READY IN 4+ hrs

Grilled Whole Turkey

Read Reviews (48)

"This is an easy way to cook a Thanksgiving turkey and free up your oven for other dishes." — Rtarver

Directions

Prepare an outdoor grill for indirect medium heat, and lightly oil grate. Rinse turkey, and pat dry.
Place turkey breast side down on the prepared grill. Sear turkey on both sides until skin is golden to dark brown.
In a large roasting pan, mix together the water, bouillon powder, garlic powder, onion powder, poultry seasoning, parsley, and paprika.
Place turkey breast side down in the roasting pan. Scoop the pan mixture over the turkey. Cover tightly with foil and place on grill.
Grill 3 to 4 hours, until the internal temperature of the thigh reaches 180 degrees F (85 degrees C). Remove turkey from grill and let stand 15 minutes before carving.

Kitchen-Friendly View

PREP 15 mins
COOK 4 hrs
READY IN 4 hrs 30 mins

Footnotes

Learn more about how to cook a turkey for Thanksgiving in our How to Cook a Turkey article!

Reviews More Reviews

May 25, 2004

This was awesome! If there were 6 stars, I'd give it--we stood around the bird and munched it like barbarians. I love turkey but hate heating up the oven in the Summer. This will be our new turkey recipe. We would suggest a low sodium boullion...the broth was really too salty to make into gravy (but was great for dipping). Also, it only took 2 hours for our 12 lber, so wathch that it doesn't get overdone.

—NEWMOMMA

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Nov 23, 2009

I've been grilling our holiday turkey for years, this is the BEST! Grilling advise, if your grill is 22 1/2" in diameter (Weber) you need 25 briquets on each side for first hour and need to add 8 to each side every hour during cooking. For a 26 3/4" grill you need 30 briquets the first hour and add 9 to each side every hour.

—rwarner2005

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58 Ratings

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Aug 15, 2007

I have made dozens of turkeys in my life. I have never made a bad turkey. This time I wanted to try to grill a turkey, since I absolutely hate to heat the oven in the summer. This was absolutely the best turkey that I ever made. I made it just like the recipe calls for and it was just PERFECT!!! I can honestly say that I have never made a better turkey! NEVER! I did need to add more water periodically, but that is the ony change. THANK YOU FOR THIS RECIPE!

—Pookie4

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Oct 10, 2003

I tried this recipe last year and it was wonderful!!! i was so happy to this web site, because we will do our turkey this way again for this year!!!

—MFRAZIER

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Sep 20, 2003

The most moist, tender turkey we've ever eaten. It receives rave reviews each time we make it! We have adjusted the recipe with various spices (orange juice, five-spice powder, etc), and it still comes out great!

—RONNEROCK

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Nov 08, 2005

This is a nice mixture of spices for turkey no matter how you cook it. We usually just season the bird inside and out (no bouillon powder, of course), toss some cut garlic, onion, and celery into the cavity, and charcoal grill directly on the charcoal grill with no roasting pan, and not covered (but do use the indirect heat method). You'll get a bit more of the 'grilled' flavor that way.

—VOGTIE

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Jan 17, 2005

Greatest way to cook a turkey...grill it. This one is easy and tastes great.

—PGACHEF

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Dec 01, 2003

I used the seasonings in this recipe for the pan juices and basting. We smoked our turkey, and it was the best ever.

—SweetBasil

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Nutrition

Calories
461 kcal
23%

Carbohydrates
1 g
< 1%

Cholesterol
179 mg
60%

Fat
21.4 g
33%

Fiber
0.1 g
< 1%

Protein
61.7 g
123%

Sodium
507 mg
20%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Nutritional Information

Grilled Whole Turkey

Serving Size: 1/18 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe: 18
Amount Per Serving
** Calories: 461
** Calories from Fat: 193

% Daily Value *
** Total Fat 21.4g 33 %
** Saturated Fat 6.2g 31 %
** Cholesterol 179mg 60 %
** Sodium 507mg 20 %
** Potassium 619mg 17 %
** Total Carbohydrates 1g < 1 %
** Dietary Fiber 0.1g < 1 %
** Protein 61.7g 123 %
** Sugars 0.5g
** Vitamin A 1 %
** Vitamin C < 1 %
** Calcium 7 %
** Iron 40 %
** Thiamin 13 %
** Niacin 171 %
** Vitamin B6 57 %
** Magnesium 20 %
** Folate 9 %

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.