We were planning a cook day to make a few things for this blog on a very rare free Saturday afternoon. I was walking through the grocery store looking for some chicken pieces to try something new when these giant turkey legs jumped out at me.
I think it is funny watching people eat a massive leg of meat at theme parks. We have a Six-Flags in the St. Louis area and I always chuckle when I see people walking around on a hot and humid summer day, gnawing on a huge turkey leg. I just think it’s funny.
So I wanted to make one. I like funny, tasty stuff.
This is how you can make smoked turkey legs at home so you don’t have to drive to one of those crazy theme parks!
Brine the Turkey Legs
Brining really helps turkey legs stay tender and juicy while the cook in the smoker.
For this cook I used a basic salt and sugar brine but here is a link to a flavorful brine for smoked turkey if you want to try something different.
Let the legs brine in the refrigerator for one hour then rinse them with cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
Season the Legs
Mix up this dry rub:
- 1 tbs salt
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp sage
Apply the rub to the turkey legs and allow the legs to rest for 30 minutes as the rub melts into the skin.
Smoke the Turkey Legs
Set up your smoker for 250F. Since we were only smoking two legs we used our Weber Performer.
I usually use fruit woods like apple when smoking poultry and that would be an excellent choice for this recipe.
I decided to smoke using a creative and amazing product from Backyard Provisions. These smoking blocks are SO COOL. They have baskets of herbs and spices in the middle that fill your grill and backyard with delicious aromas and flavors.
The one I used was Onions have Layers. It certainly didn’t disappoint. I was thrilled with the flavors the mix of wood and additional flavors provided.
At 250F it will take around 90 minutes for the legs to finish cooking. The legs are fully cooked and safe to eat once they hit an internal temperature of 165F but you want to take them into the 175-180F range to make the meat a little more tender.
This is a super easy and fun recipe to try sometime when you have a little extra time and just want to gnaw on a large piece of meat.
Smoked Turkey Legs {250F}
Ingredients
- 2 Turkey Legs
For Brine
- Water about a quart - I just filled a ziploc freezer bag
- 1/4 c salt
- 1/4 c brown sugar
- 1 tbs pepper
For Basic Turkey Rub
- 1 tbs salt
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp sage
Instructions
- Mix all brine ingredients together well.
- Brine Turkey Legs for at least one hour.
- Rinse off brine and place on tray.
- Mix all rub ingredients together and sprinkle all over turkey legs.
- Set up your smoker for 250F
- Smoke Turkey Legs for about 90 minutes until internal temp hits 165.
- Move legs over direct fire and finish them by searing up to internal temp of 175-190.
Hi,
At what temperature should the legs be smoked at?
The lower the temp, the long it will take, the smokier they will be. I don’t like my turkey crazy Smokey, so I’d say 250.
The recipe doesn’t say anything about what kind of wood chips to use?
I always use a mix of hickory and fruit woods.
What else would you use for the rub to add more flavor and make it “not basic”
Whatever you’re going for: cayenne, pepper, chili powder to make spicy. Sugars to make sweet. Smoked paprika to make smokier.
Lorrin – the answer is whatever you prefer! Sweet-more sugars. Heat-more cayenne, pepper, chili powder. More paprika for smokier. Just take this basic recipe and tweak to your taste preferences.