Turkey Day Heroes - Tested and Approved

Here's what we served during our 2023 Thanksgiving/Holiday Kickoff public tasting. Regretting you walked away without taking your favorite seasoning home? Couldn't make it? No problem! Here's the list, with our impressions.

Snacky Time

  • Traeger's Blackened Cheezits recipe using Blackened Saskatchewan rub. This is the one people text us about when they're still dreaming of it days later.

Turkey

  • Kosmos Turkey Brine - Kept breast meat moist even after a slow smoke.
  • Heath Riles Garlic Jalapeno Rub - Danielle's new favorite
  • Saltlickers Herky Perky (go Hawks!) before smoking, followed by: 
  • Hardcore Carnivore Amplify - Use this finishing dust for extra richness after you slice the turkey. 
  • Traeger Turkey Rub (from the brine kit, with or without pellets)
  • Kosmos Q Kickin' Cajun Wing Dust (Marty's choice. Didn't see that coming!)
  • Traeger Chicken Rub - Danielle's runner up. She's a sucker for citrus.

Sugar Cookie Crust Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

  • Traeger's recipe, omitting pumpkin pie spice and replacing it with an equal amount of Saltlickers' Coco Corazon. 

The Setup

Enjoy the journey to these tasty bites with a Traeger set-it-and-forget-it Thanksgiving setup. 

  • Traeger Ironwood XL
  • Traeger Turkey Pellets
  • Traeger XXL Spatula
  • Traeger Ironwood 885 (We could have easily made the green beans on the Ironwood XL at the same time as the turkey, but we like to let you see different models in action.)
  • Meater+, for precision accuracy and the convenient app that estimates how long your turkey will take to cook.
  • Traeger x MEATER® Wireless Meat Thermometer 2-Pack exclusively work with the Traeger app. Love the ability to know which probe is which. 
  • Pellet sensor