This is the best turkey injection recipe when you want to use your grill or smoker to make a whole turkey. By injecting a poultry marinade into your holiday turkey (or any meal!), you will end up with a tender and moist turkey that is full of flavor! This recipe has a hint of sweetness from the honey while the lemon and butter provide great flavor that compliments the wood flavors from the smoker.
When you use injection marinades, you can say goodbye to dry turkeys! This process literally infuses flavor through the whole turkey breast and helps to tenderize. You can also use this technique with other turkey brines. When I make my smoked turkey recipe, I like to keep the seasoning mixture simple and this recipe is a breeze.
Injecting a turkey before smoking infuses flavor directly into the meat while helping it stay juicy. This technique can take your smoked turkey from dry to succulent and packed with taste. Understanding proper injection methods and timing is key to success.
What is Turkey Injection?
A turkey injection is a marinade that gets directly pumped into the bird using a large syringe tool called an injector The injection liquid often contains
- Butter or oil for moisture
- Broth or juices for flavor
- Acid like lemon juice to tenderize
- Herbs and seasonings for aroma
As the needle punctures deep into the turkey it leaves behind the marinade inside the meat. During smoking the injection keeps the lean turkey breast and other portions flavorful and moist.
Benefits of Turkey Injection
Injecting a turkey before smoking provides the following advantages
- Prevents the meat from drying out during long smoke times
- Infuses flavor directly into the deepest muscles unlike brining
- Allows use of herbs and spices not suitable for brine
- Gives great browning and crisp skin if injected under the skin
- Provides moisture insurance for novice smokers
- Results in juicy meat with concentrated flavor
- Makes the texture more tender
- Gives the cook more control over taste
When to Inject Turkey for Smoking
For best results, plan to inject the turkey around 24 hours before smoking. This gives time for the marinade to fully penetrate and tenderize the meat.
- Injecting right before smoking won’t allow proper infusion.
- Injecting too far in advance can degrade meat texture.
- 12 to 24 hours before smoking hits the marinade sweet spot.
Make sure the turkey is fully thawed before injecting. Trying to inject a frozen or partially frozen bird will crack the skin and meat.
Injection Tips
Follow these tips when injecting a turkey to smoke:
- Choose a quality metal injector with 2 ounce capacity and needles that won’t clog.
- Mix enough marinade to inject 2 ounces into each pound of turkey weight.
- Insert needle deep into thickest parts of breast, thighs, and drumsticks.
- Angle needle in different directions with each insertion.
- Avoid excessive leakage by not over-filling areas.
- Refrigerate after injecting with marinade fully sealed.
- Discard any remaining marinade after injecting.
- Pat turkey dry before seasoning the exterior and smoking.
Sample Turkey Injection Recipes
Try these popular injection combos:
Cajun Style
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/2 cup melted butter
- 3 tbsp Cajun seasoning
- 2 tbsp hot sauce
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp black pepper
Herb Butter
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/2 cup melted butter
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 2 tsp dried thyme
- 2 tsp dried rosemary
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Teriyaki
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup honey
- 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 2 cloves minced garlic
Injection Alternatives
While injecting is great, you can still smoke tasty moist turkey without it:
- Brining – Soaking turkey in a saltwater solution adds moisture.
- Dry brining – Rubbing turkey with salt then rinsing removes moisture.
- Lower heat – Keeping smoker temp around 275°F prevents drying out.
- Spice rub – A flavorful rubbed exterior gives a taste boost.
The combination of mild smoking wood, lower heat, and occasional spritzing should keep your turkey nice and juicy without injection. But injecting before smoking definitely guarantees the most flavorful, foolproof turkey possible.
How to Make The Turkey Injection Recipe for Smoking
PREP: Melt the butter directly in the measuring cup. Mix in the remaining ingredients. Remove the giblets from the turkey, then rinse and pat the bird dry with paper towels. Place turkey on a tray or on a roasting rack in a large pan.
INJECT: After mixing up the injectable marinade, fill the meat injector with the liquid mixture. Pierce the skin of the turkey and press it down into the breast. Slowly inject and repeat in several other places until all the marinade is gone. You can also insert the injection needle at various angles working through the same hole.
Injecting the turkey can be quite a bit of fun, actually. If your needle runs parallel to the breast, you might see the whole breast swell up with the liquid mixture. It’s fun evening out the two sides. Do be aware that the liquid expands the muscle fibers of the turkey so the cooked meat looks a little different in texture than a slice of turkey that has not been injected.
COOK: Once you have finished injecting, you can continue to prepare your turkey any way you would like! Placing the turkey in the refrigerator and allowing it to set for at least several hours will allow the marinade to have the greatest effect. This particular smoked turkey injection recipe lends itself well to a smoked turkey because of the lemon and honey flavors.
- Before injecting your turkey, make sure it has thawed completely. Do not attempt to inject a frozen turkey.
- Patting it completely dry removes the moisture so that you can get an extra crispy skin.
- You can experiment with other fresh herbs and spices. However, just make sure they do not clog the holes of the meat injector.
- When injecting meat using this tool, make sure you inject deep enough so that it doesn’t leak back out. I found that the angle of the injector needle makes a difference with the liquid seeping back out, too, so play around with it a bit for the best results.
By adding wood chips or wood chunks and a pan of water directly on your grill, you can smoke just about anything without having to own an actual smoker!
Absolutely! The turkey injection marinade just adds more flavor and you never have to worry about dry turkey again! Plus it tenderizes the meat too. You will still get all the yummy flavor of a smoke turkey.
You can inject up to 36 hours before you are ready to smoke your bird. 12 hours is the minimum time, so the marinade has a chance to do its job. We say not to go past 36 hours simply because we do not want the turkey to spoil before cooking.
Store the marinade in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Once it has made contact with the raw poultry though, please discard any unused marinade.
You sure can! Turkey rubs are going to flavor the outside of the turkey and the drippings that get turned into gravy will get some of that flavor, too. The injection marinade will flavor the actual meat. I would recommend using similar flavor profiles between your marinade and your rub.
You can inject the entire turkey if you wish, including the legs. I find it more difficult to fit the injection needle into the legs and they typically come out moister than the white meat, but there is no reason you shouldn’t inject the legs, too, if you’d like.
No, injecting your turkey and then allowing it to rest in the refrigerator for several hours will do the same thing as a brine will – but more effectively. With a brine, you are soaking the turkey in the marinade. The injection skips straight to getting that marinade deep into the turkey.
What is a Meat Injection Syringe?
A meat injector syringe can be purchased at most kitchen supply stores. I have seen them at Williams-Sonoma, Target, and even some grocery stores. I purchased mine, this stainless steel meat injector, through Amazon (affil). I am still learning to use it, but have had great success with several traditional turkey marinades and also some chicken injection recipes. I like that it has a variety of tips so that the injection mixture flows through easily if I’m trying to inject a recipe that has ground spices in it. It’s also easy to clean.
- You can use olive oil or avocado oil in place of the melted butter. An oil in your turkey marinade provides flavor and adds moisture.
- Try a cajun turkey injection recipe by adding cayenne pepper, sweet paprika, smoked paprika, onion powder, and or creole seasoning to your marinade. I would omit the honey in this case.
- Looking for a use for the neck and/or giblets? Make this turkey neck gravy recipe or doctor up your dressing with this Thanksgiving Stovetop stuffing recipe.
Smoked Turkey with Injection
FAQ
How long should turkey sit after injecting?
Can you inject meat before smoking?
Can you inject a turkey too early?
Do you have to dry turkey before smoking?