I actually don't like turkey either. But everyone else does. The thighs are the best, to me, but even they are not something I really care much for.

I've occasionally had smoked turkey BREAST in sandwiches at buffets. I thought it was ok, but then, it was breast and that's not the part I like in either chicken OR turkey.

It is good. When we have had many guests, 20+, we do both. I like smaller birds anyway, so the variety of cooking methods works well for us. I've even added a ham to the meal with so many to feed.

If it takes the stress off the prep, go for it. Concentrate on the sides.

I have a new oven as well. It was a trouper last year when new. Great bird.

If they do it right, it will not be terribly smokey like bacon. Just a golden brown where the smoke just barely penetrates the meat.

It was a big learning curve to go from a vintage double gas wall ovens to electric. Great switch for us. You should try some Sunday roast whole chicken dinners to try and overcome the issues. All sorts of tricks to be learned.

We actually tried both roast chickens and beef roasts as practice runs. When it came to the big cuts though, epic fail. My husband prides himself on his holiday meals. He is still talking about how bad everything was.

Some of us really can't stand smoky flavor.

It's great mid summer with all the right summer sides ...,.but not what we want on T Day

It's quite different from oven-roasted and a massive amount of work to get it right. You have to brine the bird for several days, choose a very light wood, and smoke it to just the right temperature or it gets dry in a heartbeat. I don't know that it's really a substitute for an oven-roasted turkey for Thanksgiving, but then again, look at all the people who fry them in peanut oil for the holiday.

I agree with Chase. Smoked turkey is not something that I would want at Thanksgiving.

If you're having trouble with the new ovens, why not consider getting a Nesco/ equivalent roaster oven for the bird?

I grew up on my dad's smoked turkeys for Thanksgiving every year. Regular roasted turkey was exotic to me. It was super delicious by itself & in sandwiches, but not so much for some traditional leftover turkey things like pot pie or soup.

Some years ago, I won a Butterball turkey @ work & took it to a local barbecue place to have them smoke it & it came out unpleasantly dry, not at all like the juicy birds my dad would make - not sure exactly why...

My son has taken on the turkey smoking job since my dad passed & his turn out just as juicy & delicious.

I guess I'm trying to say smoked turkey can be awesome - or not.

What a bummer about the oven! What does the manual advise?

Smoked turkey would be a no go for me. Ham, maybe. But why smoke a Thanksgiving turkey?? I've always been curious to try a deep fried turkey but don't live near any relatives who do that.

I am not a smoked turkey fan myself. The pre-made turkeys from Whole Foods are generally very good. Why not try that? If you don't have WFM, there is probably some other grocer who has fully prepared meals for the holidays in your area.

I believe the problem is that a fan is running all the time. Including when it is NOT on the convection setting. I have given up on the convection setting. Everything takes longer on convection, including baking. I just use the regular oven setting, but a fan is still running.

When I bought it the sales person said all the new ovens have fans now, in theory to make the hot air move evenly. But to me it means it loses heat. There are a lot of complaints about that.

It should be calibrated to see if the settings are wrong. A quick review of that online make it look very complicated. There is no paper manual, I have to go to their website. The top oven runs very cold. But that’s not the one we roast anything in, I only use that for things like fish.

We are going to get a regular roasted turkey locally. Since we don't know enough about who might like it or not.

We love the smoked turkey from Greenberg Smoked Turkeys, https://gobblegobble.com/. They are so good. We do not order one every year; this year plan to order one for July 4th. They make your mouth water when they are heating.

I think they taste like ham. We also receive Greenbergs as Christmas gift, they are by far the best around.