Smoke spatchcock turkey. Once preheated, add the spatchcock turkey directly to grill grates, breast side up. Tuck the wings into the side of the bird so they cook more evenly. Smoke spatchcocked turkey at 275 degrees F. It’s going to smoke for about 1.5 hours at this temperature, but during that time, you’ll start the baste…
- (optional) Prep baste for turkey. You don’t have to baste the turkey, but it will add a lot of flavor to the skin. To make it, add all the basting ingredients to a small pan. 30 minutes into smoking the turkey, place the pan in the smoker to melt. 30 minutes later, stir the baste to combine the ingredients. Brush half of the baste on the spatchcock turkey in the smoker. Continue to smoke the basted turkey for an additional 30 minutes… which lines up perfectly with the 1.5 hours you initially smoke the turkey at 275 degrees F.
- Raise the temperature of the smoker to 350 degrees F. For the second time, brush the spatchcocked turkey with the remaining baste (you can also save some baste to add to the finished turkey after it’s done resting). Add a thermometer to the turkey if desired and smoke it until internal temperature (measured in the thickest part of the turkey thigh) reaches at least 165 degrees F in the breast and 175 degrees F in the thigh. The total smoke time for spatchcock smoked turkey in the SipBiteGo video demonstration was about 2 hours.
- Rest smoked spatchcocked turkey for at least 30 minutes, under tin foil if desired. Carve and enjoy!
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