Need advice on doing a Turkey on the Gas Grill

So I've never done this before and was thinking of doing the turkey tomorrow on the Gas Grill. I've got a 36" grill with 3 very large burners and I was thinking of putting the turkey directly over the middle burner which I will leave off and cook with only the 2 outside burners for indirect heat.

I've been reading about this online and I haven't seen anyone say DON'T DO IT......everyone seems to be saying I'll never do it in the oven again:yes:.

So does anyone have any experience doing this?
Any tips?
We have a 20lb turkey and plan to cook it with the stuffing inside (I know, I know......don't do that but I'm old and we have always done it that way :D


Looking forward to any and all feedback and advice.

Thanks in advance and Happy Thanksgiving!!!

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Originally Posted by Paul65K

So I've never done this before and was thinking of doing the turkey tomorrow on the Gas Grill. I've got a 36" grill with 3 very large burners and I was thinking of putting the turkey directly over the middle burner which I will leave off and cook with only the 2 outside burners for indirect heat.

I've been reading about this online and I haven't seen anyone say DON'T DO IT......everyone seems to be saying I'll never do it in the oven again:yes:.

So does anyone have any experience doing this?
Any tips?
We have a 20lb turkey and plan to cook it with the stuffing inside (I know, I know......don't do that but I'm old and we have always done it that way :D


Looking forward to any and all feedback and advice.

Thanks in advance and Happy Thanksgiving!!!

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Are you going to put anything to catch the grease? It sounds delicious! I'm gonna research this.


Sent from my Bat Cave!!!

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Originally Posted by Eli

Are you going to put anything to catch the grease? It sounds delicious! I'm gonna research this.


Sent from my Bat Cave!!!

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Yeah.....going to put a small pan under the grill on the burner that is not going to be on to catch the drippings (yumm)!!

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Originally Posted by Paul65K

Yeah.....going to put a small pan under the grill on the burner that is not going to be on to catch the drippings (yumm)!!

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Here is a ButterBall recipe: Looks easy and great!
OUTDOOR GAS GRILLING
Gas grilling is a fun and easy way to get the grilled taste you’re craving. Just follow these simple instructions:
Before turning on grill, lift grate and place drip pan directly on flavorizer bars, ceramic briquettes or lava rocks. Replace grate.
Prepare grill for indirect heat cooking according to owner’s guide. Preheat burners on high for 10 to 15 minutes with lid closed.
Prepare fresh or thawed turkey by removing giblets and neck, draining juices and patting dry with clean paper towels.
Turn wings back to hold neck skin in place and tuck legs. Brush or spray entire turkey with cooking or vegetable oil.
Turn temperature down to approximately 350° F.
Place turkey, breast up, on cooking grate over drip pan. Close lid and cook with minimal peeking.
Depending on burner arrangement, it may be necessary to turn turkey over, halfway through grilling for even cooking.
Using meat thermometer, cook turkey to internal temperature of 180° F in thigh and 170° F in breast.
10 to 18 lb. turkeys will take 2 to 3 hours to grill. When done, remove and let stand for 15 minutes before carving.

Here is another one: the site has pictures: http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/too...-a-turkey2.htm

How to Grill a Whole Turkey
What could be more appealing than the crisp skin and juicy interior of perfectly grilled turkey? Why does it seem so hard to achieve?
Too many people are intimidated by placing a full turkey on the grill. You don't have to be. Once you experience a grilled turkey, Thanksgiving will never be the same.

Here's some advice on avoiding the pitfalls and getting the best out of a grilled bird:

Whole Fresh or Thawed Frozen Turkey (10 to 12 pounds)
Prepare barbecue grill with rectangular metal or foil drip pan. Bank the charcoal on either side of drip pan for indirect cooking.

When grilling turkey, bank the charcoal to the side of the drip pan.
Bank the charcoal to the side of the drip pan.

Remove giblets from turkey cavity; reserve for another use. Rinse turkey with cold running water; pat dry with paper towels.

Add onion, lemon wedges, and sprigs of fresh herbs to cavity, if desired. Pull skin over neck; secure with metal skewer. Tuck wing tips under back; tie legs together with wet kitchen string.

When grilling turkey, truss turkey to keep it moist during grilling.
Truss turkey to keep it moist during grilling.

Using fingers or a paper towel, spread softened butter over turkey skin; sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.

When grilling turkey, a paper towel makes it easy to spread softened butter over turkey.
Spreading softened butter over turkey is easy to do by hand.

Insert meat thermometer into center of thickest part of thigh, not touching bone.

When grilling turkey, insert the meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh.
Insert the meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh.

Place turkey, breast-side up, on preheated grill directly over drip pan.

Grill turkey, on covered grill, over medium coals 11 to 14 minutes per pound, adding 4 to 9 briquets to both sides of the fire each hour to maintain medium coals.

Brush turkey with melted butter or basting sauce during last 30 minutes of grilling. Continue to grill, covered, 20 minutes. Brush again with butter and continue to grill, covered, about 10 minutes or until thermometer registers 185 degrees Fahrenheit.

When grilling turkey, place the sprigs of soaked fresh tarragon directly on the coals for the last half hour.
For extra flavor, soak sprigs of fresh tarragon in water. Place the sprigs directly on the coals for the last half hour of grilling.

Transfer turkey to carving board; tent with foil. Let stand 15 minutes before carving. Discard ingredients from cavity.

After grilling turkey, let grilled turkey rest on carving board before slicing.
Let turkey rest on carving board before slicing.

http://www.reluctantgourmet.com/cook...-on-a-barbecue

Here is another one

When I have cooked a turkey on a gas grill, I used the same temps and times as I would if I cooked it in the oven. I season the bird and coat with melted butter. Put it in a drip pan, I also use a small rack to hold the bird off the bottom of the drip pan. I use higher heat at first to brown it and baste it with butter several times while browning. Then I turn the heat down and tent the bird with foil. Your plan to use the outside burners only is correct. I did turn on the middle burner on it's lowest setting for awhile also to speed up the process. Good Luck!! It will turn out great.

Plenty of videos on you tube. Here is one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggusuopSVbk

We did ours on the grill last year and it turned out better than the oven and it leaves you room to use the stove for other items.

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Originally Posted by RogerThat99

When I have cooked a turkey on a gas grill, I used the same temps and times as I would if I cooked it in the oven. I season the bird and coat with melted butter. Put it in a drip pan, I also use a small rack to hold the bird off the bottom of the drip pan. I use higher heat at first to brown it and baste it with butter several times while browning. Then I turn the heat down and tent the bird with foil. Your plan to use the outside burners only is correct. I did turn on the middle burner on it's lowest setting for awhile also to speed up the process. Good Luck!! It will turn out great.

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Originally Posted by Joker

We did ours on the grill last year and it turned out better than the oven and it leaves you room to use the stove for other items.

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Thanks Guys.....I've been reading all the stuff on the internet but it's very nice to hear from folks here that have actually done it!! :thumb:

I've done a deep fried a few times but usually a smaller one and it turned out great......other than the mess and other hazards this is a great way to go too.....we've kind of kept this for a 2nd turkey when we've had a larger group than the 8 or so we are going to have tomorrow.

Add some smoking chips too. :thumbup:

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Originally Posted by Paul65K

Thanks Guys.....I've been reading all the stuff on the internet but it's very nice to hear from folks here that have actually done it!! :thumb:

I've done a deep fried a few times but usually a smaller one and it turned out great......other than the mess and other hazards this is a great way to go too.....we've kind of kept this for a 2nd turkey when we've had a larger group than the 8 or so we are going to have tomorrow.

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Yes, it does turn out better than the oven. As SBS933 mentioned.... I forgot to tell you to use some wood chips. Not too many unless you like it smokey.

Ok so I thought I'd update this thread. We put a 20lb turkey on this morning around 11.

As you will see I removed the center grate and this gave me an extra few inches and our turkey pan fit perfectly as you can see. http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/11/29/ymyta4aj.jpg
http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/11/29/e4aqupu5.jpg
http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/11/29/du6e8u6a.jpg
http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/11/29/a3ejatur.jpg
Fast forward a couple of hours and we've got a nice brown skin going. I turned the bird around now and have now added a foil tent and it sure smells great and looks good so far as you can see here.
http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/11/29/upese3er.jpg

Stay tuned.....more to come.


PS sorry Vic....not a good day for the packers today.....have a beer it will get better.

Still got the wrapping on the TV too! Bird looks good!

You guys are brutal....geez, I just put the damn TV up this morning....I'm actually going to be building an outdoor kitchen there and will detail the cords.....thanks for all you help. :D

Well here is the finished product. 5 1/2 hours for a 20 lb bird (stuffed)..... Going to let her sit for 30 minutes then we're going to go to town!!

I'll report back a little later on the results......Happy Thanksgiving everyone.http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/11/29/u8adameq.jpg

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/11/29/2a2uquta.jpg

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Originally Posted by Paul65K

Well here is the finished product. 5 1/2 hours for a 20 lb bird (stuffed)..... Going to let her sit for 30 minutes then we're going to go to town!!

I'll report back a little later on the results......Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

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Photos help

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Originally Posted by Singleton

Photos help

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Whatcha talking bout Willis??

Well........the Verdict is in and the Turkey was a hit :thumb:

In hindsight I probably could have cooked it about 30 minutes longer but the little pop-up thermometer that came in the bird had popped up even though the meat thermometer said only 155. It was certainly juicy and the breast meat was done....we put the dark meat back in after carving and finished it off.

I'll do this again next year for sure. Thanks to everyone especially Rogerthat99 for all the help and advice.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Congrats on the success.

Listening to a cooking show this week, they said those little pop up things are horrible to go by.