It doesn't have to be Thanksgiving or any other holiday for us to serve turkey for dinner. Cooked on the grill and seasoned with lime juice and oregano, the meat acquires a rich smoky flavor that's quite different from that of the oven-roasted variety. Since a ten-pound bird will serve a large group, this is a recipe that we rely on throughout the year. It's really easy, and the conventional cooking time is cut by a third.

Serves 8 to 10

1 (10- to 12-pound) turkey, butterflied (see Note)
1 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (from about 10 limes)
3 tablespoons dried oregano
½ cup (1 stick) butter, melted
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the turkey, bone side down, in a large ceramic baking dish. Drench the bird with ½ cup lime juice. Sprinkle the oregano under the wings and a little over the rest of the turkey. Marinate for a few hours in the refrigerator.

Prepare a hot grill. Combine the melted butter and the remaining ½ cup lime juice and set aside.

Season the turkey with salt and pepper. Grill the bird, skin side up, over indirect heat with the grill covered, until a meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part registers 180°F, 60 to 90 minutes. Baste occasionally with the butter mixture and turn once near the end to crisp the skin.

NOTE: If I can get my butcher to butterfly the turkey, I let him; I prefer his job to mine. He splits the backbone down the middle and bends the bones so that the bird lies flat. The breast is in the middle with one leg and wing on either side, making a large flattened bird. Butterflying exposes the whole bird to the heat of the grill and promotes faster cooking.

Copyright © 2006 by Meredith Brokaw and Ellen Wright. All rights reserved.