Kansas City Smoked Turkey Breast with Honey Butter
There's something about a smoked turkey breast with a beautiful mahogany-colored exterior that makes you want to grab a knife and start slicing. Add a little hickory smoke, a sweet Kansas City-style barbecue rub, and a rich honey butter finish, and you've got a turkey breast that's just as welcome at a holiday dinner as it is at a weekend barbecue.
Kansas City barbecue is known for its combination of sweetness, savory seasoning, and smoke. That flavor profile works particularly well with turkey breast, which has a mild flavor and very little fat of its own. Revolution Barbecue Kansas City BBQ Rub brings paprika, cane sugar, garlic, onion, chili pepper, and savory spices, giving the turkey a deep reddish-brown exterior with just enough sweetness to complement the hickory.
What makes this recipe especially appealing is the honey butter finish. Rich, salted European-style butter combines with local wildflower honey and the natural juices from the turkey to create a sauce that's sweet, savory, and full of smoky flavor. I prefer locally sourced wildflower honey because its flavor can reflect the flowers and plants the bees forage on, sometimes bringing subtle floral or earthy notes you won't necessarily find in a more standardized blend. Buying from a local beekeeper also gives you a better understanding of where your honey comes from while supporting local producers. The finished turkey has a flavorful barbecue crust, tender slices, and plenty of warm honey butter for dipping.
Hickory-Smoked Kansas City Turkey Breast with Wildflower Honey Butter
8
15 minutes
3 hours 35 minutes
380
American
Main Dish
The first part of this cook is all about developing flavor on the outside of the turkey. Revolution Barbecue Kansas City BBQ Rub contains cane sugar and paprika, which help develop a beautiful reddish-brown exterior as the turkey takes on the hickory smoke. The mustard binder keeps the seasoning in place without adding a noticeable mustard flavor to the finished meat. Removing the skin also allows the seasoning to make direct contact with the meat, creating a flavorful exterior without relying on poultry skin for color or texture.
The honey butter finish serves a different purpose. European-style or grass-fed butter brings richness to the lean turkey breast, while wildflower honey adds sweetness that complements the savory seasoning and hickory smoke. As the butter melts, it combines with the turkey drippings and barbecue rub to create a sauce with a little sweetness, a little salt, and plenty of smoky flavor. Keeping the turkey covered during the final stage of cooking also helps limit moisture loss. Once the turkey has rested and been sliced, dipping each piece into the warm honey butter gives the meat additional richness without overwhelming the flavor developed in the smoker.
Ingredients
Turkey Breast
- 1 (4-pound) boneless turkey breast, skin removed
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- 2 tablespoons Revolution Barbecue Kansas City BBQ Rub
Wildflower Honey Butter
- 2 sticks (1 cup) salted European-style or grass-fed butter, such as Kerrygold, Vital Farms, or Kirkland New Zealand Grass-Fed Butter, cut into 1-tablespoon pats
- 1/4 cup local wildflower honey
Directions
- Preheat the Smoker: Preheat your smoker to 250°F using hickory wood. Allow the smoker to stabilize at the cooking temperature before adding the turkey breast.
- Prepare the Turkey Breast: Remove the turkey breast from its packaging and pat dry with paper towels. If the turkey breast has skin, remove it before seasoning. Trim away any excess loose fat or connective tissue.
- Apply the Mustard Binder: Coat the entire surface of the turkey breast with 1 tablespoon of yellow mustard. Spread it evenly over all sides to create a thin layer that will help the seasoning adhere.
- Season the Turkey: Apply 2 tablespoons of Revolution Barbecue Kansas City BBQ Rub evenly over the entire turkey breast, making sure to coat the top, bottom, and sides.
- Smoke the Turkey Breast: Place the seasoned turkey breast directly on the smoker grates. Smoke at 250°F using hickory wood until the thickest portion of the breast reaches an internal temperature of 145°F, approximately 2 hours. The exterior should develop a rich reddish-brown color as the seasoning takes on the smoke.
- Prepare the Wildflower Honey Butter: While the turkey is smoking, arrange 2 sticks of salted European-style or grass-fed butter, cut into 1-tablespoon pats, across the bottom of a disposable half-size aluminum pan. Pour 1/4 cup of local wildflower honey evenly over the butter.
- Transfer the Turkey to the Pan: Once the turkey breast reaches 145°F, carefully remove it from the smoker and place it directly into the aluminum pan with the butter and honey. Cover the pan tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil.
- Finish Cooking in Honey Butter: Return the covered pan to the smoker and continue cooking at 250°F until the thickest portion of the turkey breast reaches 160°F, approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour. During this stage, the butter will melt and combine with the honey, turkey juices, and barbecue seasoning.
- Flip and Rest the Turkey: Remove the covered pan from the smoker. Carefully lift the foil, watching for hot steam, and flip the turkey breast over in the melted honey butter. Cover the pan again with foil and allow the turkey to rest for 20 minutes. Verify that the thickest portion reaches 165°F during the rest. If it does not, return the turkey to the smoker until it reaches 165°F before serving.
- Slice the Turkey Breast: Transfer the rested turkey breast to a cutting board. Using a sharp carving knife, slice the turkey against the grain into even slices, approximately 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick.
- Dip and Serve: Dip each slice of turkey into the warm honey butter mixture remaining in the aluminum pan, coating both sides before transferring to a serving platter. Serve immediately while the turkey is warm and the honey butter is still melted.