In partnership with Meater
As the holiday season quickly approaches (it’s cool and misty here in Colorado today– it feels like fall!), now is the perfect time to get your holiday menus in order. In our house, it’s the season when turkey is on the repeat and smoking up a perfect turkey breast on the Traeger is easy and fun.
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HOLIDAYS ARE COMING, IS TURKEY ON THE MENU?
Regardless of your family’s holiday traditions, I suspect that a turkey is the main feature of one holiday meal each year. So often, turkey is dry, flavorless, and really just a good vessel for gravy. That was the case in our family for as long as I can remember– turkey was more of an obligation than an excitement.
But with the introduction of a Traeger grill in our life, turkey has taken on a new evolution at our house and it’s delicious and often-requested. Indeed, I often suggest that a turkey is a great way for a Traeger newbie to flex their grilling muscles.
Later this month I’ll share about other ways to cook turkey on the Traeger. But today, we’re diving into turkey breasts on the Traeger. Stick with me… it’ll be worth i!
NOT TYPICAL SMOKED TURKEY BREAST
Turkey on the Traeger is anything but typical. Especially when you take the time to do a few things to your turkey before cooking it (I’m talking to you, dry brine), you are almost guaranteed to come out with juicy and delicious results. And moist turkey. There. I said it. Moist turkey. Not an oxymoron and perhaps the only appropriate time to use the M word!
TRAEGER VS OVEN
One of the great things about cooking smoked turkey breasts in the Traeger is that the convection-style cooking of the grill ensures even, consistent heat throughout the cook. You won’t end up with burned skin that’s too close to the heat source. You won’t have fluctuations in the temperature of the cooking vessel and the circular motion of the heat keeps things super consistent.
Indeed, even if you’re not a smoked turkey person, a turkey on the Traeger is going to be a good experience. If you cook at a temperature of 325* or higher, the amount of smoke produced by the Traeger is minimal and therefore the smoke flavor will be limited. Of course, if you prefer some wood-fired flavor in your turkey, lower the temperature and allow the turkey to bathe in Traeger’s signature pellet blends– the turkey pellet blend is my personal favorite.
WHOLE TURKEY VS BREAST
In this recipe, we use two turkey breasts, which come off of a whole, bone-in turkey breast you can buy at the store. Later this month, we’ll share with you how to cook a whole turkey (in a number of different ways). And we have turkey wings and turkey drumsticks to share with you soon, too.
But for this, we went with a bone-in turkey breast which was available at the store in September. Unless you’re on the east coast, we’ve found that finding whole frozen turkeys in-store year-round is challenging if not impossible. But often you can find bone-in turkey breasts in the frozen department and it’s an efficient and tasty way to get your turkey fix.
Give yourself about 15 minutes of prep time to get the breasts off the bone. And save the bone for broth, if you’d like.
SMOKING TURKEY BREAST PERFECTLY WITH THE MEATER
Using the Meater thermometer system in this cook is what makes it so easy and so delicious. By inserting the thermometer probe from the beginning, setting the desired temperature (based on the guidance from the app) and monitoring the cook on your phone, you are nearly guaranteed juicy and tender turkey breast. I can’t emphasize enough how important a good thermometer is for achieving a great cook like this, and Meater makes it easy!
PRIMARY INGREDIENTS
- Bone in turkey breast
- Seasoning of your choice (we used Smoke Junkie)
- Butter
EQUIPMENT FOR SMOKED TURKEY BREASTS ON THE TRAEGER
- Sharp boning or paring knife
- Cutting board
- Twine
- Aluminum foil
WHY SMOKING TURKEY BREAST ON THE TRAEGER WORKS
As mentioned before, cooking dishes for the holiday is both fun and rewarding. People are consistently impressed to find out that whatever you’re serving has been whipped up on the grill. And the slight hint of wood-fired flavor is an added bonus. Not to mention, outdoor cooking cuts down on the mess inside, keeps the counters and ovens clean and is just plain fun.
We love to cook on our Traeger Grills year-round, with everything from french toast for breakfast to apple pie for dessert, and plenty of meats in between.
With turkey, the convection cooking of the Traeger allows the meat to stay juicy and tender and you end up with amazing results. Give this smoked turkey breasts on the Traeger a try!
STEP-BY-STEP
- Defrost your turkey breast in the fridge until fully defrosted (usually a couple days)
- Prep your work space with a big cutting board, a cookie sheet and your sharp knife
- Unwrap the turkey breast and pat it dry with a paper towel
- Flip the turkey upside down (cavity side up) and using the sharp knife, begin cutting along the bone on one side of the carcass
- Keep your cuts as close to the bone as possible, keeping the most meat intact
- Continue down one side of the carcass until you’ve reached the breast bone
- At this point, you can cut the breast off the bone entirely, or leave it attached while you cut the other side
- Repeat with the second side of the breast
- Once both breasts are mostly removed from the bone, cut along the breast bone to remove the two halves
- If you’re able, you should have two breasts intact, along with the skin, and no bones in sight
- You have three different ways to prepare the turkey breasts from here
- 1) Bring the two breasts together and using the kitchen twine, tie them back together with the skin intact. You’ll end up with a football-shaped/sized turkey breast roast
- 2) Separate the two breasts and remove the skin. You can cook them, untied, straight on the grill
- 3) Separate the two breasts and leave the skin intact. Using kitchen twine, tie up the individual breasts into a bundle, somewhat pumpkin-shaped.
- Once you’ve prepped your turkey breasts, preheat your Traeger Grill to 275*
- Season the turkey generously with the seasoning of your choice
- Allow the meat to sweat for about 15 minutes while your grill gets hot
- Place the turkey directly on the grill grates and close the lid
- Allow to cook for about 90 minutes, until the roast develops a great, rich color
- Arrange two layers of aluminum foil on a cutting board
- Arrange 4 tabs of butter on the foil
- Then place the par-smoked turkey atop the butter and put 4 more tabs of butter atop the meat
- Close up tightly in the foil and return to the Traeger to continue cooking
- Once the meat has reached an internal temperature of 165*, carefully remove the foil-wrapped breasts from the grill
- Allow to cool for about 20 minutes so they’re easier to handle
- Then remove the Meater thermometer and slice
- For thin-sliced deli-style smoked turkey breasts, refrigerate the cooked turkey in an airtight container for at least 24 hours. Then slice thinly using a sharp knife for a deli slicer
- Enjoy!
Turkey breasts deboned and prepped 
Seasoned turkey breasts with Meater Thermometer 
Turkey breasts on the Traeger
RECIPES RELATED TO TURKEY ON THE TRAEGER
- There is a great turkey recipe in my cookbook, which you can pick up here.
- I also love this turkey recipe, which is on my website.
Products used in this cook:
- For this recipe, we used the Meater thermometer system to ensure that we had a perfectly cooked chicken as the start of our dish.Some of the features I love about the Meater:
- Longer Range: Bluetooth to WiFi range extension built-in up to 165ft. Stand-Alone Mode: Cook without the use of your smart phone.
- Multiple Probes: Dual temperature sensors in each probe can monitor internal meat temperature up to 212°F and ambient / external temperature up to 527°F simultaneously.
- Guided Cook System: Walks you through every step of the cooking process to guarantee perfect and consistent results. You can also set up custom alerts / notifications based on temperature and/or time.
- Advanced Estimator Algorithm: Estimates how long to cook and rest your food to help plan your meal and manage your time.
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 Turkey Breast on the Traeger
Equipment
- Sharp boning or paring knife
- Cutting board
- Twine
- Aluminum foil
- Traeger grill
Ingredients
- 1 whole bone in turkey breast
- ½ cup seasoning of your choice we used Smoke Junkie
- 1 stick of butter
Instructions
- Defrost your turkey breast in the fridge until fully defrosted (usually a couple days)
- Prep your work space with a big cutting board, a cookie sheet and your sharp knife
- Unwrap the turkey breast and pat it dry with a paper towel
- Flip the turkey upside down (cavity side up) and using the sharp knife, begin cutting along the bone on one side of the carcass
- Keep your cuts as close to the bone as possible, keeping the most meat intact
- Continue down one side of the carcass until you’ve reached the breast bone
- At this point, you can cut the breast off the bone entirely, or leave it attached while you cut the other side
- Repeat with the second side of the breast
- Once both breasts are mostly removed from the bone, cut along the breast bone to remove the two halves
- If you’re able, you should have two breasts intact, along with the skin, and no bones in sight
- You have three different ways to prepare the turkey breasts from here
- Bring the two breasts together and using the kitchen twine, tie them back together with the skin intact. You’ll end up with a football-shaped/sized turkey breast roast
- Separate the two breasts and remove the skin. You can cook them, untied, straight on the grill
- Separate the two breasts and leave the skin intact. Using kitchen twine, tie up the individual breasts into a bundle, somewhat pumpkin-shaped.
- Once you’ve prepped your turkey breasts, preheat your Traeger Grill to 275*
- Season the turkey generously with the seasoning of your choice
- Allow the meat to sweat for about 15 minutes while your grill gets hot
- Place the turkey directly on the grill grates and close the lid
- Allow to cook for about 90 minutes, until the roast develops a great, rich color
- Arrange two layers of aluminum foil on a cutting board
- Arrange 4 tabs of butter on the foil
- Then place the par-smoked turkey atop the butter and put 4 more tabs of butter atop the meat
- Close up tightly in the foil and return to the Traeger to continue cooking
- Once the meat has reached an internal temperature of 165*, carefully remove the foil-wrapped breasts from the grill
- Allow to cool for about 20 minutes so they’re easier to handle
- Then remove the Meater thermometer and slice
- For thin-sliced deli-style turkey, refrigerate the cooked turkey in an airtight container for at least 24 hours. Then slice thinly using a sharp knife for a deli slicer
- Enjoy!
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