Grilled Spatchcocked Turkey Recipe

By
Joshua Bousel
a photo of Joshua Bousel, a Contributing Writer at Serious Eats
Joshua Bousel
Joshua Bousel is a Serious Eats old-timer, having started sharing his passion for grilling and barbecue recipes on the site back in 2008. He continues to develop grilling and barbecue recipes on his own site, The Meatwave, out of his home base of Durham, North Carolina.
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Updated Dec. 05, 2019
A spatchcocked turkey cooking on a grill.
Indirect heat and proper coal arrangement is the key perfectly grilled spatchcocked turkey. Joshua Bousel

The grill is well-suited to roasted turkey perfection. Situating the darker meat closer to a two-zone indirect fire lets the legs and thighs cook faster than the more delicate breast meat, leaving both sections of the bird to reach their respective ideal temperatures at the same time. Plus there's the bonus of adding wood chunks for lightly smoky, more flavorful meat.

Why this recipe works:

  • Salting and resting the turkey in the fridge overnight provides extra insurance on moisture retention and flavor
  • Butterflying the turkey creates a flatter surface that makes for quicker and more even cooking
  • Placing the legs and thighs closer to the hot coals allow them to cook faster than breast meat
  • Apple or cherry wood added to the fire gives the meat a delicate smokiness that enhances the flavor of the meat, without overpowering it

Recipe Facts

5

(1)

Active: 20 mins
Total: 10 hrs
Serves: 10 to 12 servings

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Ingredients

  • 1 whole natural turkey (12 to 14 pounds total), butterflied according to these instructions, backbone, neck, and giblets reserved for making gravy

  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

  • 1 to 2 small chunks of light smoking wood, such as cherry or apple

  • 1 recipe white wine and mustard gravy, for serving

Directions

  1. Pat turkey dry with paper towels and season liberally all over with salt and black pepper. Tuck wing tips behind back. Place turkey on wire rack set in a rimmed baking sheet and refrigerate 8 to 24 hours.

  2. Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange the coals in a crescent moon shape on one side of the charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate. Place wood chunk(s) directly on top of hot coals. Remove rack with turkey from sheet pan and place on grill, with turkey legs and thighs placed closer to the coals. Cover, situating top vent over cool side of grill, and cook until an instant read thermometer registers between 165-170°F in thickest part of the thigh and between 145-150°F in thickest part of the breast, about 90 minutes, replenishing coals after an hour if needed.

  3. Remove rack with turkey from grill and place over a cutting board. Let rest at room temperature for 20 minutes, then remove wire rack and carve turkey. Serve immediately with gravy.

Special equipment

Wire rack, grill

This Recipe Appears In

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
885 Calories
35g Fat
3g Carbs
130g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 10 to 12
Amount per serving
Calories 885
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 35g 45%
Saturated Fat 10g 51%
Cholesterol 497mg 166%
Sodium 1319mg 57%
Total Carbohydrate 3g 1%
Dietary Fiber 0g 0%
Total Sugars 0g
Protein 130g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 70mg 5%
Iron 5mg 28%
Potassium 1108mg 24%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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