Roast Turkey For Thanksgiving Recipe
This is the best and only stuffed turkey recipe you will ever need. It is simple to prep and gives you juicy meat, crispy skin, and flavorful stuffing cooked right inside the bird, plus a quick homemade pan gravy.
Servings: 10 servings
Ingredients
Butter Paste for rubbing:
- ⅔ cup unsalted butter
- 1 medium head of garlic minced - 4 large cloves of garlic
- ¼ cup white wine of choice- good wine
- ½ cup parsley chopped and fresh
- thyme extra
- salt to taste
Whole Turkey:
- 11 lbs turkey
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp kosher salt or sea salt
- ½ tbsp olive oil to drizzle over the skin
For the Bottom of the Tray:
- 4 garlic cloves chopped, large
- 1 small yellow onion optional
- 4 rosemary sprigs
- ¼ cup butter
- ¼ cup white wine
- 1 cup chicken stock
Instructions
Prep the Turkey
- Start by removing the neck and giblets from the turkey, then wash it inside and out.
- Dry the turkey thoroughly. If it remains wet, it will steam/boil rather than roast properly. Make sure to dry inside the cavity as well.
Some turkeys come with torn skin; if so, use toothpicks to hold the skin together.
Garlic Butter Paste
- Mash the garlic directly into a bowl with a 100g of butter, warm the butter a little so it's easier to mix the wine. Add the salt, pepper, parsley, and ¼ cup of white wine.
- Mix everything until a smooth paste forms. If there is excess liquid, drain it off.
Basting
- Heat up the chicken stock, and melt 50g of butter with white wine. This mix will help keep the turkey moist, as turkey can dry out easily.
If you wish to boil the neck and giblets for the stock, you can; another way is to use chicken stock.
Rubbing the Turkey
- Gently lift the skin and spread the butter paste underneath the skin, being careful not to tear the skin. Massage the outside of the turkey pushing the garlic butter all over the skin. Repeat this on the front and bottom of the bird.
Massaging the turkey breast helps to spread the butter that we put inside the skin. The wings and underside need to be thoroughly covered in butter.
Stuff the Turkey (Optional)
- Prepare your favorite stuffing and fill the cavity of the turkey (about 2 cups of stuffing usually fills it nicely if the bird is big) Do not overstuff your turkey. You need space, if you put too much of it it gets clunky.
Prepare the stuffing ahead of time, but cook it on the stovetop for only 10 minutes. After stuffing the turkey, bake any leftover stuffing in the oven separately as usual.
Tie the Turkey
- Lift the drumsticks and wrap kitchen twine around the end of each leg three times. Cross the legs together and tie securely. Foil the wings behind the turkey so they don’t burn.
How To Roast The Turkey
- Place the garlic, rosemary, basting mix, and remaining 50g of butter into a roasting pan (add sliced onion if desired). Place a rack in the pan and position the turkey on top. Rub extra garlic butter over the turkey if available.
- Drizzle olive oil over the bird so the butter does not burn.
- Generously season the turkey with salt and pepper. Put it in the oven
- Cover the turkey with foil before placing it in the oven. We are going to cook it with foil for the first 2 hours and 45.
- Every 45 minutes, drizzle the turkey with the basting mix. Uncover the turkey and cook for the remaining time without the foil, so the skin can turn nice, crispy, and golden.
- Remove from the oven, let it rest for at least 10 minutes before cutting and serve and enjoy!
Preheat the oven to 320°F/160°C.
The salt gives the skin a little crispness. Adjust to your taste!
Rub butter on the underside of the foil before covering the turkey completely so it does not stick. The reason why I cover the turkey is that, in this way, the turkey cooks moist.
The internal temperature must reach 165°F (74°C) in both the thickest part between the breast and thigh (without touching the bone) and the center of the stuffing.
Notes
Notes:
Cooking time: The turkey is cooked according to its weight; to calculate the perfect time for your turkey, add half an hour per kilo. The cooking times that I'm using are for a 5kg/11lbs turkey. Review the oven: The cooking time and temperature depend on your oven. All ovens are different. Please check the thermometer before taking the turkey out.Storage, Reheating, and Make Ahead
Always scoop the bread filling out of the turkey cavity before storing. Keeping the meat and dressing in separate containers helps everything cool down safely and stops the bread from getting soggy.- Fridge: Slice the leftover meat off the bone and transfer the turkey, stuffing, and gravy into separate airtight containers. They will keep well in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.
- Freezer: For longer storage, pack the sliced turkey into freezer bags with a splash of pan juices or chicken stock to prevent freezer burn. Freeze the meat and stuffing separately for up to 3 months, then thaw overnight in the refrigerator before warming up.
- Reheating: Place the sliced turkey in a baking dish, pour a few tablespoons of chicken stock or gravy on top, cover tightly with foil, and warm in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 15 to 20 minutes until heated through. Warm the stuffing in a covered dish alongside it, removing the foil for the last 5 minutes to crisp the top.
- Make Ahead: You can mash the garlic herb butter paste and cook the stovetop portion of the stuffing up to 2 days in advance, keeping both covered in the fridge. Wait to stuff the bird until right before it goes into the oven so the cavity heats evenly.
Save the leftover turkey carcass, neck, and any roasted garlic and onions from the bottom of the pan to simmer in a pot of water for a couple of hours. It makes a flavorful homemade turkey stock that you can freeze in portions for winter soups
Nutrition
Calories: 789kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 82g | Fat: 47g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 9g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 329mg | Sodium: 1348mg | Potassium: 1212mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 907IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 89mg | Iron: 8mg