how long to cook baked potatoes on grill

These Baked Potatoes on the Grill are the best baked potatoes you'll ever have. They're fluffy, soft, and cooked to complete BBQ perfection. The secret is in the process. By seasoning well, grilling them in foil, and finishing them on direct heat, these potatoes stay moist on the inside, and crispy on the outside.

whole baked potatoes on a grill

BBQ Baked Potato

There are a handful of methods for making BBQ baked potatoes, and I've tried them all. Unfortunately, they always come up short. One method involves wrapping the baked potato in foil then grilling hot. While this does result in a cooked potato, this method gives you no BBQ flavor at all. So why cook them on the grill in the first place? Other methods dry out the potatoes, so they aren't fluffy or moist.

To remedy this complete and utter travesty, I've created my own method for making baked potatoes on the grill! To get the perfect BBQ baked potatoes, they are first wrapped in foil and grilled at 350 degrees F for 60 minutes and then cooked unwrapped over direct heat. With this method, you get a slow rise in temperature, but the foil keeps the heat in to evenly cook the potatoes. After the first hour, peel off the foil and put them on the direct heat to crisp the skin and give the potato some good BBQ flavor. This final step is crucial to get that crispy, crunchy skin that will taste as good, if not better, than the fluffy insides.

Grilled Baked Potatoes in Foil

When grilling baked potatoes, I recommend wrapping them in heavy duty foil before placing them on the grill. Cooking your grilled baked potatoes in foil helps the potatoes slowly rise in temperature and allows each potato to evenly cook.

I cannot place enough emphasis on using a good heavy duty foil while grilling these potatoes. Heavy duty foil doesn't split or rip while wrapping or cooking, so you don't run the risk of anything seeping out while your food is on the grill. If you don't have any heavy duty foil on hand, you can lay out 2 layers of regular foil to increase the strength.

baked potato on a sheet of aluminum foil

How to Grill Baked Potatoes

I love cooking baked potatoes on the grill. Sure, the oven does the job, but by cooking on the grill over indirect heat and then finishing them hot and fast, they come out tasting better than ever. Follow these 5 steps to get perfectly grilled baked potatoes every time:

Prep the grill and potatoes. Preheat your grill to 350-400 degrees F for two-zone cooking (one side with indirect heat, one side with direct heat). Rinse and scrub the potatoes to clean them and remove excess dirt.
Wrap the taters. Lay out 1 piece of 18″ heavy duty aluminum foil for each potato. Drizzle each washed potato with olive oil and season well with salt and pepper. Wrap each potato tightly with foil.
Grill those potatoes! Place the wrapped potatoes on the indirect side of the grill, close the lid, and cook for 1 hour. Rotate the potatoes at the 30-minute mark, so that the potatoes that were close to the direct heat get rotated away (and the potatoes that were farthest from the direct heat are now closer).
Remove the foil and grill hot. After grilling for 60 minutes, remove the potatoes from the foil using heat-resistant gloves or tongs. Take care to not burn yourself; these taters will be hot! Place the unwrapped potatoes on the direct side of the grill and cook them for 1-2 minutes per side (4-5 minutes total).
Cut, fluff, and serve hot. Remove your potatoes from the grill. Split them open, fluff the insides, and serve with your choice of toppings. (Try my Brisket Chili, it's delicious with potatoes!).

How Long to Grill Baked Potatoes

It takes approximately 1 hour to fully grill baked potatoes with your grill temperature set at 450-500 degrees F. I recommend cooking the potatoes wrapped in heavy duty foil for the first 60 minutes, then unwrapping them and placing them on direct heat for 4-5 minutes to crisp the skin. Make sure to keep track of the internal temperature of your potatoes while they are cooking. Grill temperatures can vary, and your potatoes might need a little less or more time to get to that perfectly soft texture.

foil-wrapped baked potatoes on the grill

Baked Potato Internal Temp

The optimal internal temperature for a baked potato is 210 degrees F. Using a reliable meat thermometer, aim for your grilled baked potatoes to reach between 205-215 degrees F. When your potato is in this sweet zone, you can guarantee it is evenly cooked throughout, and it will be fluffy and light. Bring on the butter and sour cream!

cube of butter on an open baked potato on a wooden cutting board

More Potato Recipes

Potatoes are an amazing side for BBQ. When trying to decide what sides to cook with your meat, I say go for the potatoes! Try out these other great potato recipes from Hey Grill Hey:

Smoked Baked Potatoes
Grilled Potato Salad
Smoked Chantilly Potatoes

Baked Potatoes on the Grill Recipe

Sliced and fluffed grilled baked potato topped with salt, pepper, and a pad of butter.

Baked Potatoes on the Grill

Prep Time : 10 mins

Cook Time : 1 hr 5 mins

Total Time : 1 hr 15 mins

Servings : 4

Calories : 356 kcal

▢ 4 large russet baking potatoes
▢ 2 Tablespoons olive oil
▢ 2 teaspoons salt
▢ 2 teaspoons black pepper

Preheat the grill. Preheat your grill to 350-400 degrees F for 2-zone cooking.
Clean the potatoes. Rinse baked potatoes and scrub to remove any excess dirt.
Wrap the potatoes in foil. Lay out 4 large pieces of 18" heavy duty aluminum foil (or lay out 2 layers of regular foil). Set 1 washed potato onto a piece of foil. Drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Wrap tightly with foil. Repeat with the remaining potatoes.
Bake the potatoes on the grill. Place wrapped potatoes on the indirect side of the grill, making sure the potatoes aren't touching each other so the heat can surround all sides of the potato. Close the lid and cook for 60 minutes. Rotate once at the 30-minute mark, so any potatoes that were close to the direct heat can be shifted away so they all cook evenly.
Move potatoes to direct heat. After 60 minutes, remove potatoes from the foil using tongs or heat-resistant gloves (be careful not to burn yourself!), and place the potatoes on the direct side of the grill.
Finish baking the potatoes. Cook for 1-2 minutes per side (4-5 minutes total) on direct heat. A perfectly cooked baked potato will have an internal temperature of 210 degrees F, so aim for your potatoes to be between 205-215 degrees F.
Serve hot. Remove the baked potatoes to your serving platter, split your potatoes open with a knife, fluff the insides with a fork, and top with salt and pepper and any additional toppings you prefer.

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