How To Make A Juicy Turkey

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Learning how to make a juicy turkey is a skill in itself. With the holidays quickly approaching, this year you can make a juicy turkey that is perfect to be the Thanksgiving centerpiece.

This delicious holiday turkey packs all kinds of flavor and juices will be pouring out of this beautiful bird. So just how do you cook a perfect turkey and keep it from drying out?

There is no need to be nervous in the kitchen when cooking the most important dish for your holiday celebration.

How do you prepare a turkey for cooking? To get the best flavor possible, remove turkey from the freezer and place in the refrigerator to thaw 3 days prior to the day you plan to cook it.

On the day of cooking – lay turkey out on counter for about 3 hours prior to prepping it to cook. This time helps it to cook more evenly in the oven to be even more moist.

After it has had time to adjust to room temperature, remove all plastic wrap. Also, remove from inside the cavity the giblets and any other parts that are inside. Take off the plastic rings that holds the legs together.

How To Make A Juicy Turkey

Supplies You’ll Need:

• Large Roasting Pan
• Kitchen String or Jute
• Heavy Duty Aluminum Foil
• Temperature Probe

Ingredients Needed:

• 1 cup melted butter, I use Kerrygold
• 2 tsp salt (I use Pink Himalayan)
• 2 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 cup Parsley Flakes
• 1/4 cup Thyme
• 3 TBS Olive Oil
• 1 Whole Garlic Head
• 1 Whole Large Onion

Can you prep a turkey the night before cooking? Yes! This will actually allow the butter and spices to rest on the meat and penetrate a bit deeper for a more rich flavor. If you want to prep your turkey the night before simply skip step one and complete through step five. Then cover with foil and place in the refrigerator.

STEP ONE:

Preheat oven to 425°F and make sure to remove the middle rack from the oven so your Thanksgiving turkey will fit.

STEP TWO:

Place fully thawed turkey in a roasting pan breast side up.

STEP THREE:

In a mixing bowl, mix melted butter, salt, pepper, parsley and thyme. Next, gently lift skin, without tearing, and brush or pour 1/2 the mixture onto the meat BELOW the skin.

STEP FOUR:

Slather the remaining half of melted butter mixture over the outside skin of the turkey. I use my hands, but you may prefer to use a basting brush. Make sure to over the wings and legs as well with the herb-butter mixture. And then sprinkle olive oil over the outside.

STEP FIVE:

Peel large onion and remove outer lining off and slice off the top of the garlic head to expose the bulbs. Place both the whole onion and the garlic head inside the breast cavity. Now tie legs tightly together to help hold in flavor of the onion and garlic.

STEP SIX:

Place in the oven at 425°F for 30 minutes. This will help to sear the outer skin to hold in the juices to make your turkey extra juicy.

STEP SEVEN:

After 3o minutes at 425°F: remove turkey, cover pan with heavy aluminum duty foil, reduce oven temperature to 325°F and bake slowly for 5 hours.

What is the best temperature to cook a turkey? Many recipes call for cooking a turkey at 350°F but I think 325°F is the best temperature and way to cook a turkey in the oven. This allows it to slowly cook and keeps all the juices inside it to keep it extra moist and juicy.

Once timer is done, remove from oven, insert a temperature probe in various places of the turkey to make check inside temperature is 165°F or a bit higher.

STEP EIGHT:

Keeping foil off, place back into the oven, uncovered, and cook for about 20 minutes to give the top a nice golden brown.

How Long Do You Cook a Turkey?

General cooking times for an “unstuffed” turkey in the oven:

• 10 – 18 pounds: 3 – 4 1/2 hours
• 18 – 22 pounds: 3 1/2 – 5 hours
• 22 – 24 pounds: 4 – 5 1/2 hours
• 24 – 29 pounds: 4 1/2 – 6 1/4 hours

This is the best Thanksgiving turkey recipe ever! No more dried out or bland turkey, but a juicy turkey every time. Your roasting pan will be full of juices to make a delicious turkey gravy or use it to make a from scratch turkey dressing.

More Holiday Recipes:

• Oven Roasted Carrots
• Garlic Grilled Green Beans
• From Scratch Pumpkin Pie Recipe

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