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    Home » Recipes » Rotisserie

    Rotisserie Turkey Wrapped with Bacon

    Published: Nov 15, 2012 · Modified: Nov 19, 2024 by Mike Vrobel · This post may contain affiliate links · 11 Comments

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    Rotisserie Turkey Wrapped with Bacon - because everything tastes better with bacon, especially if you're cooking a big, 20-24 pound turkey.

    Last year, an interviewer asked Christopher Kimball what his favorite turkey was. His answer? Turkey larded with bacon. The moment I heard that answer, I knew what I was cooking for thanksgiving this year.

    A turkey with bacon tied to the breast, in a grill, on a rotisserie spit

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    Jump to:
    • Why Bacon?
    • Will a 20+ pound turkey fit in a Weber with the Rotisserie?
    • How to Rotisserie Grill a Bacon-Wrapped Turkey
    • Equipment
    • Want Juicy White Meat? Cook to 160°F and No Further
    • Rotisserie Turkey Wrapped with Bacon - Recipe
    • Related Posts
    • 💬 Comments

    Why Bacon?

    Bacon? What does bacon do for a turkey? Turkey breast is very lean, so basting the turkey with bacon fat will help keep the breast moist while the turkey cooks. It adds a hint of salty, smoky flavor to the breast, which helps if you are cooking on a gas grill. I think the extra layer of bacon slows down the cooking on the breast, which is a good thing - the drumsticks need extra time to cook. And, not least, the layer of crisped bacon on the skin adds extra flavor to the relatively bland white meat.

    Now, is bacon essential to turkey? No. My favorite turkey is still my Dry Brined with Orange and Spices recipe. But, if you want a subtle improvement to a traditional turkey, bacon on the breast is a nice addition.

    (Of course, if you're the kind of person who wants to blow away your guests, adding a bacon wrap to your turkey is another weapon in your arsenal. Not that I am that kind of cook know anyone like that, oh no, not me.)

    No rotisserie? No worries. It's a great idea on the grill (though I would get a smaller, 12 pound turkey), or in the oven. See the Tips and Tricks section for cooking non-rotisserie cooking instructions.

    Will a 20+ pound turkey fit in a Weber with the Rotisserie?

    From my Rotisserie Grilling the Big Turkey post: The 23 pound turkey fit in both the Weber kettle and the Weber Summit grills. The Weber Kettle had lots of clearance, and I'd guess I could go as large as 30 pounds. The Weber Summit was a close fit. I would guess I could go to 24, maybe 25 pounds, but no larger. For a Weber Genesis, anything larger than 14 pounds would worry me.

    (See my Rotisserie Grilling the Big Turkey post for more details.)

    Ingredients

    • 1 Turkey (20-24 pounds)
    • ½ cup kosher salt (I used Diamond Crystal kosher salt; reduce to 6 tablespoons if using Mortons kosher, because it is denser)
      • (Cut back to 1 tablespoon of salt if the turkey is "enhanced with a natural solution" of more than 6 percent)
    • 6 strips hickory-smoked bacon

    How to Rotisserie Grill a Bacon-Wrapped Turkey

    Dry brine the turkey

    Sprinkle the turkey with the salt, inside and out. Gently work your fingers under the skin on the breast, then rub some of the salt directly onto the breast meat. Refrigerate at least overnight, preferably two to three days. If dry brining more than a day in advance, cover the turkey with plastic wrap until the night before cooking, then remove the plastic wrap to let the skin dry out overnight.
    (If the turkey says "enhanced with a (percentage) solution" on the packaging, cut the salt back to 1 tablespoon. Enhanced means the turkey is pre-brined; you don't want to over salt it.)

    Turkey after dry brining, with bag of ice on the breast.

    Truss and spit the turkey

    Two hours before cooking, remove the turkey from the refrigerator. Truss the turkey, following the instructions in my How to Truss and Spit a Turkey post. If the turkey is larger than 18 pounds, un-fold the turkey wings and tuck them under the trussing string, as shown in my Rotisserie Big Turkey post. Skewer the turkey on the rotisserie spit, securing it with the spit forks. Fill a gallon zip-top bag with ice, and rest the bag on the breast of the turkey to keep the breast colder than the drumsticks.

    Turkey on a rotisserie spit with bacon on its breast

    Wrap the breast in bacon

    Discard the bag full of ice. Lay the bacon over the turkey breast, as shown in the picture above. Tie the bacon down onto the turkey. Loop a length of twine under the turkey and behind the wings, then around the front of the breast to tie down the edge of the bacon strips near the turkey neck. Next, loop a length of twine under the turkey, around the drumsticks, and over the top of the breast to tie down the other edge of the bacon strips. Finally, tie a third loop of twine around the middle of the turkey to hold the bacon down in the middle. Make sure to tie the twine tight at the edges, or the bacon will work loose as the turkey rotates.

    Bacon trussed to the turkey
    Bacon trussed to the turkey
    Trussing the bacon at the neck of the bird - get it tight!
    Trussing the bacon at the neck of the bird - get it tight!

    Set up the grill (Charcoal Grill)

    Set the grill up for indirect medium heat (325°F to 350°F) with the drip pan in the middle of the grill. Set up all the heat in the grill on one side, facing the turkey legs. For my Weber Kettle, I light a charcoal chimney ¾ full of charcoal and wait until it is covered with gray ash. Then I make a U of charcoal, on one side of the grill. I set the pan in the middle of the U, and put the spit on the grill with the breast facing the open part of the U.

    Set up the grill (Gas Grill)

    With a gas grill, if possible, turn on two burners on one side of the grill instead of one burner on each side. On my Weber Summit, I set burner #6 and my smoker burner to high.
    If your gas grill has an an infrared rotisserie burner, start cooking with the infrared burner set to medium. Once the turkey and the bacon are browning well, about a half an hour, shut off the IR burner and let the  turkey finish cooking from the heat in the main part of the grill.

    Turkey ready to rotisserie grill in a gas grill - on the spit with a drip pan underneath.

    Rotisserie cook the turkey

    Put the spit on the grill, start the motor spinning, and make sure the drip pan is centered beneath the turkey. Close the lid and cook until the turkey reaches 160°F in the thickest part of the breast, about 3 hours for a 24 pound bird. If you are cooking on a charcoal grill, add 24 coals to the fire every hour to keep the heat going.

    Rotisserie turkey with bacon, browned and ready to take off the grill

    Serve

    Remove the turkey from the rotisserie spit and remove the twine trussing the turkey. Be very careful - the spit and forks are blazing hot. Let the turkey rest for 15 to 30 minutes, then carve and serve.

    Equipment

    • Grill with Rotisserie attachment (I used a Weber Summit with an infrared rotisserie burner. Here is the current version of my grill.)
    • Aluminum foil drip pan (Get an oval turkey roaster style pan)
    • Butcher's twine
    • Instant Read Thermometer - the key to juicy turkey

    Tips and Tricks

    • No rotisserie? No worries. Set the grill up as described and put the turkey on top of the grill grate over indirect heat. (See my Grilled Turkey (Grilling Basics) recipe.)
    • No grill? No worries. Cook the turkey in a 350°F oven.
    • I used a simple dry brine in this recipe; if you want to use a fancier dry brine with a bacon wrapped turkey, go for it. Try my Dry Brine with Orange and Spices, Cajun Dry Brine, or one of the other dry brines from my book.
    • A drip pan full of bacon fat and turkey drippings is perfect for Rotisserie Pan Potatoes.
    • The bacon will try to work its way loose from the edges of the string. If it does, that's OK. Let it flop around until the heat of the grill has cooked it a bit, about a half an hour, then tear it loose. Eat it, of course - this is a cook's treat.
    • Cooking a smaller turkey? I recommend a 12 pound turkey

    Want Juicy White Meat? Cook to 160°F and No Further

    The trick to juicy turkey is not overcooking the breast. the USDA recommends cooking the turkey to at least 165°F, measured in the deepest part of the breast. This is a little too much for me, so I recommend 160°F...or lower, if you have a precise Instant Read Thermometer and a timer. Read on...

    The USDA recommends 165°F because that's when Salmonella is killed instantly. But, according to their time/temperature tables, at 150°F, salmonella is killed after 3.8 minutes. So, as long as you keep the turkey on the grill for at least 4 minutes after reaching 150°F, the turkey is safe.

    But, 150°F leaves the dark meat a little undercooked for my tastes - dark meat needs to cook to a higher temperature to tenderize it. So, 160°F is my compromise. (Or, 155°F if I ice the breast in my bird.)

    Now, my Samoan Attorney recommends that I say: if you are cooking for infants, or anyone with a compromised immune system, follow the USDA guidelines and cook to 165°F.

    For more information, see my Turkey Temperature, or the 150°F question post.

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    Rotisserie Turkey Wrapped with Bacon - Recipe


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    • Author: Mike Vrobel
    • Total Time: 27 hours
    • Yield: 24 servings 1x
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    Description

    Rotisserie Turkey Wrapped with Bacon - because everything tastes better with bacon, especially if you're cooking a big, 20-24 pound turkey.


    Ingredients

    Scale
    • 20-24 pound Turkey
    • ½ cup kosher salt (I used Diamond Crystal kosher salt; reduce to 6 tablespoons if using Mortons kosher, because it is denser)
      • (Cut back to 1 tablespoon of salt if the turkey is "enhanced with a natural solution" of more than 6 percent)
    • 6 strips hickory-smoked bacon

    Instructions

    1. Dry brine the turkey: Sprinkle the turkey with the salt, inside and out. Gently work your fingers under the skin on the breast, then rub some of the salt directly onto the breast meat. Refrigerate at least overnight, preferably two to three days. If dry brining more than a day in advance, cover the turkey with plastic wrap until the night before cooking, then remove the plastic wrap to let the skin dry out overnight.
      (If the turkey says "enhanced with a (percentage) solution" on the packaging, cut the salt back to 1 tablespoon. Enhanced means the turkey is pre-brined; you don't want to over salt it.)
    2. Truss and Spit the turkey: Two hours before cooking, remove the turkey from the refrigerator. Truss the turkey, following the instructions in my How to Truss and Spit a Turkey post. If the turkey is larger than 18 pounds, un-fold the turkey wings and tuck them under the trussing string, as shown in my Rotisserie Big Turkey post. Skewer the turkey on the rotisserie spit, securing it with the spit forks. Fill a gallon zip-top bag with ice, and rest the bag on the breast of the turkey to keep the breast colder than the drumsticks.
    3. Wrap the breast in bacon: When you are ready to cook discard the bag full of ice. Lay the bacon over the turkey breast, as shown in the picture above. Tie the bacon down onto the turkey. Loop a length of twine under the turkey and behind the wings, then around the front of the breast to tie down the edge of the bacon strips near the turkey neck. Next, loop a length of twine under the turkey, around the drumsticks, and over the top of the breast to tie down the other edge of the bacon strips. Finally, tie a third loop of twine around the middle of the turkey to hold the bacon down in the middle. Make sure to tie the twine tight at the edges, or the bacon will work loose as the turkey rotates.
    4. Set up the grill (Charcoal Grill): Set the grill up for indirect medium heat (325°F to 350°F) with the drip pan in the middle of the grill. Set up all the heat in the grill on one side, facing the turkey legs. For my Weber Kettle, I light a charcoal chimney ¾ full of charcoal and wait until it is covered with gray ash. Then I make a U of charcoal, on one side of the grill. I set the pan in the middle of the U, and put the spit on the grill with the breast facing the open part of the U.
    5. OR, Set up the grill (Gas Grill): With a gas grill, if possible, turn on two burners on one side of the grill instead of one burner on each side. On my Weber Summit, I set burner #6 and my smoker burner to high.
      If your gas grill has an an infrared rotisserie burner, start cooking with the infrared burner set to medium. Once the turkey and the bacon are browning well, about a half an hour, shut off the IR burner and let the  turkey finish cooking from the heat in the main part of the grill.
    6. Rotisserie grill the turkey to 160°F in the breast (about 3 hours): Put the spit on the grill, start the motor spinning, and make sure the drip pan is centered beneath the turkey. Close the lid and cook until the turkey reaches 160°F in the thickest part of the breast, about 3 hours for a 24 pound bird. If you are cooking on a charcoal grill, add 24 coals to the fire every hour to keep the heat going.
    7. Serve: Remove the turkey from the rotisserie spit and remove the twine trussing the turkey. Be very careful - the spit and forks are blazing hot. Let the turkey rest for 15 to 30 minutes, then carve and serve. Enjoy!

     

    Equipment

    Weber Summit

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    Weber Performer

    Weber Kettle

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    • Prep Time: 1 day
    • Cook Time: 3 hours
    • Category: Sunday Dinner
    • Method: Rotisserie
    • Cuisine: American

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    Related Posts

    Rotisserie Turkey - The Big Turkey
    Rotisserie Turkey, Dry Brined with Orange and Spices
    Rotisserie Turkey with Cajun Dry Brine
    Rotisserie Turkey Breast with Basic Dry Brine
    Rotisserie Turkey Breast with Honey Bourbon Glaze
    Click here for my other rotisserie recipes


    Check out my cookbook, Rotisserie Grilling.

    Everything you could ask about the rotisserie,
    plus 50 (mostly) new recipes to get you cooking.

    It's a Kindle e-book, so you can download it and start reading immediately!


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    Comments

    1. stanley zon says

      November 20, 2016 at 1:05 pm

      was going to do this but, put bacon strips under breast skin in between meat. what are your thoughts?

      Reply
      • Mike V says

        November 20, 2016 at 2:27 pm

        The bacon's not going to crisp up under there - but it will baste the breast in bacon fat.

        Reply
    2. Rod says

      November 23, 2015 at 7:09 pm

      I am trying this for Thanksgiving this year and have been working to make sure to time it right for when the guest arrive. I always understood that at 350F it was about 20min per lb to fully cook a turkey. How did the 24lb turkey cook so quickly being done in only 3 hrs? My turkey is just shy of 14lbs. About how long should I expect it to take?

      Reply
      • Mike V says

        November 23, 2015 at 7:20 pm

        A 14 pound turkey will take about 2 1/2 hours. Rotisserie cooking is faster than oven cooking; you get a convection effect from the rotisserie, which transfers heat faster. Now, that said, use a meat thermometer to make sure the turkey is done - it should register 160°F in the deepest part of the breast.

        Reply
        • Rod says

          November 24, 2015 at 5:34 am

          Thanks for the quick response!!!! We will see how things go on Thursday. Happy Thanksgiving!!!

          Reply
    3. Garry says

      November 06, 2015 at 4:34 am

      I like the idea of using bacon to add flavor and slow the cooking of the turkey breast. Did the skin on the turkey beneath the bacon also brown?

      Reply
      • Mike V says

        November 06, 2015 at 7:01 am

        Not as much as usual with a rotisserie turkey, but it did brown some.

        Reply
    4. Mike V @ DadCooksDinner says

      November 17, 2012 at 6:21 pm

      My guess is it will work - it didn't change the cooking time of my gas grill recipe. With a 23 pound turkey, and a three hour cooking time, the bacon was crisp all the way through.

      Reply
    5. stacey kaphan says

      November 17, 2012 at 6:15 pm

      I have a set it and forget it rotisserie that I use every year and want to add bacon, will it change the cook time in this machine. Also does the bacon crisp in both sides doing it this way

      Reply
    6. Mike V @ DadCooksDinner says

      November 16, 2012 at 11:16 am

      Ha!

      Reply
    7. Doug Reichard says

      November 15, 2012 at 2:47 pm

      you had me at bacon

      Reply

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    Welcome to Dad Cooks Dinner!

    I'm Mike Vrobel, a dad who cooks dinner every night. I'm an enthusiastic home cook, and I write about pressure cooking, rotisserie grilling, and other food topics that grab my attention.

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