Smoked Turkey Legs Food

SMOKED TURKEY LEGS

Steps:

• Combine water, kosher salt, sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, paprika, pepper, cumin, and sage for brine in a large pot. Bring to boil, making sure salt is completely dissolved. Remove from heat, cover, and let cool to room temperature, 20 to 30 minutes. Pour into a container and refrigerate brine until cold, or to 35 to 40 degrees F (2 to 4 degrees C).
• Rinse turkey legs in cold water and pat dry. Place legs into cold brine, cover and refrigerate, 4 to 6 hours.
• Remove legs from the brine, rinse well in cold water, and dry with paper towels. Discard brine.
• Combine oil, onion powder, paprika, garlic powder, pepper, cumin, and sage for spice rub in a small bowl; mix with a fork until well combined. Generously rub legs with spice rub until covered. Let legs sit on a cooling rack for about 1 hour.
• Preheat a smoker to 225 degrees F (110 degrees C).
• Place turkey legs, unstacked, onto wire racks. Place the racks into the preheated smoker. Smoke until meat is falling off of the bone, 4 to 6 hours. Remove from smoker and let rest, 20 to 30 minutes.

WOOD SMOKED TURKEY LEGS (STOVE TOP SMOKER)

Steps:

• USE Maple, Apple, and or Cherry Wood Chips.
• Clean the legs under cold water. Pat legs dry cover legs in dry rub. Store in refrigerator for approximately 2 hours.
• Take legs out of refrigerator add a mixture of dry rub and 1/4 cup of apple juice. Pour over legs and refrigerate for another 22 hours, flipping the legs every 2-4 hours to marinate the legs evenly. You don't have to wake up and take care of them overnight.
• Set up your stove top smoker with 1/2 the wood chips. Place the turkey legs on the rack leaving as much space between each leg as possible and not touching the sides.
• Close the lid tightly and place over medium heat for 1 hour.
• Carefully open the top--do not burn yourself--remove legs.
• Put additional wood chips in, making sure when you put the turkey legs back in to have them flipped over from where they were when originally cooked; close smoker.
• Cook for the remaining hour on medium heat.
• Let cool down a bit. Served warm or cold, it is such a treat--the sweet taste of home smoked turkey!

HICKORY SMOKED TURKEY LEGS

Steps:

• To make the sauce: In a saucepan, stir all the sauce ingredients together using a whisk.
• Bring mixture to a boil; lower heat to medium-low and simmer for 20 minutes or so, until the apples are cooked and the sauce is thickened.
• Throw out the cinnamon stick; let sauce cool for 5 minutes.
• Puree sauce in a blender or food processor.
• Equally divide sauce into 2 bowls; set aside.
• To make rub: In a bowl or heavy duty plastic zip-top bag add all the rub ingredients; stir or shake to combine.
• Rinse the turkey legs under cold water and pat dry.
• Coat turkey legs with rub mixture; let stand for 20 minutes at room temperature before grilling.
• Spray or lightly brush turkey legs with vegetable oil.
• Follow your grill manufacturer's instructions for using wood chunks.
• Grill turkey legs over indirect medium heat for approximately 1 hour or until meat thermometer reads 180° when inserted into the thickest part of the meat (baste occasionally with sauce from 1 reserved bowl).
• Take legs off grill and served with sauce from the 2nd reserved bowl.

SMOKED TURKEY LEGS

Steps:

• Several hours before planning on barbecuing, loosen the skin on the turkey legs by running your fingers under it as far as possible without tearing the skin.
• Combine the Worcestershire sauce and the oil. Coat your fingers with the mixture and rub really well into the turkey legs, getting as much as you can under the skin. Sprinkle the Dry Rub over the skin, liberally rubbing into the turkey legs and under the skin. Place the legs in plastic bags and refrigerate.
• Prepare the smoker for barbecuing, bringing the temperature to 200 to 220 degrees F. Remove the turkey legs from the refrigerator and let them sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
• Re-warm the mop mixture over low heat.
• Transfer the turkey legs to the smoker. Cook until the legs are very tender and the juices run clear, about 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Mop the legs at 45-minute intervals in a wood-burning pit, or as appropriate for your style of smoker. Serve the legs hot, to be eaten with your fingers, with a side of barbecue sauce.
• Mix ingredients together in a small bowl.
• Combine the mop ingredients in a small saucepan and warm the mixture over low heat.

SMOKED TURKEY LEGS

Steps:

• Place the water, kosher salt and brown sugar in an 8-quart plastic container and stir until fully dissolved. Add the ice before submerging the turkey legs in the brine. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or up to 12 hours.
• Set up your favorite smoker and add a handful of hardwood chunks. If you have heat control, set it to 150 to 170 degrees F and allow the wood to smoke for approximately 30 minutes.
• While the smoker is heating, drain the legs, pat them dry and arrange them on a rack. Smoke the legs on the rack for 3 hours, rotating the legs halfway through.
• Heat your oven to 350 degrees F. Make 2 pouches out of double-layered heavy-duty tin foil, adding 3 legs and 1/2 cup of chicken stock to each pouch. Braise the legs in their pouches for 1 hour, then carefully drain and reserve the jus.
• Defat the jus, remove the skins and serve the legs alongside the smoky jus.