Whole Smoked Turkey
June 12, 2022
Bacon Wrapped Brie
June 28, 2022Turkey Burnt Ends
Burnt ends have long been one of my favorite dishes ever, but they don’t have to stop with just beef or pork belly ends!
Turkey Burnt ends, are your newest favorite recipe, that you didn’t know you had. They are tender, textured and are the perfect combo of sweet, with a kick of spice at the end.
I wasn’t sure what the best technique was for this one, so I ended up buying two frozen turkey breasts. One of them I left pretty much as is, with the elastic netting and the skin still attached. The other I trimmed aggressively, removing as much of the membrane and skin as possible. Ultimately, the difference wasn’t huge, but the breast contained in the netting was slightly juicier, so that’s the one I plan on doing next time too.
Additionally, you can make this recipe with leftover turkey slices. Just cube up the turkey instead of cooking it fresh.
When cooking turkey, especially for a dish like this, where it will be cubed, the biggest consideration is keeping it tender and juicy, so brining is going to help you keep it juicy. Use your favorite brine recipe, or my brine below.
What you will need
- Two Boneless Turkey Breasts, trussed or thick cut, left over turkey slices.
- 1 Gallon Turkey Brine
- ½ Cup Flabby Phoenix Rub (Buy yours HERE)
- 2 cups cranberry barbecue sauce
- 1 packet stove top stuffing (Prepared)
- 10 cups water
- 10 cups apple cider
- 1 1/2 cups kosher salt
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- ¼ Cup whole peppercorns
- 1 can jellied cranberry sauce
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup orange juice
- 1 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup ketchup
- 1 T orange zest
- 1 t minced garlic
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- Pinch powdered ginger
- ¼ t cayenne pepper
Turkey Brine
Cranberry Barbecue sauce
Method
1.Mix brine ingredients together until well incorporated and fully submerge turkey breasts. You may need to use a plate to keep the turkey fully submerged. Place in the refrigerator overnight
2. Before smoking the turkey, remove breast from the brine, wash gently with cold water and pat dry with a paper towel.
3. Liberally coat all sides of the turkey breast with Flabby Phoenix rub (Buy yours HERE). It’s a great mix of earthy spices, fragrant herbs and sweetness that makes poultry really pop.
4. Preheat smoker to 225F and cook turkey breasts until they hit an internal temp of 140F. Remove from heat and rest for 15 minutes while preparing the cranberry barbecue sauce.
5. In a large cast iron skillet, add all barbecue sauce ingredients and stir until well incorporated, whisking to remove lumps from the jellied cranberry sauce.
6. Slice turkey breasts into 1x1 inch cubes and then roll liberally in the sauce.
7. Ramp up smoker to 400F and place the cubes directly onto the grill (don’t use a foil pan)
8. Smoke the burnt ends until they hit a minimum temp of 165F internal, and the sauce has darkened and caramelized.
9. Make stove top stuffing (Or your favorite recipe) and cook into waffles using a waffle iron.
10. Serve burnt ends immediately on top of the waffle, adding more of the cranberry barbecue sauce as desired.
If using leftovers
1. Tke your thick cut slices of turkey and cube them as close to 1x1 inches as possible.
2. Liberally coat all sides of the cubed turkey with Flabby Phoenix rub (Buy yours HERE). It’s a great mix of earthy spices, fragrant herbs and sweetness that makes poultry really pop.
3. In a large cast iron skillet, add all barbecue sauce ingredients and stir until well incorporated, whisking to remove lumps from the jellied cranberry sauce.
4. Preheat smoker to 400F and place the cubes directly onto the grill (don’t use a foil pan)
5. Smoke the burnt ends until they hit a minimum temp of 165F internal, and the sauce has darkened and caramelized.
6. Make stove top stuffing (Or your favorite recipe) and cook into waffles using a waffle iron.
7. Serve burnt ends immediately on top of the waffle, adding more of the cranberry barbecue sauce as desired.
Turkey is an amazing protein and has so many options for serving!
