Smoked turkey thighs on a pellet grill are one of the most forgiving smokes you can do, and the results are hard to argue with. Bone-in, skin-on thighs hold up well at 225°F, and the dark meat stays juicy and tender as it cooks. A homemade dry rub with brown sugar, paprika, and roasted garlic adds plenty of flavor, while the skin gets nice and crispy - all with way less effort than you'd expect.
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Perfect for a Smaller Holiday Dinner
The fat in dark meat helps keep turkey thighs juicy throughout the cook, so there's very little room for error, even if this is your first time smoking turkey. I've found that pulling them at 175°F and letting them rest for 10 to 15 minutes gives me the juiciest results.
Turkey thighs are also a great option when you want smoked turkey without cooking a whole bird, especially for a smaller Thanksgiving dinner.
One of my favorite ways to use leftovers is to shred the turkey and serve it on Grandma's Air Buns with Fermented Cranberries or my Whole30 Cranberry Sauce or 3 Ingredient Cranberry Sauce for easy turkey sliders.
If you're looking for more pellet grill recipes to round out your next cookout, my Smoked Boneless Chicken Thighs and Smoked Chicken Wings next.
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Why I Love These Smoked Turkey Thighs
- Juicy dark meat. Turkey thighs are much more forgiving than leaner cuts of turkey and stay juicy as they smoke.
- Great for a smaller Thanksgiving. You get smoked turkey without having to cook a whole bird.
- Perfect for meal prep. Smoke several thighs at once, then use the meat for lunches, dinners, sandwiches, or turkey sliders throughout the week.
Ingredients You'll Need
- Turkey thighs. I use bone-in, skin-on turkey thighs for this recipe. You can use skinless turkey thighs as well.
- Olive oil. This helps the dry rub stick to the turkey and promotes browning. You can also use melted butter or avocado oil.
- Turkey dry rub. This consists of brown sugar, garlic powder, black pepper, onion powder, paprika, Roasted Garlic and Peppers seasoning, chili powder, and seasoning salt. My Homemade Smoked Turkey Rub also tastes great on these turkey thighs. Feel free to use your favorite turkey rub, chicken rub, or BBQ rub.
See the printable recipe card for exact measurements and a full list of ingredients.
How to Smoke Turkey Thighs on Pellet Grill
- Preheat your smoker to 225 degrees F.
- Combine the ingredients for the dry rub in a small bowl.
- Dry the turkey thighs with a paper towel. Apply olive oil to the entire outside of the turkey thighs.
- Sprinkle the dry turkey rub liberally over the entire turkey thigh. Cover the top, bottom, and sides. Press the rub in slightly with your fingers.
- Place the turkey thighs directly on the cooking grates of the preheated smoker, leaving some space between each thigh. Insert a digital meat thermometer probe into the thickest part of the thigh, but not touching the bone.
- Smoke turkey thighs until the internal temperature of the turkey in the thickest part reaches 175 degrees F. This will take approximately 2 hours.
- When done, remove the turkey thighs from the smoker and let them rest for 10-15 minutes. You can cover them with aluminum foil to keep them warm.
- Serve with your favorite barbecue sauce or Cranberry Sauce.
Variations
- Spicy - Add cayenne pepper, chili pepper flakes, or Cajun seasoning to the spice rub.
- Sweet - Add extra brown sugar to the spice rub, or brush the thighs with maple syrup at the end of cooking time.
- Brine - Brine in my Fresh Herb Citrus Turkey Brine before smoking.
Related Recipes: Air Fryer Turkey Thighs, Air Fryer Teriyaki Chicken Thighs, and Air Fryer Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs.
Equipment
Smoker: I used my Pit Boss pellet grill, but you can use a Traeger pellet smoker or electric smoker.
Wood pellets: Hickory, Mesquite, Signature Blend, Applewood, and Cherry wood pellets are all excellent options for these turkey thighs.
Instant-read thermometer: Use it to check the turkey thighs in the thickest part without touching the bone.
Storage
Refrigerator: Leftover turkey thighs can be stored in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
Freezer: Leftover turkey thighs can be frozen for up to 3 months in an airtight container or Ziploc bag. Remove the meat from the bone before freezing.
What to Serve with Smoked Turkey Thighs
I love to serve these with Oven-Roasted Potatoes, Ruth's Chris Sweet Potato Casserole, Air Fryer Green Beans, and homemade Whole30 Cranberry Sauce.
You can also serve them with Twice Baked Mashed Potatoes, Smoked Baked Beans, Campbells Classic Green Bean Casserole, Air Fryer Carrots, Traeger Smoked Corn, and Homemade Stuffing.
Recipe Tips
- Place the turkey thighs skin-side up on the smoker racks.
- If you want crispier skin, increase the pellet grill temperature to 350°F for a few minutes at the end of the cook.
- Cook by temperature, not by time.
FAQs
There are approximately 245 calories in each smoked turkey thigh.
Smoking turkey thighs on a pellet grill gives them rich smoky flavor while keeping the dark meat juicy and tender.
You can cook turkey thighs on any smoker, but you may need to adjust the cooking time depending on how hot your smoker cooks.
Turkey is safe to eat when it reaches a minimum internal temperature of 165°F. However, I prefer to cook turkey thighs to 175°F because dark meat has more connective tissue and benefits from the extra cooking time.
More Smoked Turkey Recipes
If you love these turkey thighs, you'll also want to try my:
- How to Smoke a Turkey on a Pellet Grill
- Smoked Turkey Legs
- Smoked Turkey Breast without Brine
- Smoked Turkey Roast
- Smoked Spatchcock Turkey
- How to Smoke a Turkey in an Electric Smoker
- Have leftovers? Use the bones and scraps to make my Smoked Turkey Stock.
Printable Recipe
Smoked Turkey Thighs
Ingredients
- 3-4 turkey thighs bone-in, skin-on
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 tablespoon homemade dry rub recipe below
Homemade turkey rub
- 1¼ tablespoon brown sugar
- ⅔ tablespoon garlic powder
- ⅔ tablespoon Roasted Garlic and Peppers seasoning a Club House seasoning
- ⅔ teaspoon paprika
- ⅔ teaspoon onion powder
- ⅓ teaspoon chili powder
- ⅓ teaspoon seasoning salt
- ⅙ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat your smoker to 225℉.
- Mix the ingredients for the dry rub in a small bowl.
- Dry the turkey thighs with a paper towel. Apply olive oil to the entire outside of the turkey thighs. Sprinkle the dry rub on the turkey thighs, covering the top, bottom, and sides.
- Place turkey thighs directly on the cooking grates of the preheated smoker. Insert a digital meat thermometer probe into the thickest part of the thigh, but not touching the bone.
- Smoke turkey thighs at 225℉ until the internal temperature of the turkey in the thickest part reaches 175 degrees F. This will take approximately 2 hours.
- Remove the turkey thighs from the smoker, and let them rest for 10-15 minutes before serving.
- Serve with your favorite barbecue sauce or cranberry sauce.
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Notes
- Place the turkey thighs skin-side up on the smoker racks.
- If you want your turkey skin even crispier, turn up the heat on your pellet grill to 350 degrees F for a few minutes at the end of cooking time to make the skin super crispy.
- Cook by temperature, not by time.
Nutrition
The provided nutrition information is automatically calculated. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
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Julie says
They turned out delicious. I made them to make cranberry turkey sandwiches. Those flavors will be magical.
Jeri Walker says
Thanks Julie! Cranberry turkey sandwiches with smoked turkey thighs sound amazing! What a perfect combo! Thanks for sharing! 🙂