Turkey Recipe

This is the turkey recipe you have been searching for! We've got you covered with instructions on how to cook your Thanksgiving turkey, because you have arrived at the #1 turkey roasting how to guide on the internet!

The technique described in this Instructable resulted in the beautiful 15 pound bird pictured below. It turned out to be one of the juiciest, most delicious turkeys to ever grace the delicate taste buds of Noah's family and friends since the pilgrims got all antsy in the pantsy more than 500 years ago.

This method has been thoroughly tested year after year at Thanksgiving dinners everywhere. Following the tips in this Instructable, you can make one that's just as good, if not better!

Step 1 Gather materials

I find that I don't roast turkeys too often, so when I do, I put in the extra effort to make them come out as good as I can because they'll be feeding a lot of people, and I might not be making another one until next year.

With that in mind, gather the following ingredients, and don't skimp on quality if you can.

• A 15 - 25 lb turkey depending on how many people you'd like to feed. Figure on 1 to 1 1/2 lbs. of the whole turkey per person.

I prefer fresh, unfrozen turkeys if possible, but often you'll have to get a frozen bird. If it's frozen, give yourself at least three or four days lead time in the refrigerator for the turkey to thaw before you plan to roast it. DO NOT roast a frozen bird, you'll be sorry.

• 1 stick of butter
• 2-3 stalks of celery
• 2-3 carrots
• 1 onion
• fresh thyme
• fresh sage
• fresh parsley
• chicken stock
• meat thermometer (this is the key to telling when your turkey is done cooking. I don't trust the red pop-up dot)
• turkey baster
• butchers string (cotton string safe for cooking with)
• kosher salt
• fresh ground pepper
• suitably sized roasting pan with a rack

Comments

[nagutron]

I have friends who swear that it's all about brining the turkey first. Here's their recipe:

Brine Recipe for Turkeys
For each 2 gallons water

• 2 cup Kosher salt (less salty than table or sea salt) or 1 ½ sea salt
• 2 cup sugar
• sage (Fresh herbs where possible)
• rosemary
• thyme
• 8 bay leaves
• cinnamon sticks
• cardamon seeds
• large chunk of ginger cut up
• peppercorns
• juniper berries
• garlic cloves
• 2 oranges
• 2 lemons
  

Bring to a boil for 5 minutes. Let cool, add 1 gallon apple cider. Brine bird for 24 to 48 hours. Rinse off well and cook.

[jjinyancey]

Been looking for a brine recipe...so, does it take 2 gal. of water to do just one bird? How big must the container be to soak that sucker in the frig? Or can you put it in some sort of bag and do it in an iced-down beer cooler? Thanks, JJ

[baduncadonk]

To hold turkey+brine, we used a plastic file container we bought at Big Lots for $2. Worked perfectly!

[kpromo]

So nice, so interesting. I will make this on my birthday

[scot.hacker]

Just wanted to say thanks. At age 46, I finally cooked my first turkey, using this recipe, and it came out fantastic! Really easy, actually. Used an 11-lb bird, and amazingly, it was cooked perfectly in 2:15' (so plan accordingly for smaller turkeys!)

The only difference was that we used a roasting pan with lid, so no tinfoil involved.

Also made my first gravy and first stock - all came out great.

[magic1969]

this is my way for years.good anyway you do it yuuuum.happy turkey day to all.

[doc_howell]

I recommend leaving the pop-up thermometer in place until the bird is completely cooked and rested. If you remove it before the juices have redistributed, juices will escape from the hole. Doesn't really matter if it's popped or not. Remove it just before you serve it.

Also, if you brine, I found adding apple juice or cider to the brine makes the bird a deeper reddish-brown...very GBAD.

[JeannieW]

This looks like a really good recipe. I'm going up north for Thanksgiving, so we're doing turkey Mom's way this year... will try this next time. :) We usually do it the way Grandma did:

Melt 1/2 to 3/4 cup of butter in a pan, add 2-3 cups of flour and mix in. Cool it a bit. Use your hands to cover the top and sides of the turkey, including the legs and wings. Bake it. Right before its done, make a pot of water with onion soup mix. When the bird is done, scrape the flour/butter mixture into the pan. Add the pot of onion soup and cook on a low heat while you loosen all the pan drippings and mix the flour in. You now have a very nicely crisp and browned turkey, with tons of sumptuously rich gravy. :)

[SRubicz]

Thanks for sharing Grandma's method of making the turkey, most importantly, GRAVY !
Just to clarify, melt the butter into 2 to 3 cups of flour? Seems like it would be very stiff.
Please reply if you see this [e-mail]
Thanks
Gobble-Gobble !

[JeannieW]

Melt the butter in a pan, then add the flour. This makes a roux paste which will stick very nicely to the outside of the turkey. You can also add some seasonings to this if you want, like salt and pepper or poultry seasoning. The butter and flour roux will take on a nice golden brown color and flavor, adding flavor to the gravy. Add extra water if needed. From a large bird, you can easily get 10 cups of gravy. It takes some time to dissolve all that flour, so someone needs to be working on gravy, while someone else does the turkey slicing and getting all the food into bowls, but its well worth it. We usually end up with enough gravy to last as long as the leftovers.

[daemonkrog]

I love this instructable. I do a very similar Turkey and do only one thing different.

I rub the herb butter between the skin and meat. You just use a spatula to gently peel the skin away from the meat, load it up with herb butter, and rub it around inside. It really adds flavor to the meat. Try it sometime. The skin is much stronger than it seems so don't worry too much about it breaking.

[frogmama]

My 7 year old was dissapointed that she has never seen a turkey, either on Thanksgiving or the 2 or 3 times each year I cook one, all laid out on a platter with the veggies around it. She really wants me to do it that way next time. I chuckled and told her that you only see that on TV - it gets too cold to let it sit there on a plate to carve, etc.

....But I'll have to do it this way because (1) it looks yummy and (2) I'm kinda a sucker for indulging my daughter on these little things :)

Thanks!

[ivonce77]

Sounds good to me!Thanks

[scot.hacker]

How would you adjust these instructions if cooking the stuffing separately? I assume the bird would cook from inside more quickly? (and if so, how much more quickly?)

Also: What would you estimate would be the total cooking time for a 11-lb turkey?

[happyguy54]

I used a Jennie-O (already injected) 18 lb. turkey....added green onions with bulbs to the cavity.....didn't peek for 3 hours.....basted uncovered for 2 more hours....the digital thermometer read 175 degrees......made a gravy with corn starch.....best turkey I have ever roasted in my life!!!!   Next time I'll quarter my carrots and cut the celery stalks smaller too....the veggies will be an addition to the other food....best recipe ever in my book....I didn't apply the Kosher salt but once....no need to rinse....added garlic powder to the seasonings......perfect!

[happyguy54]

Since my 18 lb. Jennie-O came already injected I decided to go directly with the Kosher salt and ground black pepper.  I added garlic powder to the bird as well.  I foiled the pan and did not peek until the 3 hour mark and basted away for the next 2 hours.  The digital thermometer showed 175 degrees and it was cooked.  This is the best turkey that I have ever cooked.  The fresh herbs and veggies really made the difference!  Thanks for sharing with us!!
HappyGuy54

[Brian Roth]

Be careful when brining a turkey. It must be a fresh, unprocessed bird. Most of the commercial brands have been injected with a salt/water solution to allegedly make them juicer. If you brine this type of bird you will be sorry. Remember fresh is best.

[dyermaker8]

Why will I be sorry? What happens when you Re-Brine a Turkey? 

[Brian Roth]

The amount of salt will be too high. A fresh, unprocessed bird soaked in a brine you make will give you much better results.

[bscleveland]

okay seriously, best turkey recipe ever.  I don't know if we tented it really really well or something but our 21.4 lb turkey cooked in 2 hours to 170 degrees, it was juicy and delicious but we had to crisp the skin so we just took the foil off.  We didn't add stock because we forgot but the veggies and butter with herbs provided so much we had a ton of gravy.  Thank you so much!  Know any more?

 

[flyatsky]

it's very nice
tanx

[WILL62]

WHEN THE THEMOMETER THAT LIVES IN YOUR OVEN SAYS 375 YOU COULD TAKE A PENCIL AND MAKE A MARK AND 375 BY THE OVEN DIAL SO YOU'D REALLY BE IN THE BALLPARK, FOR EASY REFERENCE AND ONE LESS THING TO MESS WITH...

[turkeylover]

Wow! First, I've never seen such nicely written description of a recipe in any other site. My favorite have been the turkey recipe at 123Recipes.com. But I am gonna try this one next... The pic looks so inviting.

[tireswing]

1) 155 F in the breast and rest to get 160. Use a wire rack and the thigh will be just fine. 2) Good idea with the flavored butter but get nearly all of it under the skin even if you brine. If you brine use unsalted butter. 3) Try to brine with an un-injected turkey. You'll know by the label. 4) Reduce a large amount of your favorite beverage that goes with turkey to nearly a syrup and combine with the compound butter; in the past I have used sherry, chardonnay, gewurtzraminer, liebfraumilch, and American Pale Ales with great success. 5) I get that you feel under scrutiny at these holidays but cut yourself some slack...........roast, fry, smoke, grill........whatever you want as long as you and the family have fun. Otherwise, go out to eat and give someone else the money and satisfaction of a job well done.

[crg1109]

where is this stock listing needed in step 7 in the 'gather materials' step????? attention to detail... might cost me my turkey dinner...

[noahw]

I just added it in. A thousand pardons, I really hope I didn't cost you your turkey dinner.

[JellyWoo]

great instructable!

[bomb voyajue]

(removed by author or community request)

[bcnr33skyline187]

good for you

[Hunnyb8975]

That is without a doubt the most beautifulest looking turkey Ive ever seen in my life. Looks like the meat just falls off the bone. Hmm hmm, im coming to YOUR house this year! LOL

[ElChick]

NOM NOM NOMilicious!!!!!! (8O)>

[jhorton]

Step 3 seems like a waste of salt to me. But otherwise, awesome Instructable!

[roof rack]

The USDA recommends that all fowl be cooked to a minimum of 165F in the center of the thickest parts of the meat to eliminate, or at least make improbable, the likelihood of food born illness. The temperature should be checked in the thickest part of the breast and the thigh. This should be done even if there is a "pop-up" thermometer installed in the bird. When a bird is stuffed you must also insure that the center of the stuffing reaches a minimum of 165F. In my 4+ decades of turkey roasting experience (we serve turkey 6-8 times per year in our home), the center of the stuffing will not reach 165F until long after the breast and thigh have reached 165F. This results in an over cooked bird. Heating the stuffing before it goes into the bird helps. I also insert a 5/16 in. dia. x 16 in. stainless steel rod into the stuffing to help transfer heat into the stuffing. Stuffing the bird also increases roasting time so I seldom stuff one anymore. In fact, now that I have a turkey frier, I seldom oven roast a turkey. Here is the USDA site for roasting turkey safely:
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Factsheets/Lets_Talk_Turkey/index.asp

HAPPY TURKEY DAY EVERYONE!

[Borat]

It's all in the quality of the turkey, and you must use fresh. This is the same basic recipe as found anywhere, and has always ended in disaster for me using frozen.

[Phil B]

Usually the recommended temperature at which turkey (poultry) is done is 185 degrees. You gave 165 degrees. I found both on the Internet as recommendations. 165 degrees was suggested for meat that is more moist. I have always done ours to 185 degrees and no one ever suggested the meat was dry.

[canida]

160 is the necessary temperature to kill Salmonella - anything else is bonus/overkill.

[matthewabel]

It's 165 when you pull it out of the oven, but it will actually continue to rise in temperature when you pull it out.

[noahw]

All of my research showed that 165 degrees is the desirable cooking temperature for a turkey, and it's also what I've always done. As you wrote, logic would support that a turkey cooked to a lower temperature would be more moist, because it wouldn't need to be cooked as long.

[freakinslop]

nice idea with the butter and herbs! You could add bread, apples and a little cinnamon to make the stuffing taste like savoury apple pie (the taste is kinda hard to explain)

[matthewabel]

I agree about brining. We started brining a few years ago and the difference is amazing. The best thing we've done is stopped stuffing the bird - no more dry turkey. Not only does it take longer to cook, but the porous bread kind of sucks the moisture out. That's why bird-cooked stuffing is so delicious. But I spent the money on a turkey, so that's what I'm worried about. I always start the bird in a very very hot oven to crisp the skin and then lower the temp with a foil shield on. It's not just for looks, I like a crispy skin when I eat it. And I've never ever basted a turkey, and I've never had a problem. I'll say that this bird looks damn fine, so I'm not going to quibble over particulars. No-stuffing is really the lesson learned here. I put in some lemon, apple, and onion - wet items I think contribute to steaming the inside a little.