Moist Italian Turkey Breast Recipes

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.

VERY MOIST AND FLAVORFUL ROAST TURKEY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Cut butter into 1-tablespoon pieces, quarter the pieces, and refrigerate butter until needed.
• Use your fingers to loosen the skin over the turkey breast and thighs. Cut a hole in the turkey skin between tail and body (to affix legs); cut a hole on each side of the turkey beneath each wing (to affix wings). Rub the entire skin with vegetable oil.
• Toss apple and onion wedges, garlic cloves, and celery in a large bowl until combined; sprinkle poultry seasoning over the apple mixture and toss again to coat. Stuff the body and neck cavities with the apple mixture. Insert each wing tip into the hole under the wing to secure wings; insert both legs into hole near tail to secure legs.
• Place turkey onto a rack and set in a roasting pan. Insert cold butter pieces under the loosened skin, distributing the butter as evenly as possible.
• Roast the turkey in the preheated oven until an instant-read meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a thigh, not touching bone, reads 160 degrees F (70 degrees C), about 3 1/2 hours. Check for doneness after 3 hours.
• Remove roasting pan containing turkey from oven and cover with aluminum foil, lightly pressing the foil directly onto the bird. Let the turkey rest for 40 minutes before carving.

OVEN-ROASTED TURKEY BREAST

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Mix 1/4 cup butter, garlic, paprika, Italian seasoning, garlic and herb seasoning, salt, and black pepper in a bowl. Place turkey breast with skin side up into a roasting pan. Loosen skin with your fingers; brush half the butter mixture over the turkey breast and underneath the skin. Reserve remaining butter mixture. Tent turkey breast loosely with aluminum foil.
• Roast in the preheated oven for 1 hour; baste turkey breast with remaining butter mixture. Return to oven and roast until the juices run clear and an instant-read meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast, not touching bone, reads 165 degrees F (65 degrees C), about 30 more minutes. Let turkey breast rest 10 to 15 minutes before serving.
• While turkey is resting, transfer pan drippings to a skillet. Skim off excess grease, leaving about 1 tablespoon in skillet. Place skillet over low heat; cook and stir shallot in turkey grease until opaque, about 5 minutes. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in skillet with shallot and whisk in white wine, scraping any browned bits of food from skillet. Whisk in chicken stock and flour until smooth. Bring to a simmer, whisking constantly, until thickened. For a creamier, lighter gravy, whisk in half-and-half.

ROAST TURKEY BREAST

Steps:

• Remove the turkey from it's packaging, rinse, pat dry with paper towels, and set in a rimmed baking dish (like a 9x13-inch pan -- you don't need a roasting pan for this).
• In a small bowl, combine the butter, garlic, and salt. Mix to combine well.
• Using your hands, carefully separate the turkey skin from the meat when the breast meat is facing up in the pan. Getting started is a little hard, but just be careful to not rip through the skin. Work around the skin and meat to loosen the skin that is connected to the breast meat.
• When the skin is separated (but not removed -- it'll still be attached on the edges), use your hands to spread half of the butter mixture and the garlic all over the turkey breast meat, under the skin.
• Spread the second half of the butter mixture all over the outside of the turkey breast, on top of the skin.
• Place 1 cup of stock in the bottom of the dish.
• Quarter the apple and place however much will fit under the breast in the neck cavity. Place pieces that did no fit in the bottom of the dish.
• Cut the lemon in half, and squeeze half over the turkey breast (using your fingers to strain the seeds). Place the spent lemon half in the bottom of the dish.
• Strip the leaves from 2 sprigs of thyme and sprinkle over the turkey, and place the remaining sprigs and a "stalk" or two (large sprig pieces) of parsley in the bottom of the dish.
• Sprinkle the turkey with a bit of ground black pepper.
• Cover tightly with foil, and bake at 400 degrees F. for 2 hours.
• Remove the foil, and bake until the turkey is cooked though, about another hour. Save the foil.
• During the last hour, check every 10 minutes or so (after about 30 minutes) for doneness. If your turkey has a pop thermometer/gauge, I have found them to be pretty accurate. If yours does not, insert an instant read thermometer into the breast until it reads 165 degrees F.
• When the turkey is done, remove from the oven. Cover with the foil that you saved and let it rest for 10 to 15 minutes.
• When the rest time is over, you can serve the turkey or carve it and serve it on a platter with additional apples or herbs for garnish on the edges.

GARLIC HERB BUTTER ROASTED TURKEY BREAST

Steps:

• Remove fridge chill: Take turkey out of the fridge 45 minutes before cooking (or 30 minutes if it's super hot where you are).
• Preheat oven to 200C / 390F (all oven types). Put rack in the lower middle position. (Note 3)
• Place garlic and bunch of herbs in the middle of a baking dish. (Note 4)
• Butter: Mix Butter ingredients together.
• Loosen skin: Use an upside teaspoon to help loosen the skin from the turkey flesh (easiest to go under the paper thin layer under the surface skin). Video helpful here.
• Smear butter under skin: Use about 2/3 of the butter, and smear it under the skin on the top half of the breast. Best to smear using hands under the skin (not on surface), to ensure it spreads as evenly as possible.
• Turn turkey upside down. Reserve about 2 tbsp butter for the surface, smear the rest on the underside.
• Place turkey in pan on the herbs, skin side up. Now smear skin with remaining butter - you don't want much on the skin because the herb bits burn.
• STOP HERE for make ahead option - the turkey can be left like this for up to 24 hours. Remove from fridge 45 minutes before serving then proceed.

MOIST TURKEY BREAST

Steps:

• Place turkey breast in a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Combine the seasonings; sprinkle over turkey. Pour dressing over the top. , Cover and bake at 325° until a thermometer reads 170°, for 2 to 2-1/2 hours, basting occasionally with pan drippings. Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing.

MOIST ITALIAN TURKEY BREAST

Steps:

• Place vegetables and broth in a 6- or 7-qt. slow cooker; top with turkey breast. Brush turkey with oil; sprinkle with seasonings. , Cook, covered, on low until a thermometer inserted in turkey reads at least 170°, 5-6 hours. Remove turkey from slow cooker; let stand, covered, 15 minutes before carving. Serve with vegetables. If desired, strain cooking juices and thicken for gravy.

ROSEMARY ROASTED TURKEY BREAST

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, garlic, rosemary, basil, Italian seasoning, black pepper and salt; set aside.
• Wash the turkey inside and out; pat dry with paper towels. Remove any large fat deposits. Loosen the skin from the breast by slowly working your fingers between the breast and the skin, being careful not to tear the skin.
• Using your hand, spread a generous amount of the rosemary and olive oil mixture under the skin. Rub the remainder of the rosemary mixture over the outside of the breast. Use toothpicks to seal skin over any exposed breast meat.
• Place the turkey, breast side down, on a rack in a roasting pan.
• Place the quartered onion pieces (as many as you can fit) inside the breast cavity.
• Add about 1/4 inch of water to the bottom of the pan.
• Roast in the preheated oven for approximately 3 hours, or until the internal temperature of the bird reaches 165 degrees.
• If desired, turn the turkey breast over with about an hour left of cooking time to allow the top to brown. Let sit for 15-20 minutes before carving.

GARLIC HERB BONELESS SKINLESS TURKEY BREAST

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Place the turkey breast on a plate or board and pat it dry with paper kitchen towels.
• In a small bowl, combine the butter, garlic, rosemary, thyme, parsley, salt and pepper until the herbs are distributed throughout the butter.
• Rub the butter mixture all over the turkey breast, top and bottom, making sure every inch is coated in butter.
• Place the coated turkey breast in a shallow casserole dish or baking dish and roast at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for about 90 minutes, or until an instant read thermometer inserted into the deepest part of the breast reads 165 degrees Fahrenheit (74 Celsius).
• Remove the turkey breast from the oven and cover with aluminum foil (leave it in the pan). Let it rest for about 10-15 minutes, then slice and serve.