Lemon Thyme White Oak Smoked Turkey Breast on the Yoder Loaded Wichita

• 1 Bone In Whole Turkey Breast (size will vary)
• Sweetwater Spice Co. Lemon Thyme Turkey Bath Brine & Cattleman’s Grill Ranchero Seasoning (awesome combo - everything you need) *source ATBBQ and your Local Yoder Smokers Dealers
• Half Gallon Water
• 1 Poultry Herb Spring Kit (found in most markets)
• ½ Red Onion
• 2 Celery Stalks
• One Fresh Lemon
• Spray EVOO
• White Oak Wood Splits from our woods
• Brine Bag & Container

Directions for Brine (what I did):

• In Brine Bag, pour Whole Bottle of Sweetwater Spice Turkey Bath & ½ Gallon of Water
• Add ½ Sliced Red Onion
• Add chopped celery
• Add 1 Pack Poultry Herb Sprig Kit
• Add Couple Slices of Fresh Lemon (you can add orange slices too)
• Stir well
• Add Whole Turkey Breast, make sure it is submerged as well as possible
• It is recommended to leave in Brine for 12-24 hours

Directions for Cook (what I did):

• Remove breast from brine, pat dry.
• Build the White Oak Wood Fire in the fire box of our Yoder Loaded Wichita, and got a good wood coal bed established, while we prepped the turkey breast.
• Coat breast with Spray EVOO as a binder.
• Evenly coat breast with Cattleman’s Grill Ranchero Seasoning.
• Once the smoker is pre-heated to around 325º-350ºF ambient temp, place the breast toward the middle/chimney side of smoker, with the front of breast facing the fire box (so each side cooks as evenly as possible, in sync – you can turn the breast 180º at around 45-60 mins in, if you’d like, and then back 180º after another 30-45 mins, but you don’t have to) for some of that oh so great Oak Wood smoke infusion, being careful and watchful not to have too much heat too soon. Bringing the internal temp of the thickest part of the breast up slower and consistently, so as not to dry it out, is the name of the game on turkey breast!  Keep temp and smoke rolling (adding an oak wood split every 20-30 mins or so, to keep smoke flavor/heat consistent – if it’s colder weather out, adjust the amount of wood splits you add accordingly), and holding ambient temp at around 325º-350ºF for duration of cook, until final internal temp of thickest part of breast reaches around 165º or so, for the final pull. Important Note: A VERY IMPORTANT amazing feature of the Yoder Smokers is the thickness of iron used and the attention to detail of their builds – this is VITAL when you are trying to “hold” ambient temps for cooks such as these – especially in colder weather (which is usually the case in winter holiday months).  It is well known that lesser smoker brands do not hold these ambient temps as well, and lead to a lot of frustration for a lot of people.
• Pull turkey breast off smoker, let rest for 20-30 minutes, carve, and dive in!!

Note: smoked Turkey on a stick burner is a bit more involved than a pellet smoker, but it IS pretty easily doable after some practice, and the smoke flavor outcome is second to none, which DEF makes it worth doing!  Practice a couple times before that big holiday dinner meal and you will be a whiz in no time!

Final Thoughts: “This was phenomenally moist and flavorful, with great traditional hints of thyme, rosemary, lemon, garlic, onion, celery, citrus, etc – and the skin was PERFECT!  Excited to do this again and again!  Thanks Yoder, Sweetwater, and Cattleman’s for making the most amazing equipment and spice kits to truly HELP take guesswork out of Holiday cooks, so folks can better enjoy time with their loved ones and not have to stress so much about the flavor and outcome of their important family dinners not being on point!  Always on point with Yoder!

Thank you all for your support for so many years!  Blessings to you and yours this Holiday Season & Always! – Your Friend, Guy”