Smoked Turkey Legs with Brine and Dry Rub
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These smoked turkey legs are tender, juicy, and full of smoky flavor. An overnight brine and homemade dry rub keep the meat moist and flavorful while it cooks for about 3 hours.
Smoked Turkey Legs Recipe Snapshot
- Skill Level: Beginner
- Brine Time: 8-12 hours (including overnight brine)
- Smoking Time: 2-3 hours
- Resting Time: 15 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Flavor Profile: Sweet, savory, and smoky
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe: This easy recipe creates tender, juicy turkey legs with a delicious smoky flavor using ordinary ingredients without curing salt, injections, or packaged seasoning.
Why This Recipe Works
- An overnight brine seasons the turkey and helps it stay moist during the long smoking time.
- The homemade dry rub adds sweet, smoky, savory, and slightly spicy flavors.
- Applying the oil and rub under the skin seasons the meat, not just the surface.
- Smoking at 225°F gives the turkey time to develop plenty of wood-smoked flavor.
John and I aren’t usually excited about turkey( I know, don’t judge us), but then a friend told us about the turkey legs they had at a state fair. The idea of smoking juicy, dark-meat turkey legs actually sounded good! Although we have never tried the popular versions served at fairs or Disney, our homemade recipe has become a fall and football-season favorite that John requests every year.
This is also a great recipe for anyone just beginning their smoking journey because the turkey legs are easy to prepare and don’t require an entire day on the smoker. If you love smoked meats, try my Smoked Chicken Legs and Smoked Prime Rib next.
Ingredients and Notes for Easy Smoked Turkey Legs
This makes more then enough brine and rub for 6-8 Turkey legs. The full ingredient list and amounts are in the recipe card below.
Turkey legs: This recipe starts with raw turkey legs, sometimes labeled turkey drumsticks. This is not intended for reheating turkey legs that have already been smoked. Turkey leg size can vary considerably. Larger legs may need more time to reach the final internal temperature.
Brown sugar: Use brown sugar in both the brine and the dry rub. It balances the salt and spices, giving the turkey a light sweet BBQ flavor.
Morton Kosher Salt: This recipe was tested with Morton Coarse Kosher Salt, which is used in both the brine and dry rub. Because salt crystals vary in size, don’t substitute Morton, Diamond Crystal, or table salt in equal amounts.
For the most accurate substitution, measure the salt by weight. Use the following amounts:
- Brine: ½ cup Morton kosher salt, about 115 grams
- Dry rub: 3 tablespoons Morton kosher salt, about 43 grams
If measuring by volume, use approximately:
- Table salt: 6 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon in the brine and 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon in the dry rub
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt: ⅞ cup in the brine and 5 tablespoons plus ½ teaspoon in the dry rub
Chili powder, cayenne, and cumin: These spices give the dry rub warmth and a mild kick. The cayenne doesn’t make the turkey overwhelmingly hot, but you can adjust it to suit your family’s preference.
How to Make Smoked Turkey Legs:
Step 1. Prepare the Brine: Combine the water, brown sugar, kosher salt, whole peppercorns, bay leaves, onion powder, garlic powder, and sage in a saucepan and stir. Boil until the sugar and salt have dissolved completely.
Step 2. Brine the Turkey Legs: Place the turkey legs in a large bowl and cover them with ice. Pour the hot brine over the ice. The ice cools and dilutes the concentrated brine. Make sure the legs are submerged, cover the container, and refrigerate for 8-12 hours.
Step 3. Pre-heat the Smoker: Prepare the smoker and bring it to a steady temperature of approximately 225°F. I have made these turkey legs with cherry, apple, and hickory wood, and they were all delicious. Apple and cherry provide a milder smoke flavor, while hickory gives the turkey a stronger BBQ flavor.
Step 4. Make the Dry Rub and Season the Turkey Legs: Mix the ingredients until the spices are evenly distributed. Remove the turkey legs from the brine and pat dry with a paper towel. Pull the skin down on the legs and coat on all sides with the olive oil and dry rub. Pull the skin back up over the legs and apply olive oil and dry rub to the skin.
Step 5. Smoke the Turkey Legs: Place the turkey legs directly on the smoker grate. Smoke at about 225°F until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the leg reads 175°F. Average-size turkey legs take about 2.5 – 3 hours, but larger legs may take longer. Keep the thermometer probe away from the bone. Touching the bone can produce an inaccurate temperature reading.
Step 6. Rest and Serve: Remove the legs from the heat and tent for 10-15 minutes. Serve as is or with your favorite BBQ sauce.
Tips for making the best turkey legs
Cooking Tips
- Don’t skip the brine. The brine does two things. It flavors the meat and imparts moisture so you will have the juiciest turkey legs in town!
- Apply the rub all over, including under the skin so that every part of the leg is seasoned.
- Try to maintain a temperature of about 225° on your smoker so that the turkey cooks low and slow. This allows the connective tissue to break down and turn to collagen, resulting in more tender legs.
- Cook to 175°F. Poultry is safe to eat at 165°F, but cooking dark meat to 175°F makes it more tender and juicy.
- For crispier skin, transfer the cooked turkey legs to a hot grill for a few minutes per side.
Wood Options
The choice of wood depends on how strong you want the smoke flavor to be.
- Apple provides a mild, lightly sweet smoke flavor.
- Cherry is also mild and can contribute an attractive color.
- Hickory gives the turkey a stronger, more traditional BBQ flavor.
I have used all three successfully. If you are new to smoking turkey, apple or cherry is a good place to start.
Serving Variations
My husband perfers these turkey legs with only the dry rub, but my sone likes them with BBQ sauce. I usually serve the sauce at the table so everyone can have they to their liking.
For sticky BBQ turkey legs, brush them with sauce near the end of cooking and finish them on the grill. Watch them closely because the sugar in the sauce can burn.
Storing and Reheating Smoked Turkey Legs
Store leftover smoked turkey legs in an airtight container or plastic storage bag in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. You can reheat them in the microwave, but the skin may become rubbery.
For better results, lightly rub the turkey legs with olive oil and place them in a baking dish. Cover the dish with foil and reheat them in a 350°F oven for about 30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue heating for approximately 10 minutes to help crisp the skin.
The exact reheating time will depend on the size of the turkey legs. Heat leftovers until the thickest part reaches 165°F.
What to Serve with Smoked Turkey Legs
These turkey legs make a fun main course for game day, a summer cookout, or a casual fall meal. Pair them with Steak Fries for a simple game-day meal. Moist Cornbread or sweet potato cornbread works well with the smoky BBQ flavor, and for a family meal, I like to serve them with Orange Cranberry Chutney and Green Bean and Potato Salad. If you really want to change things up for Thanksgiving, serve them with a side of my Baked Italian Mac and Cheese.
FAQ
Smoke can give cooked poultry a pink color even after it has reached a safe temperature. Do not use color alone to determine doneness. Check the internal temperature with a reliable meat thermometer.
The amount of time it will take to fully cook the legs on your smoker will depend on the size of your legs and the temperature of the smoker. Average size turkey legs smoked at 225°, have taken me about 3 hours.
I always go by internal temperature to tell me if they are done. Use an instant-read thermometer and insert it in the thickest part of the leg. Don’t touch the bone, or your reading will be off. When the internal temperature registers 175°, the legs are ready. Although chicken is safe to eat at 165°, I want to make sure that the meat will be as tender as possible, so I let it go a little higher. Since it is cooking so slowly, those connective tissues will have a little longer to break down.
Not at all. My son loves BBQ sauce, and my husband prefers a dry rub. You can either just serve the BBQ at the table or if you want to make some sticky legs, you can apply some BBQ and put them on the grill for a few minutes.
I love to get your feedback so if you tried this Easy Smoked Turkey Legs recipe or any other recipes on this website, please leave me a comment below. I hope you enjoy our recipes and look forward to hearing from you!
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Smoked Turkey Legs with Brine and Dry Rub
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Ingredients
- 6 Turkey legs
- 4 tbsp Olive oil
Brine
- 8 cups Water
- 1 cup Brown sugar
- ½ cup Kosher salt
- 1½ tsp Black pepper corns whole
- 3 Bay leaves
- 1 tsp Onion powder
- 1 tsp Garlic powder
- ½ tsp Sage
- 8 cups Ice
Dry Rub
- ½ cup Brown sugar
- 3 tbsp Kosher salt
- 1 tbsp Chili powder
- ½ tsp Black pepper
- ½ tp Cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp Thyme dried
- ½ tsp Onion powder
- ½ tsp Garlic powder
- ½ tsp Cumin
Instructions
- Brine
- Combine all of the ingredients except the ice in a sauce pan and stir well. Bring to a boil and cook until all of the sugar and salt has completely dissolved.
- Place the turkey legs in a large container and cover with ice. Pour the hot brine over the ice, cover and refrigerate for 8-12 hours.
- Smoking the Turkey Legs
- Prepare your smoker so that the heat is at about 225°F. I have made this recipe using cherry, apple or hickory wood chips and they were all delicious.
- In a small bowl or a jar, combine all of the ingredients for the dry rub and mix to combine evenly.
- Remove the turkey legs from the brine and pat dry.
- Pull the skin down on the turkey legs and brush with the olive oil, then sprinkle with the dry rub. Pull the skin back up and repeat the process so that the legs are completely coated.
- Place the turkey legs on the smoker and cook until a meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the leg registers 175°. This should take about 2.5 – 3 hours depending on the size of the legs.
- Remove from the smoker and tent for 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Don’t skip the brine. The brine does two things. It flavors the meat and imparts moisture so you will have the juiciest turkey legs in town!
- Apply the rub all over, including under the skin so that every part of the leg is seasoned.
- Try to maintain a temperature of around 225° on your smoker so that the turkey cooks low and slow. This allows the connective tissue to break down and turn to collagen resulting in more tender legs.
should I wrap them in foil at any point?
Hi Lottie, Thanks for reaching out. I have not wrapped them in foil when I have made them. I think if you wanted to, you could wrap them tightly during the last hour of cooking and then fishish them on the grill to crisp up the skin. If you try it let me know how they come out!
If you have a smoker, this one is a must try!