How To Cook a Trash Can Turkey [Recipe]
November 16, 2022 13181 view(s)

How To Cook a Trash Can Turkey [Recipe]

How to Cook a Trash Can Turkey 


Try this delicous garbage can turkey recipe and cook a 13 lb. Thanksgiving Turkey in less than 3 hours! 


Cook a Trash Can Turkey on Thanksgiving

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, it is officially #Campsgiving season, which means lots of outdoor cooking, time spent with family and friends, and sleeping under the stars thanks to the perfect fall-time weather. To help you celebrate Thanksgiving in the great outdoors, we tried out a brand-new turkey recipe that is so easy and delicious that it will become an annual tradition for your family as it did for ours.

All you need for this holiday recipe is a turkey, 20-gallon galvanized or non-galvanized steel trash can, a large bag of charcoal, a turkey stand, tongs, oven mitts, and a square pan to set the roasting stand in and catch all the drippings. The herbs and spices you choose are up to you, but our blend of garlic powder and Herbs de Provence proved to be an absolute win among all the hungry campers at Thanksgiving dinner. 

If your Scout wants to inch closer to Eagle during the holiday break, this is an excellent opportunity for them to gain valuable cooking experience that will help them earn the Cooking Merit Badge. Whether your family decided to go on a weekend campout for Thanksgiving or you want to shake things up a bit and try something new this year, this garbage-can turkey recipe is an excellent choice for a memorable holiday feast. 


Trash Can Turkey: Ingredients and Cooking Supplies


Ingredients

  • 1 10-15 pound turkey 
  • 2 tablespoons salt
  • 1 tablespoon black pepper
  • 2.5 ounces Herbs de Provence (thyme, rosemary, basil, tarragon, and lavender)
  • 2 tablespoons garlic powder

Cooking Supplies

  • 1 20-pound steel trash can (non-galvanized)
  • 1 turkey stand or roaster 
  • 1 square pan 
  • 1 set of tongs
  • 1 pair of oven mitts
  • 1 20-pound bag of charcoal
  • 1 food thermometer 


How to Get Started with Your Thanksgiving Trash Can Turkey


Although cooking a turkey in a trash can sounds odd and complicated, it's super easy to set up and quick to make. We cooked our 13-pound turkey in just under 3 hours! Once your supplies are ready, pick the right area to cook your trash can turkey. If you're celebrating Thanksgiving at home, we recommend cooking your garbage can turkey in the driveway, away from dry leaves on the ground. On the other hand, if the family is celebrating turkey day in the great outdoors, you should prepare all your meals at your campsite's designated food preparation area. If it's your first time cooking with charcoal, check out our video "How to Get Started with Charcoal." And like you always should, remember your Leave No Trace Principles when cooking a meal outdoors. 


Trash Can Turkey: How To Cook Your Turkey


  • Before you start cooking the turkey, you MUST pre-burn the trash can to burn off the galvanization (if you only have a galvanized trash can) because nobody wants heavy metal poisoning. We built a fire inside the can, then used a blower on the lowest setting to help oxygenate the fire and allow it to burn faster and hotter.
  • On turkey cooking day, set up the area where you will cook the bird. We didn’t want to kill the grass in our yard, so we set everything up in our driveway. Our setup consisted of tin foil (to make for easy charcoal/ash cleanup), a pan with the turkey, and a garbage can.
  • Now, onto prepping the turkey. As per usual, grab the turkey and remove all of the innards. Rinse the turkey and set it up on the roasting stand inside the tray/pan. If you are not cooking your turkey on a hard surface (as in concrete), you could also drive a stake into the ground to use as your roasting stand and set up pans underneath to catch drippings or any bits of turkey if they fall.


  • Time to season that bird—rub your turkey with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Herbs de Provence.
  • Set the turkey on the roasting stand, in the tray/pan, and UNDER the trash can.
  • Start up the charcoal using a charcoal chimney. Once the charcoal is white, layer it on top of the trash can and all around the bottom. Try to bank the charcoal as high around the bottom as possible, which will help the turkey get evenly crispy.
  • Add charcoal as the pieces burn down to keep that “oven” nice and hot.

Blue family tableware set made of BPA-free plastic Blue family tableware set made of BPA-free plastic
GSI Outdoors Family Tableware Set 12-Piece

GSI Outdoors 12-Piece Family Tableware Set - Taking the whole family on an outdoor adventure this Thanksgiving? Get this 12-piece GSI Outdoors Family Tableware Set. This outdoor tableware set allows you to ditch the disposable dishes and add some pop to your Thanksgiving feast! Crafted from ecologically-friendly polypropylene, these dishes are durable, lightweight, and BPA-free!

GSI Outdoors Family Tableware Set Includes:

  • (4) 12-ounce cups
  • (4) 9.5-inch plates
  • (4) 6-inch bowls
  • Mesh Bag 

 

  • We cooked our 13 lb. turkey for three hours, and it came out great. This is about the time the packaging called for, so it accurately held oven time for us. We may have been able to stop it at 2.75 hours, but here’s the deal – you don’t want to lift the trash can off the turkey because it will lose all of the trapped heat. Remember, your turkey needs to reach an internal temperature of 165°F, so continually check it with your thermometer. A good rule of thumb is if the juices running from your turkey are clear (no red), it's safe to eat. 
  • After your turkey has reached the allotted time, CAREFULLY remove the hot coals from the top of the can and from around the bottom and lift the trash can off (again, carefully to keep the residual dust from getting in the food).
  • Bonus - make gravy from the drippings by whisking in flour, salt, and pepper over medium-high heat.


Thanksgiving Cooking with Scout Shop


If you want to add an easy side, wrap some potatoes and sweet potatoes in tin foil and throw them in the coals on top of the trash can! You could also check out our latest desserts blog that gives you 5 easy dessert recipes (could there be a better way to polish off a turkey dinner?!). Keep us posted on your Campsgiving activities – share with us on social media using the #Campsgiving hashtag. For more outdoor cooking recipes, cooking supplies, and camping equipment, visit ScoutShop.org—the official online retail store of the Boy Scouts of America.

Happy Thanksgiving from our Scouting family to yours!

-The Scout Shop Team

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Kathy
November 19, 2021
We have been making a garbage can turkey for over 25 yes! I'll never use an oven again!