Being Cajuns, we love injecting our Turkeys with a spicy Cajun marinade. Over time, we have learned how to inject a turkey for frying or smoking and will pass on the proper way to an inject a turkey with brine or marinade. Injectable marinades and brines accomplish the exact same thing as soaking but takes little time and soaks deep into your turkey for optimal flavor and moisture. It also eliminates having a soggy skin on your turkey which is a common side effect of soaking your turkey with a marinade. We always suggest covering the outer skin of your turkey with a rub in addition to the injection to get the ultimate flavorful smoked turkey. One of our favorite Cajun Marinades for a smoked turkey is Creole Butter.
How to Properly Inject A Turkey For Pellet Grill Smoking.
- Ensure you have enough marinade to cover the size of the turkey you purchase. Aim for approximately one ounce of liquid per pound of turkey meat.
- You will just need to inject each side of the breasts, legs, and thigh muscles (6 Injection Sites).
- Fill your injector with your marinade. Use a solid needle for liquid solutions and a needle with holes for thicker marinades.
- Insert the needle parallel to the grain of the meat. Go in from underneath the skin rather than piercing it. This will prevent liquid from leaking out and causing the skin to become soggy while it cooks. You also want to ensure you push the needle right to the center of the meat so that there’s good flavor distribution throughout the flesh.
- Do not pull the needle completely out of the puncture hole unless to reload with liquid. Use the same hole to angle into the other areas of the meat, slowing infusing flavor as the needle moves back toward the meat surface.
- Do Not inject to fast because this could cause the turkey’s muscle to burst.
- Remember the object is to spread your injection pattern so as to get small amounts of flavor in as many places as possible
- If any marinade spills out the injection hole onto the skin wipe it off before applying your rub.
- Let the marinade sit in your turkey approximately 1 hour before smoking (refrigerate if needed)
- When pellet smoking a turkey the ideal smoking temperature is around 215F-225F. Make sure the internal temperature of the turkey reaches at least 165F.
