My Thanksgiving Smoked Turkey Was A Huge Success!

My wife wouldn't let me in the kitchen onof the smoker until it was time to remove the bird.
Thanksgiving Day! Even though the aroma emanatingWhile I admired the smoke that casually drifted from
from the oven was making me giddy, Except for thethe top of the smoker, I reflected that life has been
food I cook on the barbeque grill, I'm not allowedgood and that this year I had a few more things for
even close to the kitchen!which to thank the good Lord for than I usually do.
The turkey I smoked this year was the best I haveI gave thanks for the successful major surgery of
ever cooked, bar none. It's not bragging if it's themy daughter's cancer. Even though the
truth. Guests for Thanksgiving must have thought sochemotherapy and radiation is taking a terrible toll on
too, for we had no turkey left over except a fewher physically, the doctor's assure us that when it's all
scraps for the cat.finished, she'll be cancer free.
I did something different this year. I decided to bringI'm also grateful that God has given her a terrific
the bird. For years I had heard that this wouldsense of humor and a positive attitude about the
somehow make the turkey taste better. I thought itwhole thing. Even though she no doubt gets that trait
would only make it taste salty. Was I wrong! Thefrom her old man, I'm not sure I could handle a similar
taste was wonderful!situation with the faith and class that she's exhibited.
Brining the bird flavors and seals in the juices, makingI'm especially thankful that in spite of my doctor's
extra seasoning unnecessary. Smaller turkeys arebest efforts to kill me with various assortments of
easier to smoke than large ones and they're moreblood pressure pills; he has finally concocted a potion
likely to fit in the brine bucket. It also allows it tothat's keeping my blood pressure at a constant level
cook more evenly, for when I lifted the lid to take itfor the first time in years. For the last couple of
off the grill, the turkey fell apart; it was so tender.months the pressure has gone from 200/100 down
My reason for not having brined the bird before nowto 80/40 at midday, then back up to 180/100 at bed
was simple. I'm lazy and I thought brining would be atime. I don't need roller coaster rides like that!
complicated affair. It wasn't. First I poured 2 1/2I thank Him each night for our service men and
gallons of water into a clean plastic bucket. Then Iwomen who put their lives on the line in different
added 1 cup of kosher salt, 1/2 cup of sea salt, 1parts of the world, so that I have the freedom to
rounded cup of brown sugar, 4 shredded sageroast a turkey on the grill any time I like, without
leaves, 3 tablespoons of fresh thyme and twohaving to worry about someone firing rockets at my
tablespoons of restaurant grade black pepper. Aftersmoker, mistakenly thinking it's a threat to someone.
mixing this up I stuffed the turkey into the bucket,I thanked God for my family, kids and grandkids all;
completely submerged in the brine. The bucketeach one with their own individual hopes and dreams,
rested in the refrigerator about 20 hours.successes and failures.
For smoking turkeys in the fall or winter, I prefer anThere are more blessings than any of us have time
electric smoker because it holds a constantto recall or even appreciate. We'll had our annual
temperature. After I rinsed all the salt off the bird, IThanksgiving feast, with the table sagging with
simply placed it on the grill and closed the lid. I threwturkey, ham, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, green
a few small hickory chunks on the floor of thepeas and other delicious foods, leaving enough scraps
smoker as the bird cooked. The turkey beganthat would feed many families for a week. We
cooking at 10:30 p.m. on Thanksgiving Eve and I tookindeed have a lot to be thankful for; not only on
it off at 7:30 the next morning. I never lifted the lidThanksgiving Day!