Smoked Bacon Wrapped Turkey Breast Stuffed with Spinach and Cheese
This is my smoked bacon wrapped turkey breast. It’s a 4 lb boneless turkey breast, butterflied and stuffed with cream cheese, mozzarella and spinach, then closed up and wrapped in a bacon weave. We smoke it at 300°F with hickory until it’s 160°F in the middle, then rest it on cubed butter and honey for 10 minutes under foil. That takes it to 165°F and leaves you with honey butter to pour over the sliced turkey. I did not roll this turkey breast. I cut it, opened it up, filled one side and folded the other side over, so when you slice it you get turkey, stuffing and bacon like a sandwich. It’s a great option if you don’t want to cook a whole turkey this Thanksgiving. If you just want the breast and the hot honey, check out my Smoked Turkey Breast.
Quick Look: Smoked Bacon Wrapped Turkey Breast
- Method: Butterfly the breast and season with Cajun. Stuff with cream cheese, mozzarella and spinach. Close it, wrap it in a bacon weave, secure with toothpicks. Smoke over hickory until 160°F in the middle. Rest on honey and butter for 10 minutes under foil
- Smoker temp: 300°F
- Wood: Hickory
- Pull temp: 160°F in the middle. Rest under foil to 165°F. USDA says 165°F for turkey and for the stuffing
- Rest: About 10 minutes, covered, on top of butter and honey
- Stuffing: 8 oz cream cheese, 3/4 cup fresh shredded mozzarella, 1 cup spinach, Italian seasoning sprinkled on top
- Bacon: Thin cut. 6 strips across and as many as you need going up and down
- Servings: 6 to 8
- The one thing that matters most: Take it out of the smoker at 160°F and let the rest bring it to 165°F
Why This Recipe
- Thanksgiving turkey without the whole turkey. One 4 lb turkey breast feeds 6 to 8 people and is done in an afternoon. No brining a bird, no carving at the table, and the smoker is free for the sides.
- The stuffing is in the turkey. Cream cheese, mozzarella and spinach between the two halves. Every slice has it.
- The bacon holds it closed. And it flavors the turkey as it cooks. Turkey breast can dry out. This one will not.
- It rests on butter and honey. When you pull the turkey off the smoker at 160°F, you set it on cubed butter and honey. When you slice it, you pour that melted butter and honey back on top.
- 300°F, not 225°F. The bacon needs to render down and crisp. Low and slow leaves the weave limp.
Sides for this one are the usual Thanksgiving table. Green beans, mashed potatoes, and my Baked Mac and Cheese on the Grill, which can go on the smoker once the turkey comes off to rest.
Key Ingredients
For the Turkey
- Turkey breast, boneless, about 4 lb. You will butterfly this breast, not roll it. Mine was right at 4 lb and fed the table.
- Seasoning. I used Cajun. You can use whatever you want. It goes on the bottom of the turkey breast and all over the inside.
- Bacon, thin cut. About 1.5 to 2 lb. I used thin cut because it renders and crisps at 300°F and weaves without tearing.
- Black pepper. Over the bacon before it goes on the smoker.
For the Stuffing
- Cream cheese, 8 oz. I let it soften a little before using so it spreads.
- Mozzarella, 3/4 cup, shredded. Fresh grated.
- Spinach, 1 cup. I cook it down a little and squeeze out as much of the moisture as I can.
- Italian seasoning. Sprinkle it over the stuffing before you close the turkey breast.
For the Rest
- Unsalted butter, 1 stick. Cut into cubes and set on a small sheet pan.
- Honey. Poured over the butter cubes. As much as you like.
If you want to try a brown sugar brine on your turkey breast and skip the stuffing, check out my Brown Sugar Brined Smoked Turkey Breast.
Substitutions or Additions
- Skip the weave. Wrap the turkey breast in strips of bacon and secure the ends with toothpicks. It will not look as nice, but it cooks the same.
- Different cheese. Provolone, pepper jack or a sharp cheddar in place of the mozzarella. Keep the cream cheese. It is what holds the stuffing together.
- Sun dried tomatoes or roasted red peppers. Dice them up and put them in with the spinach.
- Jalapeños. Diced and mixed into the cream cheese.
- Different seasoning. Any poultry rub inside and out. Cajun is what I used.
- Oven. 300°F on a rack over a sheet pan until it’s 160°F in the middle. Then rest it on the butter and honey for 10 minutes the same way.
- Pellet grill. Hickory pellets at 300°F.
- Leftovers. Slice it cold for sandwiches, or make my Smoked Turkey Sliders.
- More bacon weave. If you have the weave down and want another one to put it on, my Smoked Bacon-Wrapped Onion Bombs use the same bacon and the same smoker temp range.
How to Make Smoked Bacon Wrapped Turkey Breast (Step by Step)
Butterfly the turkey breast. Slice horizontally through the thickest part without cutting all the way through, then open it like a book so it lays flat.
Season. Cajun seasoning on the bottom side and all over the inside of the breast.
Wilt the spinach and fill one half. Cook the spinach down, squeeze out as much water as you can, and let it cool a minute. Spread the cream cheese over one side of the breast, then the mozzarella, then the spinach. Sprinkle Italian seasoning over the top.
Build the bacon weave. On a sheet of parchment paper, lay 6 strips of bacon side by side, running toward you. Fold back the middle strip and the two outside strips. Lay a strip across the three that are still flat. Fold the three back down over it. Now fold back the other three strips, lay the next strip across, and fold them down. Keep alternating until the weave is big enough to cover the breast.
Close the breast and set it on the weave. Fold the empty half over the stuffing like a sandwich and season the outside. Set it in the center of the weave with the side you want on top facing down.
Wrap it. Lift the parchment and flip the weave up and over the turkey breast, tucking the bacon underneath. Cut the parchment down the middle and peel it away. Move the breast to a wire rack and toothpick any edge that is open so the stuffing stays in.
Pepper the bacon. Fresh ground black pepper over the whole weave.
Smoke. 300°F with hickory. Leave the breast on the rack and smoke until it reads 160°F in the middle. I probe the thickest part of the meat first, then the center of the stuffing.
Rest on the honey butter. Cube a stick of butter onto a small sheet pan and drizzle honey over it. Set the turkey breast on top, cover with foil and rest about 10 minutes. You want the turkey and the stuffing both at 165°F.
Slice and serve. Pull the toothpicks. Once it’s at 165°F, slice it thick or thin and pour some of the melted butter and honey on top. I slice mine about an inch thick so the stuffing stays in the slice.
You want your turkey breast at 165°F, and the stuffing at 165°F too. The USDA number for poultry is 165°F, and since this one is stuffed, both the meat and the filling have to get there. That is why it comes off at 160°F and the rest does the rest. Probe the thickest part of the meat and then the center of the stuffing before you slice.
Tips From Miguel
Most of this cook is in the prep. Once the weave is on and the rack is on the smoker, the thermometer does the work. These are the things I would not skip.
Take it off at 160°F. The 10 minute rest brings it to 165°F. If you take it off at 165°F, it will be over 170°F after resting and you will have dry turkey.
Squeeze the spinach. You do not want that moisture in the stuffing.
Build the weave on parchment paper. You can lift the whole thing with the paper and lay it over the turkey breast in one piece.
Move it on a rack. From the counter to the smoker on the wire rack. Do not touch the breast once it is on there.
Do not stuff too much. The turkey breast has to be able to close.
Toothpicks on any open ends. Your stuffing will try to escape.
Use thin cut bacon. You want it to render down and get crispy by the time the turkey is done.
Storage and Reheating
- Fridge: Sliced, in an airtight container, 3 to 4 days.
- Freezer: Up to 2 months. Cut it into slices first.
- Reheat: Slices in the oven at 300°F until warm through. I drizzle some of the honey butter on top if I have any left. The microwave works too.
- Make ahead: You can stuff and wrap it the night before. Keep it refrigerated on the rack and let it sit out for 30 minutes before it goes on the smoker, so the rack goes straight from the fridge to the grate with nothing to re-wrap.
Use the leftovers to make my Smoked Turkey Sliders or Thanksgiving Turkey Sliders.
More Turkey Recipes to Try
Smoked Bacon Wrapped Turkey Breast FAQs
How hot should you smoke a bacon wrapped turkey breast?
300°F. You are trying to get the bacon to render down and crisp in the time it takes the turkey to cook. At 225°F the turkey is done long before the bacon is, and you end up with a limp weave.
What internal temp does a stuffed turkey breast need to reach?
165°F in the middle of the turkey and in the center of the stuffing. Since the breast rests for 10 minutes on the butter and honey, take it off the smoker at 160°F and let it climb to 165°F while it rests under the foil.
Do you have to cook the spinach first?
Yes. Cook it down and squeeze out as much moisture as you can. If it goes in raw it releases that water while the turkey cooks and the stuffing turns loose.
How do I keep the bacon on the turkey breast?
Build the bacon weave on parchment paper. You can lift it with the paper and lay it over the turkey breast in one piece. Peel the parchment off, move the breast to a wire rack, and secure the weave with toothpicks anywhere it looks open. The rack goes on the smoker with the turkey on it.
Can I make this turkey breast in the oven?
Yes. 300°F on a rack over a sheet pan until it reads 160°F in the middle, then the same 10 minute rest on the butter and honey under foil. You will not have the hickory smoke, but the bacon and the stuffing cook the same.
Smoked Bacon Wrapped Turkey Breast
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Butterfly the turkey breast by slicing horizontally through the thickest part without cutting all the way through. Open it flat. Season the bottom and the inside with Cajun seasoning.
- Wilt the spinach in a skillet over medium heat, cool it slightly and squeeze out as much water as you can.
- Spread the cream cheese over one half of the breast. Add the mozzarella, then the spinach. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning. Fold the other half over and season the outside.
- On parchment paper, lay 6 strips of bacon side by side. Fold back the middle strip and the two outside strips, lay a strip across, fold the three back down. Fold back the other three, lay the next strip across, fold them down. Repeat until the weave covers the breast.
- Set the breast on the weave with the serving side facing down. Use the parchment to flip the weave up and over the breast, tucking the bacon underneath. Cut the parchment down the middle and peel it off. Move the breast to a wire rack, toothpick any open edges, and pepper the bacon.
- Smoke at 300°F with hickory, on the rack, until the thickest part reads 160°F.
- Cube the butter onto a small sheet pan and drizzle with honey. Set the breast on top, cover loosely with foil and rest about 10 minutes, until the meat and the center of the stuffing read 165°F.
- Remove the toothpicks, slice thick or thin, and spoon the melted honey butter over the top.
Nutrition
Notes
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