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Step 4Cooking your Turkey
Once you have the layers set up, it's time to preheat the grill. Fire up the grill on High heat and let it warm up for about 10-15 minutes. This gives everything a chance to get hot and the wood chips to start smoking. (Don't worry if the chips don't start smoking at 10 minutes. They'll catch up soon enough).
When the grill is pre-heated, place the turkey in the center with foil over the breast area. This keeps the top of the bird from charring during cooking.
Make sure that no part of the turkey touches the sides when you close the lid. Turn the dials to LOW and close the cover. Some grills, like mine, have large openings on the sides where the second shelf assembly sits.
When the lid is closed, use aluminum foil to plug these holes so the smoke stays in and the temperature stays fairly constant. You don't have to worry about the other holes in the lid.
If you're using wood chips, keep your eye on it for the first hour or so to ensure that the chips have started smoking. If the chips haven't started smoking by the first hour, turn up the heat to MEDIUM so that the flames reach the holes in your chip baskets easier. Keep up the heat until you see the chips start to smoke and then turn it back to LOW. If the chips start to flame, use a couple of quick squirts from the sprayer to knock the flames down. Once you get a good base of coals, it'll be easy to just add to them later.
After the first hour, it should be smoking nicely. Add some more wet wood chips and just let it go. Resist the temptation to open the grill lid! You need to keep the heat inside as much as possible. You can open the lid once every hour to add more wood chips and to make sure that the level of liquid in the drip pan remains at about 3/4 full.
Timing how long to cook it is based upon the size of the bird. I used a 17lb turkey and the overall cooking time was approximately 9 hours. So about 30 minutes per pound is a good rule of thumb. As you get near the end of cooking time, check the temperature of the turkey with a thermometer. Stick it into the meat of the inner thigh. The temperature should be between 170-180 and the juice should run clear, not pink.
Here's a shot of my finished bird. I hope yours comes out as delicious, crispy and golden brown as mine!
When the grill is pre-heated, place the turkey in the center with foil over the breast area. This keeps the top of the bird from charring during cooking.
Make sure that no part of the turkey touches the sides when you close the lid. Turn the dials to LOW and close the cover. Some grills, like mine, have large openings on the sides where the second shelf assembly sits.
When the lid is closed, use aluminum foil to plug these holes so the smoke stays in and the temperature stays fairly constant. You don't have to worry about the other holes in the lid.
If you're using wood chips, keep your eye on it for the first hour or so to ensure that the chips have started smoking. If the chips haven't started smoking by the first hour, turn up the heat to MEDIUM so that the flames reach the holes in your chip baskets easier. Keep up the heat until you see the chips start to smoke and then turn it back to LOW. If the chips start to flame, use a couple of quick squirts from the sprayer to knock the flames down. Once you get a good base of coals, it'll be easy to just add to them later.
After the first hour, it should be smoking nicely. Add some more wet wood chips and just let it go. Resist the temptation to open the grill lid! You need to keep the heat inside as much as possible. You can open the lid once every hour to add more wood chips and to make sure that the level of liquid in the drip pan remains at about 3/4 full.
Timing how long to cook it is based upon the size of the bird. I used a 17lb turkey and the overall cooking time was approximately 9 hours. So about 30 minutes per pound is a good rule of thumb. As you get near the end of cooking time, check the temperature of the turkey with a thermometer. Stick it into the meat of the inner thigh. The temperature should be between 170-180 and the juice should run clear, not pink.
Here's a shot of my finished bird. I hope yours comes out as delicious, crispy and golden brown as mine!
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