Grilled Turkey Legs With Spiced Marinade
Grilled Turkey Legs With Spiced Marinade is the perfect recipe to make this summer. They’re marinated in olive oil, paprika, garlic, and other spices, then grilled to perfection. And they’re bigger than chicken drumsticks, which means more meat to serve up to a hungry family!
Oh yes, it’s that time of year again. No, I’m not talking about pumpkin season. What we have here today puts pumpkin season to shame. That’s right, you guessed it. It’s grilling season! Hot & spicy, flame-kissed, marinated deliciousness in your very own backyard.
And today we’re looking at something really special: Grilled Turkey Legs With Spiced Marinade.
Can we take a moment to reflect on how absolutely perfect these turned out? They were tender, juicy, and super meaty. They key to a really good turkey leg is keeping a close eye on it. You don’t want to let it cook for too long, or get too hot, or they’ll start drying out. I stuck to the directions I have on here, and once you get the right internal temperature you want to pull them off right away.
That, and a really good marinade make ALL of the difference. Seriously. You can go in any direction you want to with this marinade, it’s entirely up to you. I used your traditional olive oil and vinegar, some fat and some acid, to really get that meat ready to go. Then I added some of your typical grilling spices, like paprika and garlic, to keep it pretty simple this time. But I DO have big plans with a cilantro-lime grilled turkey legs recipe I’m working on. I’m ready to give my grill a workout!
And by the way, did I mention that Andrew and I finally moved into our new house, and bought the grill I’ve been lusting after for almost a year already? That’s right, I’ve got this bad boy in my backyard right now, and these grilled turkey legs were the very first thing we cooked on it.
On a side note, some great side dishes that I also made: grilled corn (just a little bit of olive oil and salt), grilled zucchini (same), and baked potatoes. Deeeeelish.
Ok, now back to the grilled turkey legs. The reason I loved grilling these so much was really because of their size. I almost felt like I was at the renaissance faire, chowing down on ye ole’ turkey leg (side note, almost the title of this post). They’re big, super meaty, and honestly I was really full with one of them and the grilled veggies. Andrew had two, and we had some leftovers for dinner the next night. Win!
You might also love my buffalo turkey burgers, or zucchini turkey burgers, if you’re looking for something extra to grill this week!
Grilled Turkey Legs With Spiced Marinade
Ingredients
- 6 medium turkey legs
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp cider vinegar
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 2 tsp basil
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp mustard powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/4 tsp turmeric
Equipment
- Grill
Instructions
- In a small bowl whisk together olive oil, vinegar, sugar, and spices (paprika, basil, salt, garlic, mustard powder, cinnamon, cayenne, onion powder, and turmeric).
- Place turkey legs in a plastic bag. Pour marinade into bag, and seal it tightly. Shake bag until turkey legs are coated in marinade. Refrigerate 1-2 hours.
- Preheat grill to medium-high heat (about 350°F)
- Remove turkey legs from bag and place on grill. Close grill and cook about 10-15 minutes (or until they have nice grill marks on them). Turn legs over, close grill and allow to cook an additional 10-15 minutes.
- Move turkey legs to indirect heat (a place on the grill where they are not directly over the fire). Close grill and allow them to cook an additional 10-15 minutes, or until they reach an internal temperate of 165°F.
Notes
Nutrition
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