In partnership with Safeway
This year for Thanksgiving, we’re going to do do turkeys two ways (smoked and smoked-fried) and with the help of Safeway, we’re going to be able to feed a crowd for a little less. This recipe for smoked cajun turkey on the Traeger takes the memorable Traeger turkey that you love and amps it up a bit with cajun seasoning and injection. And because we’re picking up all our Thanksgiving groceries at Safeway, they’re throwing in the turkey for free!*
MANY VARIATIONS ON THE ICONIC PROTEIN
Throughout my blog, you’ll see lots of recipes for turkey on the Traeger. Check out the list below for links to a lot of those recipes. From smoked turkey breast to turkey wings cooked like chicken wings to traditional spatchcocked turkeys, the options are limitless.
Regardless of how you season it, and how it’s cooked, you can end up with tender, moist and juicy turkey with a few simple steps. Of course, I recommend cooking it on the Traeger for best results, but many of these tips are applicable in the oven, too.
CAJUN-SEASONED SMOKED TURKEY
This year, we wanted to add some spice to our Thanksgiving spread and are adding a smoked cajun turkey to the menu. First dry brined in a mixture of dry brine seasoning (heavy on salt and herbs) and O Organics Cajun Seasoning, this turkey was later smoked on our Traeger for about 3 hours until cooked through, tender and delicious.
Oh and don’t forget the cajun butter injection that preceded the smoking– providing another layer of flavor and moisture that makes this bird the first to be gobbled up on Thanksgiving day.
SAFEWAY MAKES IT EASY
Like with most things these days, the easiest approach is our family’s favorite. The fewer times we have to pull toddlers out of car seats to go into the store, the better. So we have continued to love and appreciate our Safeway for U membership which includes the ability to do DriveUp & Go and have our groceries plopped in the back of the car. It cuts down on melting toddlers and gives us more time to spend as a family. And this time of year, that’s key!
When putting together our shopping list for Thanksgiving, it was easy to select all the things we’d need– from appetizers to dessert ingredients– knowing that a personal shopper in the store would hand-pick the best selection for us.
FREE TURKEYS AT SAFEWAY
Right now, Safeway is offering a free Frozen Honeysuckle White turkey-any size-with a grocery purchase of $150 or more in the same transaction. And if you’ve been grocery shopping lately (especially for a family), spending that much to get a free turkey is super easy. So we put together our order in the Safeway app, clipped the Free Turkey offer in the deals gallery, and clicked “submit” to take advantage of this incredible promo. But hurry, this deal only lasts through November 23rd, and you have to be a Safeway for U member to redeem.
A few hours later, our groceries were loaded into the back of the car and we were off on our way to capitalize on family time with
A few hours later, our groceries were loaded into the back of the car with Safeway’s Drive Up & Go program, and we were off on our way to capitalize on family time with extra Safeway for U savings in our pocket.
HOW MUCH TURKEY TO FEED A CROWD
The general rule is to budget about 1.5 pounds of bird per guest at your dinner. This includes the bones– so the actual meat may be closer to 8-10 ounces. As recommended in a prior post, I encourage you to get a couple smaller turkeys if you’re feeing a crowd, as your smaller turkeys will cook more quickly and evenly, resulting in turkey that everyone loves.
So if you’re feeding a group of 15 for thanksgiving, I recommend getting two 12-14 pound birds which will give you plenty to satiate everyone’s appetites and hopefully a little extra for leftovers. Because leftover smoked cajun turkey will be one of your new favorite lunch additions in the week to come!
HOW TO INJECT A SMOKED CAJUN TURKEY?
Injecting a bird is a great technique to add some additional flavor and moisture to your turkey. Because we’re cooking the turkey at 325* in this recipe, it gets less smoke flavor and more convection-cooking, resulting in more of a roasted bird than a smoked bird.
Cajun turkey injection tools Inject with cajun butter
To add more flavor to the bird, I recommend making an infused butter mixture with melted Lucerne sweet cream butter and cajun seasoning. Then, use a meat injector to carefully push the butter deep into the flesh of the bird. Don’t move too quickly during this process, or the butter may start leaking back out of the bird. But if you push the butter slowly into the bird, remove the needle slowly and inject into a bird fresh out of the fridge, the butter will cool enough to not run back out.
PRIMARY INGREDIENTS
- Whole frozen turkey (we got our Honeysuckle turkey from Safeway)
- Dry brine (like this one, from Safeway)
- O Organics Cajun Seasoning
- Lucerne Salted Sweet Cream Butter
WHY SMOKING CAJUN TURKEY ON THE TRAEGER WORKS
Any turkey cooked on the Traeger is bound to turn out delicious. But this smoked cajun turkey on the Traeger takes the tasty turkey option up a notch. Having been dry brined with such a flavorful seasoning, the meat of the bird is super tender, juicy and moist. And the skin crisps up terrifiicly.
In addition to the magic of a dry brine on a turkey, we melted a bunch of Lucerne sweet cream butter and stirred in more cajun seasoning to use as an injection in the bird. The resulting meat has an extra amped up flavor from the cajun seasoning getting deep into the meat and the butter ensures that the turkey is basted from the inside out for perfect results.
I love cooking turkeys on the Traeger because it’s quick, easy and so delicious. In about 3 hours, you can have a perfect juicy turkey hot off the grill and on to your table. And nobody will be asking for extra gravy to make up for the dry meat of the turkeys of your past.
STEP-BY-STEP
- 5 days before you plan to serve the turkey, remove it from the freezer and place it in the fridge on a cookie sheet.
- Allow the turkey to defrost for at least 3 days.
- 24 hours before serving, remove the turkey from the packaging and discard the neck and giblets inside.
- Remove any residual ice in the cavity.
- In a bowl, combine a 50/50 mixture of dry brine seasoning and O Organics Cajun Seasoning.
- Stir the mixture well to blend.
- Place the turkey on a wire rack over a cookie sheet.
- Season the bird all over with a heavy layer of the seasoning blend.
- Sprinkle some seasoning in the cavity as well.
- Place the seasoned turkey, uncovered, in the fridge for at least 12 hours and up to 18.
- Preheat your Traeger grill to 325*.
- Remove the turkey from the fridge.
- In a measuring cup, melt the butter and then stir in the cajun seasoning.
- Using a meat injector, inject the seasoned butter in 4-6 places throughout the turkey (being sure to get the breasts, thighs and drumsticks).
- Season the turkey with a little more cajun seasoning.
- Transfer the turkey to the grill and insert a wireless thermometer probe in the thickest part of the breast.
- Close the lid and cook the turkey until the thermometer reads 160*– about 3 hours.
- Crank up the heat of the grill to 400* for the last 10 minutes of the cook to crisp up the skin.
- Remove the smoked cajun turkey from the grill and place on a cutting board.
- Tent loosely with foil and allow to rest at least 30 minutes.
- Using a sharp heavy knife, carve the turkey, slice the breast meat and serve your smoked cajun turkey while still hot.
ALTERNATE RECIPES/PRODUCT LINKS
Here are some other turkey recipes to keep your Thanksgiving inspiration flowing:
- Smoked-Fried Turkey & Sides
- Barbecued Turkey Drumsticks
- Smoked Turkey Breast
- Spatchcocked Turkey
- Dry Brined Turkey
- Green Bean Casserole
- Holiday Sides
- There is also a great Traegered turkey recipe in my cookbook!
Products used in this cook:
- Safeway Deals & Delivery App
- Safeway DriveUp & Go
- Traeger Timberline XL
- Meater wireless thermometer
- Turkey injector
Did you make this recipe?
I’d love to know how it turned out!
Leave a review below or snap a photo,
share it on Instagram and tag me at @ThisJewCanQue
Smoked Cajun Turkey on the Traeger
Equipment
- Wire rack and cookie sheet
- Traeger grill
- Turkey injector
- Microwave proof measuring cup
- Knife and cutting board
- Wireless thermometer
Ingredients
- Whole frozen turkey 12-16 pounds (we got our Honeysuckle turkey from Safeway)
- 2 cups dry brine like this one, from Safeway
- 1 cup O Organics Cajun Seasoning
- 1/2 pound Lucerne Salted Sweet Cream Butter
Instructions
- 5 days before you plan to serve the turkey, remove it from the freezer and place it in the fridge on a cookie sheet.
- Allow the turkey to defrost for at least 3 days.
- 24 hours before serving, remove the turkey from the packaging and discard the neck and giblets inside.
- Remove any residual ice in the cavity.
- In a bowl, combine a 50/50 mixture of dry brine seasoning and O Organics Cajun Seasoning.
- Stir the mixture well to blend.
- Place the turkey on a wire rack over a cookie sheet.
- Season the bird all over with a heavy layer of the seasoning blend.
- Sprinkle some seasoning in the cavity as well.
- Place the seasoned turkey, uncovered, in the fridge for at least 12 hours and up to 18.
- Preheat your Traeger grill to 325*.
- Remove the turkey from the fridge.
- In a measuring cup, melt the butter and then stir in the cajun seasoning.
- Using a meat injector, inject the seasoned butter in 4-6 places throughout the turkey (being sure to get the breasts, thighs and drumsticks).
- Season the turkey with a little more cajun seasoning.
- Transfer the turkey to the grill and insert a wireless thermometer probe in the thickest part of the breast.
- Close the lid and cook the turkey until the thermometer reads 160*– about 3 hours.
- Crank up the heat of the grill to 400* for the last 10 minutes of the cook to crisp up the skin.
- Remove the smoked cajun turkey from the grill and place on a cutting board.
- Tent loosely with foil and allow to rest at least 30 minutes.
- Using a sharp heavy knife, carve the turkey, slice the breast meat and serve your smoked cajun turkey while still hot.
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