These blueberry balsamic BBQ turkey legs are grilled to perfection while coated with this deliciously easy summer BBQ sauce giving the famous Disney dish a run for its money!
If you’ve ever been to Disney, chances are you’ve seen people walking around, cavemen-esque gnawing on a turkey drumstick the size of their head.
Not one for the Mickey-ear food thing, those drumsticks might honestly be my favorite part about the park.
*This post for blueberry balsamic BBQ turkey legs is sponsored by the National Turkey Federation through the Healthy Aperture Blogger Network. All content and opinions are my own.
Not surprising really that I’d deem the best part of the worlds largest amusement park an item of food.
I have no idea what made me think about those turkey legs recently but I did and got to wondering if the grocery store sold them with the thought that they’d be a pretty awesome thing to grill this summer.
Next trip to the grocery store (which is like an every day occurrence for me), I was happy to see them front and center in the turkey section among all the usual suspects like breasts, tenderloins and ground meat.
So I picked up a few turkey legs for a welcome change and an attempt to recreate those epic Disney “treats” (yes, I’m referring to meat as a treat because in my book, those things totally are in all their delicious smoky glory) at home.
That said, I had to one-up Disney with these turkey legs.
And to do that, a blueberry balsamic BBQ sauce came to be.
I love grilled meat in the summer and while sometimes a dry-rub can do it for me, a sweet, sticky, finger-lickin’ BBQ sauce usually wins out (case in point these sticky maple ribs and these grilled BBQ short ribs).
As we enter blueberry season (finally!) I thought making my own BBQ sauce with those sweet little berries and balancing it out with some tart balsamic vinegar would be the perfect way to sauce up the turkey legs.
Turkey works really well with fruit (like in these turkey and sage stuffed apples or the classic cranberry pairing like these turkey cranberry enchilada melts), its mild flavor makes it a great canvas for a bold sauce like this one.
I don’t know if you’ve ever looked at the ingredient list in BBQ sauce from the store, but it’s actually something I find very hard to find a good tasting one with out hfcs <– major annoyance of mine or other sketchy ingredients.
I don’t think people realize how easy it is to make your own at home where you can control the ingredients and the flavor!
BBQ sauce can range from vinegary to overly sweet and everything in between, making your own ensures you get exactly what you want out of it.
This blueberry balsamic BBQ sauce definitely teeters on the tart side ever so slightly but the blueberries help keep things in check with their summer sweetness.
It’s really the best of both worlds and the perfect accompaniment to these healthy, lean turkey legs.
Serve these BBQ turkey legs with some bright greens and maybe some appropriately color matched mashed purple sweet potatoes or purple sweet potato fries and you’ve got yourself one heck of a delicious and easy summer meal (Disney style!) proving turkey can really be enjoyed all year round, not just for the holidays!
If it’s too cold to grill, try making the turkey legs in the air fryer instead. They’d cook similarly to this air fryer chicken leg quarter recipe, you’d just coat with the blueberry BBQ sauce a couple of times while they cook.
And if you can’t find turkey legs, give these air fryer BBQ chicken legs a try instead.
Love this blueberry balsamic BBQ turkey legs recipe?
Try other recipes like Blueberry BBQ Brie Burger, Grilled BBQ Short Ribs, and BBQ roasted chicken with cherry jalapeno sauce.
Blueberry Balsamic BBQ Turkey Legs
Ingredients
- 4 turkey legs, about 1-1 1/4 pounds each
- 2 cups blueberries
- 2/3 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed
- 1/4 cup minced shallots
- 1 1/2 tablespoons molasses
- pinch red pepper flakes
- sea salt, to taste
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Place the blueberries, balsamic vinegar and maple syrup in a small sauce pot. Bring to a boil then reduce and simmer until the blueberries have broken down. Stirring occasionally while cooking, about 10-15 minutes.
- Add the garlic, shallots and red pepper flakes, stir and continue cooking for 5-7 more minutes.
- Use an immersion blender (alternatively, you can pour into a regular blender) to blend the ingredients in the pot until desired consistency (I prefer a smoother BBQ sauce as it’s easier to coat the meat with).
- Return pot to heat, add molasses and season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir and let simmer over low heat for another 15 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside, BBQ sauce will thicken as it cools.
- Preheat grill. Rinse and pat dry turkey legs. Season with salt and pepper.
- Place turkey legs on the grill once hot. Coat with BBQ sauce as the legs cook, making sure to flip and coat a few times during the process. Cook until internal temperature of the legs is 175 degrees F.
- Serve with additional BBQ sauce.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
That glaze!!! I gotta have it!
These look so delicious!! Nice and meaty!
I’m sure I’m overlooking this, but I can’t seem to find the actual recipe. (Unless its simply blueberries cooked down to a sauce and then mixed with balsamic…?)
(These looks ah-mazing, by the way!)
You weren’t – I was having an issue with the recipes not displaying for a short period of time. Everything should be back now so the recipe is at the end of the post. Thank you for letting me know!
These blueberry balsamic BBQ turkey legs are freaking brilliant! I’ve seen the ones at Disney but these are WAYYYYYY better! love!
Wow those look fantastic! I never would have thought to make a blueberry balsamic glaze (which is why I’m much better at eating the foods than coming up with them ????) but I will have to try these out this summer!
Wow! These look absolutely amazing Gina! I’d want to put that sauce of everything!!
That glaze is everything! So much better than anything you can find at the store. Love that you used turkey legs for this recipe – you definitely out did Disney.
I’m obsessed with that glaze and can’t wait to try!
Whoa, those turkey legs! How I’d like to chomp on one of those right now!
These turkey legs look finger-lickin’ good! Blueberry-balsamic glaze sounds incredible!