Juicy Turkey Recipes

JUICY ROAST TURKEY RECIPE

Steps:

• Season inside of turkey cavity generously with about 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper.
• In a medium bowl, combine: 2 sticks softened butter, 2 Tbsp olive oil, 1/2 Tbsp lemon zest, 4 Tbsp lemon juice, 3 pressed garlic cloves, 1/4 cup chopped parsley, 1/2 Tbsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper. Mash /stir with a fork until well combined (the lemon juice doesn't easily stir into butter but keep mixing and it will happen after a few minutes). Take a whiff of it; you'll fall in love with how fresh it smells!
• Separate the skin from the turkey breast by pushing your fingers under the skin. Do this from the front and the back of the turkey; being careful not to tear the skin.
• Stuff 2/3 of the butter mixture under skin then spread the butter around by massaging over the top of the skin. This butter keeps the turkey breast tender, juicy and provides rich flavor.
• Rub remaining butter over the outside of the turkey (breast, legs, wings). Drizzle all over the top of the turkey with olive oil and generously season with salt and pepper; I just love a crisp, salty skin.
• Stuff turkey with quartered onion, 4 halved garlic cloves, 1/2 bunch parsley and quartered lemon. Tie turkey base and legs together; crossing the legs to better close up the turkey cavity, plus it looks extra fancy on the table.
• Here is a fantastic tip: to protect the turkey breast and keep it juicy: Fold a large square sheet of foil into a triangle. Rub one side of your triangle with olive oil and shape the foil (oil-side-down) over the turkey breast, then remove foil; it will shield your turkey breast and keep it from getting dry. You'll apply this shield later in the roasting process.
• Place an oven-safe meat thermometer into the bird; beneath the drum stick; deep into the dark meat. Start roasting uncovered at 430˚F for 20 min.
• Remove from oven; quickly baste with butter from the bottom of the dish. You can use a baster or tilt one side of the pan and collect drippings with a large spoon. Now apply prepared foil triangle to turkey breast area.
• Reduce oven to 350˚F and bake for another 2 hours 30 min for a 12 lb bird. (Once you have reduced the oven to 350˚F, you will bake about 13 min for every pound of turkey). The turkey thigh should register at 170˚F on the temperature probe and the breast at 160˚F to make sure it's fully cooked through then remove from the oven (keep in mind the turkey temp continues to rise slightly after it's out of the oven).
• Transfer turkey to serving platter and cover loosely but fully with foil. Let turkey rest for at least 1 hour. It will become more tender and easier to carve, the longer it sits. Keep the drippings from roasting pan for gravy. Now you can decorate around your turkey and make it festive. I used kale for my greens, then added small apples, sliced oranges and quartered lemons.

JUICY TURKEY RECIPE

Steps:

• Use an instant read thermometer to test the internal temperature of the turkey to make sure that no part of it is frozen. Internal temperatures should be above 32 degrees F. Remove the turkey from its packaging and place onto a roasting pan. Discard neck and gizzards.
• Fill two plastic sandwich bags with ice. Clip them together and place them on the bird so that the ice can chill both breasts. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour, then discard ice bags. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees.
• Starting at the neck cavity, loosen the skin from the breast and drumsticks by inserting fingers and gently pushing between the skin and meat. Place slices of butter in between the skin and the meat.
• In a small bowl, stir together paprika, oregano, basil, salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder. Sprinkle over the skin of the entire turkey and rub in to coat.
• Insert an oven safe thermometer probe so that the tip of the probe is in the center of the breast of the turkey. The probe should be inserted from the neck area and be parallel to the roasting pan.
• Bake in the preheated 350 degree oven until the internal temperature of the breasts reaches 150-155 degrees. Baste 1 to 2 times if desired.
• Use an instant read thermometer to test different parts of the bird for doneness and to ensure that the breast meat really is 150-155 degrees in the center. The dark meat in the legs should register between 175 and 180 degrees F.
• Once the internal temperatures reach their desired level, let the turkey rest 20 minutes before carving.

JUICY ROAST TURKEY

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the first 6 ingredients. Brush over turkey. Place turkey on a platter. Cover and refrigerate for 1-24 hours. , Preheat oven to 325°. Place turkey on a rack in a shallow roasting pan, breast side up. Add the onion, celery and parsley to turkey cavity. Tuck wings under turkey; tie drumsticks together. Arrange bacon over top of turkey breast. Spread butter over turkey. Pour broth and water into pan., Bake, uncovered, until a thermometer inserted in thickest part of thigh reads 170°-175°, 3-1/2 to 4 hours, basting occasionally. Remove turkey from oven. If desired, remove and discard bacon. Tent with foil; let stand 20 minutes before carving. If desired, skim fat and thicken pan drippings for gravy. Serve with turkey.

JUICY THANKSGIVING TURKEY

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a turkey roaster with long sheets of aluminum foil that will be long enough to wrap over the turkey.
• Stir together the parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme, lemon pepper, and salt in a small bowl. Rub the herb mixture into the cavity of the turkey, then stuff with the celery, orange, onion, and carrot. Truss if desired, and place the turkey into the roasting pan. Pour the chicken broth and champagne over the turkey, making sure to get some champagne in the cavity. Bring the aluminum foil over the top of the turkey, and seal. Try to keep the foil from touching the skin of the turkey breast or legs.
• Bake the turkey in the preheated oven for 2 1/2 to 3 hours until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear. Uncover the turkey, and continue baking until the skin turns golden brown, 30 minutes to 1 hour longer. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 180 degrees F (82 degrees C). Remove the turkey from the oven, cover with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area 10 to 15 minutes before slicing.

WORLD'S SIMPLEST THANKSGIVING TURKEY

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Pull the neck and giblets out of the cavity; ditch the liver and save the rest of the giblets for gravy. Dry the turkey with paper towels, then season inside and out with salt and pepper. Fill the turkey with aromatics like chopped onions, carrots, apples and herbs, then place breast-side up in a roasting pan and brush with melted butter. Tent with foil and roast for 2 hours (for a 10- to 12-pound turkey; add an extra 15 minutes per pound for larger birds). Remove the foil, baste with more melted butter and crank the oven to 425 degrees F. Roast for another hour or until the meat at the thigh registers 165 degrees F. Let rest while you make the gravy.

PERFECTLY MOIST AND TENDER TURKEY

Steps:

• Allow turkey to stand at room temperature for about an hour.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees with rack in lower third of oven.
• Use a serrated knife to cut off top of bread to create a flat surface, if necessary. Cut bread lengthwise, without cutting all the way through. Open bread like a book. Evenly spread butter over cut-side of bread. Place bread, buttered side up, in large, heavy-duty roasting pan.
• Liberally season turkey inside and out with salt and pepper. Truss legs together using kitchen twine, and tuck wing tips under the breast. Place turkey, breast side down, on buttered bread. Place in oven, legs first if possible, and roast for 45 minutes. (If it's not possible to position turkey in oven legs first, rotate roasting pan halfway through cooking time.) Remove turkey from oven and reduce temperature to 350 degrees.
• Using a wooden spoon and side towels, carefully turn turkey so it's breast side up. Place in oven, breast side first if possible, and continue roasting, turning and basting with pan juices every 15 minutes until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh (avoiding bone) reaches 165 degrees, about 1 1/2 hours more. (If it's not possible to position turkey in oven breast side first, rotate roasting pan halfway through cooking time.) Let turkey rest at least 30 minutes before carving.

JUICY ROAST TURKEY

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 325°F Remove the neck, giblets, and tail (save these for the broth recipe) from the turkey, as well as any plastic parts, like leg connectors. Rinse the turkey well inside and out and pat it dry thoroughly with paper towels. Either stuff now, or bake the stuffing separately. Truss the turkey, if you like. Rub the turkey all over with the rub.
• For the rub: Combine all the rub ingredients together, hold back 1 1/2 tablespoonfuls of the rub, and lovingly massage the rest into your turkey, making sure you get some under the skin to flavour the meat underneath, as well.
• Put the turkey, breast side down, on a V-shaped rack in a roasting pan, preferably a heavy-duty flameproof pan so that you can make the gravy in it later. Roast the turkey (with the legs pointing to the back of the oven if possible) for 1 hour.
• With wads of paper towels in both hands, lift the turkey at the neck and tail ends and flip it breast side up. Carefully rub the rest of your herbs onto the breast. Continue roasting until a thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thighs reads 170°F, another 2 to 2-1/2 hours (you also have to get a reading of 165F). While the turkey roasts, baste it every 30 minutes or so with pan drippings and rotate the pan occasionally for even browning. Transfer the turkey to a carving board or platter, tent it loosely with foil, and let it rest for 20 to 30 minutes (you can use the juices to make gravy at this point). Remove the trussing strings before carving.

MOIST AND TENDER TURKEY (OR TURKEY BREAST)

Steps:

• Place turkey or turkey breast in a roasting pan.
• (I use a disposable roasting pan) Combine melted butter and chicken broth.
• Pour over turkey.
• Rub mayonnaise all over turkey's exterior.
• Salt and pepper lightly if desired.
• Roast at 300°-325°F until internal temperature reaches 170°F on an instant read thermometer. (I raise the temperature to 350° for the last approximate 30-45 minutes to crisp skin).
• (I roast my 18-20 lbs. fresh turkey at 250°F in a convection oven. It takes about 4 hours to reach the correct temperature.).
• Remove from oven and let sit for about 30 minutes before slicing.
• Note: because the butter and broth are for making gravy, if you need to make a lot of gravy, double the amount of both.
• To make gravy: pour pan drippings into a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add 1 Tbls. cornstarch per cup of broth/drippings to 1/4 cup cold water. (You'll usually need 2-3 Tbls) Mix well to dissolve. Stir cornstarch mixture into broth and stir until thickened. Add salt and pepper to taste. If too thin, dissolve more cornstarch in water and add until desired thickness. If too thick, add water or more broth to thin.