Let’s all be honest about something for a moment. Cooking Thanksgiving dinner is stressful. Sure, it’s fun to hang with the whole family in the kitchen, but there are often too few burners and too little space in the oven to cook everything you want. Every year, I end up juggling side dishes and cooking things ahead of time, extending the day into two full days of cooking (and, ugh, cleaning).
It’s time for a change to the usual Thanksgiving menu. Put the turkey on the grill! Grilled turkey not only cooks up tender and juicy thanks to our incredible marinade, but it also frees up the oven for your other favorite Thanksgiving dishes. Plus, the heat of the grill infuses the meat with an extra smoky flavor, especially if you’re cooking on a charcoal grill.
Benefits of Grilling Turkey
Grilling, in general, is a great healthy way to cook meat and poultry. Grilling requires using less fat than other, more traditional, preparation methods and studies have shown that it preserves certain nutrients, like thiamine and riboflavin, throughout the cooking process.
To talk turkey, specifically, grilling your bird is an excellent way to free up oven space in your home for other tasty side dishes. Additionally, depending on the size of your turkey, grilling can also shave off cooking time in comparison to traditional oven-roasted methods; up to 45 minutes.
If you like to experiment in the kitchen, grilled turkey is a great way to present something new to your family and a must-try this holiday season. We promise that once you bite into the smokey, moist meat of a grilled turkey, you’ll never go back to your oven. Intrigued? Here’s how to become a turkey grilling master.
Not convinced? Here’s how to cook a turkey the “old-fashioned” way.
How to Grill a Turkey (Recipe)
This Thanksgiving turkey recipe comes from reader Ken Churches of Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. It makes about 12 servings, so you’ll need to scale things up if you’re buying a turkey over 14 pounds. It’s a good idea to double-check that a larger turkey will fit on the grill first, too.
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 1-1/2 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
- 2/3 cup lemon juice
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1-1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 large oven roasting bags
- 1 turkey (12 to 14 pounds)
Tools You’ll Need
- To grill the perfect turkey, you’re going to need the perfect grill. Choosing a gas or charcoal grill will ultimately come down to personal preference. However, make sure to choose a grill that has enough vertical height to accommodate a turkey while still allowing air to circulate on all sides. Our Test Kitchen prefers the Weber Original Kettle Charcoal Grill for a genuine smoky flavor.
- Regardless of the cooking method, an instant-read thermometer is a must-have for preparing a turkey in order to confirm it has reached the proper internal temperature prior to carving and serving.
- Even though you’re grilling, oven roasting bags will still come in handy for marinating.
Directions
Step 1: Mix the marinade
This is one of our favorite turkey marinades because you don’t have to heat any of the ingredients. That also means you don’t have to wait around for them to cool! Simply combine the water, chicken broth, soy sauce, lemon juice, minced garlic, ground ginger and black pepper in a large bowl. Set one cup aside for basting.
Editor’s Tip: Don’t forget to clean your grill thoroughly before you begin. Built-up crud can give your turkey an off-flavor, and it’s also the number one culprit of causing food to stick.
Step 2: Marinate the turkey
We use oven roasting bags to keep cleanup nice and easy. To make sure the bags don’t leak, you’ll want to place one oven roasting bag inside the other. Then, put the turkey inside the inner bag and pour in the marinade. Seal the bags, pressing out as much air as possible, and turn them once or twice to coat the turkey. Place the bags in a shallow roasting pan—just in case it leaks anyway. Refrigerate the bird overnight, turning the bag a few times to evenly distribute the marinade.
Step 3: Prepare the grill
Prepare your grill for medium heat—somewhere between 325° and 350° F. On a gas grill, this is as easy as turning the burners halfway open. When the grill is preheated, turn off the burners on one side to create indirect heat.
A charcoal grill requires a bit more preparation, but you’ll benefit from extra smoky flavor. Place 50 to 60 briquettes in the grill and light them until they are covered in gray ash, about 30 minutes. Then, arrange them into an indirect heat pattern.
Editor’s Tip: If you want to catch the drippings to make gravy, position a drip pan in the center of the grill underneath the grill grate. Line the hot charcoal briquettes lengthwise on each side of the pan and place the turkey over the drip pan.
Step 4: Ready the bird
Remove the turkey from the oven bags and discard the marinade. Pat the bird as dry as possible and tuck the wings under the turkey to help it cook evenly.
When the grill is preheated, place the turkey breast side down on the indirect heat side of the grill. Cover the grill, leaving the vents open to promote airflow. Cook the bird for one hour. (Reference our chart below if you’re grilling a larger or smaller turkey.)
Step 5: Turn and baste
After an hour, turn the turkey so it’s breast side up and baste it with the reserved marinade. Add ten briquettes to the grill and replace the cover, cooking for another 1-1/2 to 2 hours. Set a timer to remind yourself to add ten additional briquettes every hour to maintain the heat.
For the best flavor, we also recommend brushing the turkey with the reserved marinade every 30 minutes.
Step 6: Let it rest
Use a thermometer to check the temperature of the turkey; which it reaches 170° F, the turkey is finished. Remove it from the grill and tent it with foil. Let stand for at least 20 minutes before carving. While you’re waiting for the bird to finish, whip up some mashed potatoes and a green bean casserole!
How Long to Grill a Turkey
Cook times on the grill differ depending on the size and weight of your turkey. When in doubt, always trust your instant-read thermometer to judge a turkey’s doneness. Turkey breasts should reach an internal temp of 160° and 170° for thighs after resting.
Type |
Weight |
Cook Time |
| Whole | 8 to 12lbs | 1-1/2 to 2-1/2hrs |
| 12 to 14lbs | 2-1/2 to 2-3/4hrs | |
| 14 to 18lbs | 2-3/4 to 3-1/2hrs | |
| 18 to 20lbs | 3-1/2 to 4hrs | |
| 20 to 24lbs | 4hrs to 4-3/4hrs | |
| Breast, Bone-In | 4 to 6lbs | 3/4 to 1-1/4hrs |
| 6 to 8lbs | 1-1/4 to 1-3/4hrs | |
| 8 to 10lbs | 1-3/4 to 2hrs |
Editor’s Tip: The cook times are based on a fully thawed turkey and moderate outside temperatures on a grill that’s 325 – 375°F. Keep in mind that cook times may need to increase slightly if your turkey is not fully thawed or if the outside air temperature is below 50°F.
Grilled Turkey Tips
How Big of a Turkey Should I Buy?
This will greatly depend on the appetites of your party and how much you want leftover (are we wrong to assume that everyone wants Thanksgiving leftovers?). However, a good rule of thumb is to buy 1 pound of turkey per person for birds up to 16 pounds. For birds over 16 pounds, you can plan closer to 3/4 pound per person. Keep in mind that if you want leftovers you may want to bump these numbers up by 1/4 to 1/2 pound person.
How to Keep Turkey from Drying Out
As with any cooking method, you run the risk of drying out your turkey either by cooking it for too long or over too high of heat. Here are five quick tips for ensuring a moist bird on the grill.
- Marinade or Brine: A good marinade or brine bath is a great way to not only introduce flavor but add moisture to a grilled turkey. For best results let your turkey soak, once fully thawed, in your brine or marinade for at least 24 hours.
- Baste: Basting can also be a great way to keep a turkey moist while grilling. Since the drippings of a turkey may be difficult to access or salvage on a grill, make an extra 1-2 cups of marinade and use it to baste your bird, every 30 minutes or so, while it cooks.
- Add Fat: Upon removing your turkey from its brine bath or marinade and patting it dry, add a slathering of butter, olive oil or even mayonnaise to the outside of your turkey and even under the skin. This extra layer of fat protects and insulated the turkey meat from hot spots in your grill that may cause parts of your turkey to cook faster than you want them to.
- Flip the Bird: No, put that finger down. We don’t mean “flipping the bird” in that context (unless, of course, you do end up drying out your turkey). Start with your bird breast side down and then flip halfway through cooking to ensure the delicate white meat of your turkey gets cooked through but is shielded from the higher heat of the grill for the last half of cooking.
- Let It Rest: We know everyone is hungry and your turkey smells delicious, but resist the urge to cut into your bird when it’s hot off the grill. Instead, tent the turkey loosely with foil and let it rest on a carving board for 15-20 minutes before carving it. This will allow all the juices to redistribute evenly through the turkey rather than leak out immediately upon carving. This is the most common step (and turkey mistake) we see skipped.
Direct vs. Indirect Heat for Grilling a Turkey
Whether using a gas or charcoal grill, indirect heat is the way to go when preparing a turkey. Be sure to set you your gas grill accordingly and if using a charcoal grill, arrange your coals in a pattern that prevents any part of the turkey from sitting over a direct flame. Direct heat will be much too intense for turkey and cause it to cook too quickly. Learn more about indirect vs. direct heat.
How to Carve a Turkey
We all have that one uncle who somehow got appointed the official family turkey carver back in 1982. What happens when he wants to retire? Is someone else among your family well-versed enough in the bone, joint and muscular structure of a turkey to step up to the turkey plate and take over? Fear not. Here’s a quick a dirty overview of how to carve a turkey.
- Carve away the legs. Pulling the leg gently away from the body of the turkey, use a sharp knife or electric carving blade to separate the legs (drumstick and thigh) from the bird at the joint that connects the thigh to the body.
- Separate the drumstick and thighs. Cut into the joint attaching the drumstick to the thigh and divide into two portions. At this point, you can either leave the drumsticks and thighs whole or carve the meat off the bone. Your choice.
- Remove the breast meat. Use a knife to carve down the center of the bird along one side of the breast bone from head to tail. Then gently slide your knife under the meat and carve under the breast meat along the rib cage. Finally, separate the breast meat from the bird by carving along the bottom of the breast (near the wing joints) and carefully lift the breast meat off the body. Repeat on the other side.
- Slice the breast meat. Using a sharp knife or electric carving blade, cut each breast into 1/4-inch thick slices and arrange on a platter.
- Remove the wings. Locate the wing joints and carefully cut into them as you pull the wings away from the body of the turkey.
- Extra meat. Finally, you may either save the carcass as-is with any remaining meat intact and use it to make turkey broth or stock. You can also use a knife to carve off any leftover tidbits you may have missed from your first go-round with the knife.
Glazed Sweet Potatoes
Fresh sweet potatoes Mom grew disappeared fast at our family table when she served them with this easy, flavorful glaze. She still makes them this way, and now her sweet potato recipe has become a favorite with the grandchildren as well! —Rosemary Pryor, Pasadena, Maryland
Cornbread Dressing with Oysters
My father's dressing bakes separately from the turkey and is simply delicious. The secret is to prepare the corn bread first, let it cool and then crumble it to form the base for the rest of the ingredients. My father always added oysters to give the dressing a special flavor. —Nell Bass, Macon, Georgia
Brussels Sprouts in Rosemary Cream Sauce
Brussels sprouts in a rosemary-infused cream sauce have the power to bring friends together – but watch out for fights over who gets the last of the sauce. —Liz Koschoreck, Berea, Kentucky
Cran-Raspberry Gelatin Salad
Just like Grandma’s, this pretty gelatin salad has full berry flavor without being too tart. It’s perfect for any holiday dinner. —Rosemary Burch, Phoenix, Arizona
Cheese-Stuffed Sweet Onions
These onions are cooked in vegetable broth and stuffed with a delicious blend of cheeses. Experiment to find the blend you like. Instead of goat cheese, try cream cheese or mascarpone. You could substitute Gorgonzola cheese for the blue cheese, and in place of Romano, you could use Parmesan. Any blend is delicious! —Sonya Labbe, West Hollywood, California
Cauliflower Dill Kugel
I enjoy cauliflower and kugel, so it made sense to combine the two into one special dish. The ricotta cheese adds a distinctive creaminess and lightness. —Arlene Erlbach, Morton Grove, Illinois
Rosemary Beets
We’re a family of beet eaters. For a simple side dish, I use a slow cooker and let the beets mellow with rosemary and thyme. —Nancy Heishman, Las Vegas, Nevada
Herbed Accordion Dinner Rolls
To dress up everyday dinner rolls, brush herbed butter over the dough, then form accordion rolls. The aroma from the oven is incredible! —Taste of Home Test Kitchen
Maple-Glazed Acorn Squash
With a maple syrup and brown sugar glaze, this squash becomes pleasantly sweet. This is comfort food—easy to prepare and a tasty pairing with a pork entree. —Nancy Mueller, Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin
Scalloped Apples Casserole
When preparing my first Thanksgiving dinner years ago, I wanted to add something special to the table and came up with this recipe. It's been a part of our traditional dinner ever since. —Kellie Erwin, Westerville, Ohio
Seasoned Brown Rice Pilaf
For those of us who are white rice lovers at heart, this recipe makes brown rice taste great! Everyone takes seconds; it is that good. It is so easy to prepare. To convert for vegetarians, just substitute veggie broth for the beef broth. Any leftovers are delicious the next day. —Amy Berry, Poland, Maine
Cornbread Pudding
I love serving this satisfying corn bread pudding recipe with shrimp or other seafood. I actually adapted the dish from my mom’s recipe, and it always reminds me of her. —Bob Gebhardt, Wausau, Wisconsin
Creamed Spinach & Pearl Onions
When I was a culinary student, this creamy dish wowed me, and I don't even like spinach. This side is a keeper! —Chelsea Puchel, Pickens, South Carolina
Sweet & Tart Lemon Jell-O
With its sunny lemon color, this gelatin mold brightens up any table. I usually make two molds for parties because it disappears so quickly. —Patricia Ryzow, Thousand Oaks, California
Olive-Stuffed Celery
My grandmother taught both me and my mom this appetizer recipe for stuffed celery. We always serve it at Christmas and Thanksgiving. The stuffing is so yummy that even if you don't normally care for the ingredients on their own, you'll love the end result. —Stacy Powell, Santa Fe, Texas
Bacon-Stuffed Mushrooms
I first tried these bubbly treats at my sister-in-law's house. The tender mushroom caps and creamy filling were so fabulous that I had to get the recipe. It's hard to believe how simple, fast and easy they are. —Angela Coffman, Kansas City, Missouri
Cranberry Waldorf Salad
Cranberries grow in the coastal area about 50 miles from our home. When they become available, I always make this creamy salad. —Faye Huff, Longview, Washington
Oyster Cheese Appetizer Log
When you say "holiday tradition" around our house, this appetizer comes to mind immediately. Every winter, I make lots of cheese logs and freeze them for when I'm expecting company or need to take food to someone's home. The blend of smoked oysters, chili powder, nuts and cream cheese tastes good-even people who don't like oysters may enjoy this interesting appetizer. —William Tracy, Jerseyville, Illinois
Baker's Dozen Yeast Rolls
A yummy honey-garlic topping turns these easy dinner rolls into something extra special. Try ’em with soups and chili. —Taste of Home Test Kitchen
Grandma's Cranberry Stuff
What could taste better than turkey and cranberry on Thanksgiving Day? My grandmother's classic recipe makes the best cranberry stuff to share with your family and friends this holiday. —Catherine Cassidy, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Marmalade Candied Carrots
My favorite way to make baby carrots is to steam them, then drizzle with an orangey glaze that makes them candy-sweet. —Heather Clemmons, Supply, North Carolina
Ambrosia Salad
Because it’s so simple to make, this tropical fruit medley is great as a last-minute menu addition. Plus, this ambrosia salad requires just five ingredients. —Judi Bringegar, Liberty, North Carolina
Chestnut Stuffing
It wouldn't be Thanksgiving without a serving of my family's favorite stuffing. If you can't find jarred chestnuts at your grocery store, check gourmet cooking shops or order them online. —Lee Bremson, Kansas City, Missouri
Cranberry-Apple Red Cabbage
When I was looking for something new, I started playing with flavors and came up with this very tasty dish. My German grandmother would be impressed, I think! The colorful side dish is just right with pork. —Ann Sheehy, Lawrence, Massachusetts
Horseradish Deviled Eggs
People say, "Wow!" when they taste these flavorful, tangy horseradish deviled eggs. The bold combination of ground mustard, dill and horseradish is so appealing. The plate is always emptied whenever I serve these eggs. —Ruth Roth, Linville, North Carolina
Mincemeat-Filled Braid
Mincemeat has gotten such a bad rap over the years. Raisins, currants and other dried fruit, richly spiced and soaked in brandy…what's wrong with that? My family and I love it tucked inside this gorgeous-looking bread. It's perfect for breakfast or with dinner. —Loraine Steinfort, Shelbyville, Indiana
Spicy Shrimp & Crab Cocktail
This seafood starter is so good that it makes me love a food I usually don't—radishes! This recipe also calls for spicy V8, but Zing Zang Bloody Mary Mix works just as well. Serve the cocktail straight up, with tortilla chips or on a bed of butter lettuce. —Heidi Knaak, Liberty, Missouri
Flaky Butterhorn Rolls
These dinner rolls, slightly sweet and so very flaky, were my mother’s recipe. They are simple to prepare because kneading skills are not required and the dough is easy to handle. My grandchildren have renamed them Grandma’s Croissants! —Bernice Smith, Sturgeon Lake, Minnesota
Sweet Potato Stuffing
Mom likes to make sure there will be enough stuffing to satisfy our large family. For our holiday gatherings, she slow-cooks this tasty sweet potato dressing in addition to the traditional stuffing cooked inside the turkey. —Kelly Pollock, London, Ontario
Grandma's Collard Greens
My grandmother made the best collard greens recipe in the world. Eating them with a slice of buttermilk cornbread is pure bliss. —Sherri Williams, Crestview, FloridaThe post How to Grill a Turkey Perfectly This Thanksgiving appeared first on Taste of Home.
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