Thanksgiving Turkey Recipe

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Tender, juicy, and intensely flavorful, my Thanksgiving turkey recipe has everything you want to make the perfect holiday meal. Complete with citrus stuffing, herbs, and a hearty slathering of homemade garlic butter, this no-brine turkey recipe is so good, you'll be asked to cook the turkey every year!

Best Thanksgiving Turkey recipe

If you've been here for any amount of time, you know how much I love turkey recipes. I try something new every year and have a lot of experience with turkey recipes, from roasted turkey like this one or my boneless roast turkey, to smoked, Spatchcock, grilled, Instant Pot, deep fried, Cajun-spiced, sous vide, and turkey breast in the air fryer.

But, out of every turkey recipe I've made, this is hands down my favorite one. This is my classic turkey recipe, and I am so proud of the effort that went into making it the best it can be. It's a no-brine turkey, with buttery meat and crispy skin that is just irresistible. Did I mention the turkey butter?

Every time I make this Thanksgiving turkey, someone asks me for the recipe, and I promise the same will happen for you. It is a show-stopper, for sure!

P.S.: Save the carcass! You can make my favorite soup.

Tried this today and it turned out great! This is my go to turkey recipe from now on.

Melanie on Pinterest

Turkey Recipe Ingredients

• Turkey: This recipe works best with a 12 to 15 pound turkey, but can easily be adjusted if you need to serve more. I've included helpful charts for calculating turkey per person below.
• Garlic Butter: You need fresh parsley, minced garlic, and butter to make my garlic butter recipe. You can leave out the parsley if you want. Just mix the garlic and softened butter together.
• Orange: You'll need half an orange. The orange is stuffed into the bird with the lemon and onion, and imbues the meat with a citrusy flavor.
• Lemon: Lemon pairs with orange to give the turkey meat a citrusy flavor. It is irresistibly delicious, especially with the onion!
• Onion: I recommend using white onion. Yellow onion would work too, but avoid red onion as it is way too astringent.
• Fresh Herbs: I'm using sage, rosemary, and time. You'll need several sprigs. You don't have to use fresh herbs if you don't want to, but it really adds a lot of flavor.
• Chicken Broth: This is poured into the bottom of the roasting pan, and collects the turkey drippings so you can very easily make turkey gravy later.
• Baking Twine: Technically not an ingredient, but very important! You use baking twine to tie the legs together while roasting the turkey. This step should not be skipped.

How to Roast a Turkey Recipe

1. Preheat your oven to 425°F with the rack in the lower third of the oven. Pat the turkey dry with paper towels (do not rinse).
2. Remove neck and giblets, gravy packets, or any packages inside the cavities of the bird. Check the large cavity of the turkey as well as the neck cavity.
3. For the turkey seasoning, you will need to make my Garlic Butter, butter mixture. It’s just 3 ingredients and takes only a few minutes to mix together!
   
4. Carefully lift up the skin, separating it from the breast as much as you can. The back of a spoon works well for this.
   
5. Season underneath with garlic butter. Rub the outer skin all over with more garlic butter.
   
6. Stuff the cavity with the orange, lemon, onion, and herbs.
   
7. Tie the legs with cooking twine and transfer them to a rack set inside a roasting pan. Tuck the wings underneath so they don’t burn – this is important!
   
8. Pour 2 cups of chicken broth into the roasting pan and transfer to the oven.
   
9. Roast the turkey for 15 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.
10. After the first hour of roasting the turkey, baste it every 30 minutes. Tent the turkey with foil if the skin becomes deep golden brown before the turkey is cooked through. 
    
11. Roast until a meat thermometer inserted into the thigh joint registers 175°F and 165°F when inserted into the breast (always test both).
    
12. Remove the turkey from the oven and transfer to a carving board. Allow it to rest for 15-20 minutes, and it should reach the proper internal temperature of 180°F in the thigh and 170°F in the breast. Do this before carving the turkey. Serve with turkey gravy and cranberry sauce!
    

Expert Tips for Thanksgiving Turkey

• Do not wash the turkey. Everyone thinks you need to wash your turkey, but that is not correct. Any bacteria on the turkey will get killed while baking, and you can spread bacteria if you wash it.
• Do not cook stuffing in the bird. I always recommend cooking the stuffing separately. You do not want to risk serving under-cooked stuffing! Stuffing the bird also slows down the cooking process, making it harder to cook it to the perfect temperature.
• Use a roasting pan with a rack, and fill the pan with broth. This serves two purposes: keeping the turkey moist as it cooks, and collecting the drippings to use for turkey gravy.
• Save those drippings! Trust me, you will want them for homemade turkey gravy. They make a world of difference!
• Save the bones! You can make an awesome turkey soup with them, or turkey stock.
• Use a meat thermometer. See my guide to Turkey Temperature for best results. The perfect temperature will read 180°F inserted into the thigh and 170°F inserted into the breast. Always insert it in both spots to test.
• Try my Butter Injection or Butter Rub. They are amazing!

Turkey Temperature Chart

The perfect temperature will read 180°F on the thigh and 170°F on the breast. You can follow my guide to the perfect turkey temperature.

I always recommend using a meat thermometer to make sure you cook your turkey to the right temperature. Always insert it in both the breast and the thigh area. It should be inserted close to, but not touching, the thigh bone.

Storing Leftover Turkey

You can store leftovers in the refrigerator for about 3-4 days in an airtight container. Go ahead and put your leftovers in the fridge as soon as possible once you're finished with your meal to keep them fresh! For easier storage, make sure to carve the turkey.

Thanksgiving Turkey Recipe FAQs

How to Make Turkey Gravy

At this point, you can carve the bird and serve it with gravy. Follow my step-by-step instructions on how to make the perfect turkey drippings gravy!

How to Carve a Turkey

1. Place on a cutting board. Remove the twine around the legs using your knife.
2. Remove the legs by cutting through the area that connects the breast and the drumstick. Use your knife to slice down until you reach the joint. Then, using a paper towel, grab the leg and push it down. This will separate the leg and thigh from the bird. Use your knife to slice through the joint.
3. Remove the drumstick by separating the drumstick and the thigh by cutting through the joint area connecting them. Place the drumstick on a platter. Set aside the thigh meat to slice later.
4. Find the wishbone at the front center of the breast. Use your fingers to pull it out. Removing the wishbone makes it easier to carve the breast meat, so don't skip this step.
5. Find the breastbone and place your knife on one side of it, and slice down close to the bone. As you are slicing, use your other hand to pull the meat from the breastbone. This will help you take the breast in one piece. Set aside the whole breast to slice later.
6. Using your knife, slice through the joint to remove a wing. Place the wings on the platter.
7. Hold the thigh bone with tongs or a paper towel, and remove the meat from the bone with your knife. Place the meat on the platter.
8. Use tongs to hold the breast in place, then place the meat on the cutting board so you can cut it at a shorter length. Slice the breast against the grain. Trust us, this will make a huge difference. Make sure to keep the skin attached. Place the slices on a platter.

How to Thaw a Turkey in Time for Thanksgiving

For methods and tips on thawing the turkey in time for Thanksgiving, take a look at my guide on How to Thaw Turkey!

Turkey Thawing Time

For a turkey less than 6 pounds, thaw for 1 day.

Note: it is extremely important to thaw your turkey safely. Never, ever thaw your turkey on the counter!

Turkey Stuffing Recipes

• Chorizo Stuffing
• Gluten-Free Stuffing
• Instant Pot Stuffing

Give my Popular Thanksgiving Turkey Recipes a try for even more ideas!

What to Do with Leftover Turkey

• Turkey Casserole
• Turkey Slider Sandwiches
• Thanksgiving Casserole

Everyone in my family considers me the Thanksgiving Turkey Recipe Expert. I love cooking turkey recipes and have gotten pretty darn good at it. This is my fool-proof recipe for the most delicious turkey you will ever make. Let me know if you try it!

Thanksgiving Turkey Recipe

Recipe Author: Isabel Laessig

Tender and juicy, with herby citrus flavors and covered in garlic butter, this is truly the Best Turkey Recipe!

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 3 hours hrs

Resting Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 3 hours hrs 30 minutes mins

Servings 10 (Depending on size of your turkey)

Calories 586 kcal

Video

Equipment

• Roasting Pan with Rack (large enough for your turkey)
• Baking Twine
• Turkey Baster (optional)

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 12-15 lb turkey - If using a larger turkey, use our cooking chart
• ▢ Garlic butter
• ▢ 1 Orange - halved
• ▢ 1 Lemon - halved
• ▢ 1 Onion - halved
• ▢ Several sprigs of fresh herbs - like sage, rosemary, thyme
• ▢ Baking twine
• ▢ 4 cups chicken broth

Garlic Butter

• ▢ 2 sticks salted butter - at room temperature
• ▢ 4 cloves garlic - finely chopped or pressed
• ▢ 4 Tablespoons fresh parsley - finely chopped; or 2 teaspoons dried parsley

For Gravy

• ▢ 2 Tablespoons flour
• ▢ ½ cup milk

Instructions

 

How to Prepare Turkey for Cooking

• Make sure your turkey is fully thawed. See: how to thaw turkey.
• Remove the turkey from the packaging.
• Remove the neck and giblets and discard or store and save for gravy or stock. The neck is typically found in the large cavity of the turkey and the giblets are usually found in a bag in the small (neck) cavity. Sometimes, gravy packets will be stored here, too. Remove any packets in the cavities.
• Pat the turkey fully dry with clean paper towels. Do NOT rinse.

How to Roast Turkey

• Preheat oven to 425°F with the rack in the lower third of the oven.
• Mix garlic butter by combining softened butter, parsley, and minced fresh garlic.
  2 sticks salted butter,4 Tablespoons fresh parsley,4 cloves garlic
• Carefully lift the skin of the turkey, separating it from the breast as much as possible. This is easiest using the back of a spoon. Season underneath the skin with the garlic butter, then rub the outside of the skin all over with more garlic butter to coat the entire bird.
  Garlic butter,12-15 lb turkey
• Stuff the large cavity with a halved orange, half a lemon, a halved onion, and fresh herbs. Tie the legs together with baking twine.
  1 Orange,1 Lemon,1 Onion,Several sprigs of fresh herbs,Baking twine
• Transfer the turkey to a roasting pan with a rack. Tuck the wings underneath the bird to prevent them from burning. Then, pour chicken broth into the roasting pan.
  4 cups chicken broth
• Add the turkey to the oven. Roast for 15 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350°F. Roast for 1 hour.
• After 1 hour, begin basting the turkey every 30 minutes. If you find the skin is browning more quickly than the bird can cook, tent the turkey with foil.
• Roast until a meat thermometer inserted into the thigh joint registers 175°F and 165°F when inserted into the breast (always test both).
• Remove the turkey from the oven and transfer to a carving board. Allow it to rest for 15-20 minutes, and it should reach the proper internal temperature of 180°F in the thigh and 170°F in the breast.
• Remove the stuffing and discard. Carve and serve after resting, and enjoy!

Making Turkey Gravy

• To make gravy from drippings, place the roasting pan on the stovetop over medium-high heat (or transfer juices to a saucepan if you prefer).
• Add 2 cups of the remaining broth to the pan drippings and bring to a simmer. Skim off all but 1-2 Tablespoons of the fat, depending on the size of your bird.
• Combine milk and flour in a jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake vigorously to combine.
  2 Tablespoons flour,½ cup milk
• Whisk the milk mixture into the gravy and simmer, stirring continuously until the gravy thickens slightly, about 2 minutes.

Final stepPlease consider Leaving a Review below to tell me what you think of the recipe! This helps me know what you're looking for, so I can continue to provide you with high-quality recipes at no cost.

4.78 from 22 votes

Notes

1. Turkey Breast: You can use a turkey breast in place of a whole turkey for this recipe.
2. Garlic Butter: Trust us, once you try this garlic butter spread on your turkey, you will never go back to traditional roasting. It makes the juiciest turkey you will ever try. 
3. Carving Turkey: When carving the turkey, find the wishbone at the front center of the breast. Use your fingers to pull it out.
4. Slicing Turkey: Slice the turkey breast against the grain. Trust us, this will make a huge difference.

 

Nutrition

Calories: 586kcalCarbohydrates: 6gProtein: 85gFat: 24gSaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 282mgSodium: 793mgPotassium: 1012mgFiber: 1gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 305IUVitamin C: 20mgCalcium: 73mgIron: 4mg