The easiest way to grill a whole chicken is just tossed on the grill. A little butter and some seasoning, and you're ready to cook. There is no real secret. As Thoreau said, "simplify, simplify."
Jump to:
Introduction and My Rating
We all need easy, dependable recipes. Something you can just do. Well, this is it.
To research this recipe, I read a lot of recipes. Lot's of very odd things going on out there. Some of the recipes were not too bad, just non-specific.
Not one suggested a grill temperature. No mention of surface temperature. Some even just said "preheat" with no suggestion of amount. A few would say to use "high," but there is huge variability in grills so not helpful.
There were other errors that make the recipes unworkable to the point of "did they really try this," and it showed in the comments.
So what I wanted:
- I wanted the chicken left intact. Not cut up or butterflied, I wanted simple.
- While I was going to season with just butter, salt, pepper, and garlic powder, it should be a basic recipe people could season to their taste.
- It should be adaptable to most grills.
My Rating
This was an amazingly good chicken. Great skin, very moist, and almost no work. A high 4 or low 5. My wife broke the tie, and she says 5. My wife wants more skin next time, and I got the "you can do this anytime you want."
🐓The Chicken
I suggest a chicken in the 4-6 pound range will work best. Do not do this with a very large chicken or small turkey. Bigger will need to cook longer to get the meat done and may overcook the skin. You can try, but be sure the final internal temperatures are correct.
This is a basic recipe that is ultra-simple. So no fancy this or that. No brine, no stuffing things under the skin or inside, and no smoking. You can do those things if you want, and the recipe will still work fine. But I like to present a good basic recipe and let you fancy it up.
If you want BBQ, give it a light brushing of your favorite sauce about 5 minutes before the finish. Now you have the best BBQ whole chicken.
♨️The Grill
This recipe depends on indirect cooking. The chicken is cooked in an area of the grill with no heat under it while the other burners are turned on.
Grills will vary how you do indirect cooking. But it is not that hard. I don't feel there will be enough drainage to require a drip pan.
You will want the indirect cooking in the 350° to 400° range on the grill surface. Never depend on a thermometer in a grill hood.
Please see A Beginners Guide to Grill Temperature on a Gas Grill for a more detailed discussion of grill temperature.
👨🍳The Method
Angle one chicken thigh and leg towards the direct side since you want their final temperature higher than the breast anyway. The side of the chicken towards the direct heat will get cooked faster, so rotation once in the middle is needed. Then the other thigh and leg will cook faster to even things out.
After you rotate, continue to grill until the breast hit 165°, the thigh and legs are in the 185°-190° range.
While you can do this with just a grill surface thermometer and an instant-read thermometer, some sort of remote thermometer will help you maintain the grill temperature.
I used the Thermoworks Therma Q Blue (This is an affiliate link, meaning I do make a small amount from your purchases. Your price is not affected by this commission.)
ThermaQ Blue Kit
🧂The Seasoning
My recommendation for seasoning is a nice brushing of melted butter along with salt and pepper to taste. In my house, garlic is also required, so I went with my 7:2:2 seasoning.
You can modify the seasoning to your taste.
📖Whole Chicken Recipes
BBQ Grilled Butterflied Whole Chicken
Simple Everyday Roast Chicken with Gravy
Alabama BBQ Chicken with White BBQ Sauce
🔪Instructions
Start with setting up your grill for indirect cooking. Clean and oil the grates. Turn the burners that will be on to full and watch grill surface temperature. Aim for 350° to 400°. Adjust the burners as needed.
Clean, trim, and pat dry the chicken. Be sure to remove any giblets. I have a hard time not rinsing the interior of a bird. If you do it, do it carefully and clean up after done. See my discussion on Chicken… To Rinse or Not To Rinse?
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in the microwave and brush all sides of the bird. Save the remainder for brushing the bird during the rotation on the grill. Season to taste with kosher salt and pepper. Garlic powder or other things if you wish. I used my 7:2:2 seasoning.
Place on the grill with indirect heat, angling one thigh and the leg to the direct heat side. Close the lid, and don't touch for 40 minutes.
Rotate the bird at 40 minutes angling the other thigh towards the heat. Give it a brush of butter and continue grilling until the internal temperature of the breast is 165°.
Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Do you want more recipes from 101 Cooking for Two? Sign up for the newsletter and get all posts delivered straight to your inbox!
📖 Recipe
Grilled Whole Chicken on a Gas Grill
Ingredients
- 4 pound whole chicken - 4-6 pound range. Bigger will take longer.
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 7:2:2 seasoning or just coarse salt and pepper - Or seasoning of your choice.
Instructions
- Start with setting up your grill for indirect cooking. Clean and oil the grates. Turn your burners that will be on to full and watch grill surface temperature. Aim for 350° to 400° in the indirect area. Adjust the lite burners as needed.
- Clean, trim, and pat dry. Be sure to remove the giblets. I have a hard time not rinsing the interior of a bird. If you do it, do it carefully and clean up after done.
- Melt 2 tablespoons butter in the microwave and brush all sides of the bird. Save the remainder for brushing the bird during the rotation on the grill.
- Season to taste with kosher salt and pepper. Garlic powder or another seasoning if you wish. I used my 7:2:2 seasoning. You can use other seasonings if you want.
- Place on the grill with indirect heat angling one thigh and leg to the direct heat side. Close the lid and don't touch for 40 minutes.
- Rotate the bird at 40 minutes angling the other thigh towards the heat. Give it a brush of butter and continue grilling until internal temperature of the breast is 165°. Total cooking time for me was 80 minutes.
- Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- A good estimate of cooking time is 15-20 minutes per pound.
- I suggest a 4-6 pound chicken. You can try bigger but the skin may get overdone.
- Get the grill set up correctly is the key to doing this right the first and every time.
- Grill surface temperature and the internal temperature of the chicken must be monitored.
- Never trust a grill hood thermometer and never cook by time alone.
- This works better if you have a method of monitoring the chicken and grill surface temperature without opening the lid repeatedly.
- If you want BBQ, brush on some sauce about 5 minutes before the bird is done.
- The minimum safe internal temperature for chicken is 165°. Aim for that in the middle of the breast. You will want to have the thighs or legs in the 180° range if you can.
Nutrition
Originally Published June 11, 2017. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos and a table of contents to help navigation.
Robert
Thank you so much for this...I had a whole chicken to cook and really didn't want to heat up my kitchen on a 94 degree day. This was perfect and easily within my skill set.
I used my 3-burner Ducane propane grill and it worked out so well. I heated the grill on all 3 burners, then turned off the center one and dropped the chicken on the grill over that area. I turned the other 2 burners to a more moderate setting and spread out the wings and legs away from the chicken body.
Came back in 40 minutes (as instructed), brushed on the rest of the melted butter and let it go another 10 minutes. Checked the temperature and it was perfect. Pulled it off the grill, let it rest a bit, and voila! a perfect bird.
Again, can't thank you enough!
Hilary Silberman
I just tried this recipe. It turned out great! Thank you!
Hilary
Mary Ann
I tried this recipe, it came out good! I can’t believe it because usually my grilling doesn’t come out so good. I used your 7-2-2 recipe too, I added onion powder to it & that was great too. I’m so stoked!!
Lily Everett
I am new to grilling. I have a Dyna-Glo gas grill and a Weber Bluetooth thermometer to monitor the surface heat. I cannot for the life of me get the indirect heat to get up to 350F and stay there, let alone getting anywhere near 400. The only way I am finding that I can keep the temp in the right range is by turning on and off one of the direct burners under the chicken, although I’m having to babysit it and adjust every 5 minutes. 😣 I do live in a semi-windy place, that’s the only thing I can think of that is making it so I cannot, for the life of me, get the indirect heat to be hot enough.
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Lily,
Welcome to the blog.
Some grills are harder to control. If you haven't seen it, here is my discussion on grill temperature. https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/grill-temperature/ but it does not cover indirect much. You will find more about indirect grilling at https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/set-gas-grill-smoking-low-slow-cooking/.
If those do not help, please let me know your grill model so I may be able to be more specific. A lot will depend on the number and direction of the burners.
Dan
Alison K
Tip #7 has a typo. Needs to say "brush" not "bush." I will be trying this recipe tomorrow!
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Alison,
Thanks for the proofread. It has been that way for 3 years. Fixed.
Enjoy your chicken.
Dan
Allen
Dear Dan,
Try taking 1 or 2 frozen chickens and place them on the grill with drip pans below for 2 hours. Turn once or twice and brush the natural oils from drip pan onto chicken. The result is absolutely delicious.
Thanks for your wonderful advice and recipe suggestions.
Allen
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Allen,
Welcome to the blog and thanks for the note.
If you asked me before, I would say not to cook the chicken frozen but as long as you are cooking to a final internal temperature, you good as you found out. There are an number of recipes out there for cooking fully frozen turkeys so it does seem reasonable. I do frequently cook fully frozen brisket.
Thanks so much for this report.
Dan
Judy
Perfection! I added soaked hickory wood chips to a smoke box on the direct heat side of the grill and roasted a 6 lb. chicken in two hours. Delicious! Going to roast another today. Thank you for the great grilling tips on indirect grilling.
Glen Spencer
Hello Double D no pun intended thank you for that recipe I can now cook a whole chicken on my friends gas grill when I'm house-sitting I'll be coming back and looking for more recipes you take care of brother and God bless keep on cooking
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Glen,
Welcome to the blog and sorry for the delayed response.
I'm so glad you found this recipe useful. It is one I'm fond of since I like simple things.
Have a look around and let me know if you have questions or comments.
Thanks for the note and rating.
Dan
Joanne
This is a great recipe! I have made it at least 8 times and with no changes, exactly as written, and it has always come out moist and flavorful. At first I made it when it was too hot to oven roast, but as it turns out we like it even better than in the oven. Just be sure to oil or use grill pam and to have no flame on the side where the chicken goes. Try it and you will love it too!
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Joanne,
Welcome to the blog.
I do love this recipe. It is just odd that it is really this simple.
Thanks for the note and rating.
Dan
Matt KM
Dr Dan: this was a terrific recipe. The amount of detail was impressive and added so much to the recipe (e.g., the drippings, the resting—never think about that for chicken, and the timing being spot on). Really great work. Went w a basic garlic and onion on it. Want to try the 7-2-2 next time.
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Matt,
Welcome to the blog.
Glad you enjoyed the recipe. It is so simple but it is the details that count.
Thanks for the note and rating.
Dan
Michael K
I am so looking forwadd to making this chicken this coming BBQ season. I used to make beer can chicken, but it seems like the lids on gas grills are getting shorter, so I can't stand the chicken up on my current grill. I am also going to look into getting a ThermaQ Blue.
Keep up the good work Dr.
DrDan
Hi Michael,
I have never had a grill that would handle a chicken standing up. The ThermaQ is just a nice toy and I do love toys. Not required for this recipe.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Barb klaft
Spent way too much time looking for the recipe because I couldn't get past you talking about your new toy! I didn't want to learn about a thermometer I wanted to learn about a chicken recipe!!!
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Barb,
Welcome to the blog.
You do have a point on this one. It is scheduled for a rewrite in a few months. I'm moving it up and will get to it in the next week or so.
I only have a few posts like this and most of that will be gone. There will be jump table to go directly to what you want to know.
So check back in a week or so.
Now, aren't you surprised?
Dan
Jen
Newbie here to whole chicken and gas grill... my question is may I put it in an aluminum pan and cook on grill as I do oven? I’ve done beer can chicken, which is yummy 😋. Thank you 😊
DrDan
Hi Jen,
Welcome to the blog.
About a pan... I did not test it that way and believe it may interfere some with the cooking/browning. So I would not do it. This is not a mess like pulled pork. You can try it if you want and be sure to watch the internal temperature to determine when it is done.
Dan
June
How does it work if you turn the side burners both on and put the chicken in the middle one that are unlit?
DrDan
Hi June,
The answer... I think it would but have not tried it. The surface temperature in the center of the grill needs to be 350 but the thighs would be pointed to the heat and get some radiant energy. If you try it, watch the internal temperature of the thighs and breasts closely. You also want the legs in the 185 range.
Dan
Jeff
Hi DrDan,
I'm new to the BBQ game and I found your website looking for recipes and now it's may go-to resource! I've done your ribs and pulled pork, and will be trying out this chicken this weekend. Just wanted to leave a note to say thanks for being so informative and helpful in all of your posts. Your hard work is not unnoticed!
Jeff
Rose
This may be a silly question, but what do you use to rotate the chicken without dropping it, or burning yourself?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Rose,
Welcome to the blog.
Really it is not an issue. A couple of spatulas and rotate it. To come off the grill, the same or something into the cavity and pick it up. Don't use your hands.
Dan
Steve
Hi Dr.
I am an avid BBQ nut, I Q everything. I take the chicken after cleaning and rub it with Virgin olive oil, add poultry seasoning,ground black pepper, and Rosemary Sage infused sea salt. Put the bird on the top rack on one side, turn the other side far burner to high, the next to Med and the third to low. No heat on the burner below the bird. Close the lid rotate after 30 mins close the lid and it's done at 50 mins. Never Fails!
DrDan
Hi Steve,
It is great to know your grill so well. Thanks for the discriptioon.
Dan
Chris
I love my non-wifi Therma-Q. It is my favorite remote probe thermometer that I own (I also have a DOT, 3 Chef-Alarms, and some others). I'm on the fence about getting one of the wifi ones because I already have 5 perfectly good units, ha ha.
Leslie
Recipe sounds easy (great for novice grillers) plan on making as soon ask buy a new grill. Any suggestions on best natural gas grills?
DrDan
Hi Leslie,
Thanks for the note. It is so easy. I just couldn't find instructions anywhere so I just winged it.
I'm on my second natural gas grill. They seem to last forever compared to propane. The propane grills burn hotter (and dirtier). I think since they are more "mass market" they tend to be made cheaper.
My current grill is a Weber with impressive quality. The first was a brand I had never heard of MTD or MDT or something like that. It seemed fine also.
There are grill review sites but really I think most all of those sites are just glorified Amazon link farms and don't trust them. You might check AmazingRibs.com. Meathead, the original owner now has control of it again so I trust it more again.
Dan
Ron
Great post. I'm a big fan of Thermoworks products. I have two Thermapen thermometers and the pre-bluetooth Chefalarm. Don't know what I'd do without them.
The chicken looks perfect.
DrDan
Hi Ron,
Yep, it was near perfect, especially considering that the technique was basically just tossing it on the grill and rotate it once.
I "love" all things Thermoworks and this one is a winner.
Dan