For the perfect turkey with juicy meat and crispy skin, try this roasted turkey recipe that gets its enhanced flavor from dried herbs and fresh aromatics.
Something you probably don’t know about me: I was born with some sort of turkey “gene” that has blessed me with making only delicious, meat-falling-off-the-bone turkeys. Granted, I’ve only made about four in my life, but every Thanksgiving, Matt and I are always so pleasantly surprised at the end result of my “I don’t know what I’m doing but I hope this works out” process.
Despite my good luck so far, I’m always nervous when it comes time to cook a Thanksgiving turkey—what with the increased pressure of the holiday. This year, in particular, I need it to work out because we’re hosting some friends. In other words, I have to cook turkey for real people this time, so ideally I’ll keep my tasty turkey streak going.
Thankfully, this time last year, I closely documented my turkey-prep process so I could have a go-to recipe for the indefinite future. Since it worked out so beautifully, I’m excited to finally share my fail-proof ingredient list and instructions!
So! Let’s get down to business.
There are three main components of my turkey recipe:
- Turkey
- Aromatics (carrots, celery, onion, and garlic)
- Compound butter (butter, sage, thyme, rosemary, parsley, and salt/pepper)
Once you’ve got the veggies roughly chopped and the butter-herb mixture prepared, you’re basically ready to assemble the simple turkey recipe. You’ll also need some chicken broth and white wine to add flavor and moisture (confession: half the reason I use wine is because I get thirsty when I cook 😉 #NotSorry).
Before I get into the juicy details (get it? bahaha) of what my recipe involves, make sure to check out my tips for the best Thanksgiving turkey, where I share some important bits of info that really help with preparing a turkey.
Ingredients:
- 16-18-pound pre-brined turkey, thawed
- Compound Butter with Herbs (recipe below)
- Aromatics (recipe below)
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 1 1/2 cups white wine
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks)
- 2 tsp dried rubbed sage
- 2 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- 1 Tbs kosher salt
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 1 yellow onion, roughly chopped
- 3 large carrots, roughly chopped
- 3 celery stalks, roughy chopped
- 5 garlic cloves, smashed
Instructions:
- Leave the defrosted turkey at room temperature 1-2 hours before preparing.
- Remove the turkey giblets and discard, or put them on the side of the turkey in the roasting pan.
- Place the turkey on a roasting rack in a large roasting pan, breast side up.
- Pat the outside of the turkey and inside of the cavity dry with paper towels.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the spices with the butter. Rub 2/3 of the butter mixture under the skin and in the cavity. Melt the remaining compound butter and brush it over the outside of the turkey.
- Pour chicken broth and wine into the base of the dish. Place onions, carrots, and celery into the cavity, with any extras in the base of the roasting pan.
- Optional: To tuck and truss the turkey, first tuck the wings under the bird. Then tie the legs together with kitchen string or by tucking them under the flap of skin at the end of the tail.
- Bake at 475 degrees for 30 minutes. Turn the heat down to 350 degrees for the remainder of the time. When the skin browns to the desired level, cover the entire dish with aluminum foil.
- 30 minutes before the recommended end time, check the level of doneness with a thermometer by inserting it deep into the turkey thigh. Keep checking every 15 minutes until it has reached 165 degrees; then remove it from the oven.
- Let the turkey rest (still covered with foil) for 30 minutes before carving and serving.
Making a turkey for Thanksgiving (or anytime) doesn’t have to be an overwhelming process. Even if it’s uncharted territory, I believe in you! If I can somehow make it work when I have no idea what I’m doing, so you can you.
My biggest tips? Make sure it’s defrosted; make sure you don’t overcook it; and make sure you’re surrounded by chill people just in the off chance that something goes wrong and you have to order some Thanksgiving pizzas, they’ll still love you. 😉
And one last shot of food because i’m excited for all the tasty things coming up.
Are you experienced with cooking turkeys? Any tips you swear by?
What’s your favorite Thanksgiving or holiday dish?
