Originally posted: 11/02/2004
Last updated: 02/28/2008

Choose a natural, bone-in turkey breast weighing about 5 pounds. Look for the phrases "natural" and "minimally processed" on the label.

I bought two turkey breasts weighing 4.74 pounds and 4.85 pounds, one of which is shown here.

If you use a self-basting turkey breast, skip the brining and air-drying steps described below.

Trim away any areas of excess skin or scrappy material around the body cavity, rinse thoroughly inside and out, and pat dry with paper towels.

Brine the turkey 8-12 hours using this recipe posted by Keri Cathey on The Virtual Weber Bulletin Board.

Put the turkey in the brine breast side down. Place a heavy plate or bowl on top to keep the bird submerged, if necessary.

Since brining does not preserve meat, the turkey and the brine solution must be kept below 40°F throughout the entire brining process.

This photo shows the two turkey breasts and brine in a 4-gallon food-safe plastic bucket.

Air-Dry The Turkey

After brining, rinse the turkey and pat dry with paper towels. If you have the time, place on a rack over a rimmed baking sheet and allow to air-dry 8-12 hours in the refrigerator. This helps create crispy skin during cooking.

Fire The WSM

Fire-up the cooker using the Standard Method--one full Weber chimney of hot Kingsford charcoal briquettes in the charcoal bowl, followed by another full chimney of unlit Kingsford, allowing all coals to become fully lit before cooking.

If you have two chimneys, you can fill and fire both simultaneously, as shown here.

Foil The Water Pan

Cover the inside and outside of the water pan with wide, heavy duty aluminum foil. Place the pan inside the cooker, but leave it empty.

Season The Turkey...Or Not

Remove the turkey from the refrigerator at the same time you start firing-up the cooker. Let it sit at room temperature until ready to go into the cooker.

At this point, you can sprinkle the turkey breast with your favorite rub inside and out, or just cook it as-is. If you decide to rub, a very thin coat of vegetable oil on the skin will help the rub to stick better. Since the meat has already been seasoned by the brine, be careful to use a rub that's not too salty.

I applied a small amount of canola oil and a modest sprinkling of Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning to one turkey breast and left the other one unrubbed.

Smoke The Turkey

When all the coals are covered with gray ash, place 2-3 medium-sized chunks of dry cherry wood or other mild smoke wood on the coals.

Assemble the cooker and place the turkey breast-side up on the top grate. Set the three bottom vents to 50% open. Open the top vent fully and leave it that way throughout the entire cook.

Adjust the bottom vents to maintain a temperature of 325-350°F measured at the lid. Cook the turkey until it measures 160-165°F in the breast.

There's no need to baste or rotate the turkey during the cooking process.

Here's how the cooker temperatures and vent settings went during my cook:

Serve The Turkey

Remove the turkey from the cooker. Cover loosely with foil and let rest for 20-30 minutes before carving.

In this photo, the turkey on the left was sprinkled with rub, and the one of the right was not.

See Turkey Selection & Preparation for carving tips.