This succulent Roast Turkey recipe is surely a main dish everyone will be thankful for! Flavoured with a herb, garlic and citrus butter, this Turkey is slow cooked to perfection. I’m sure this is going to be your go-to turkey recipe!
Ingredients
- 1 6kg Turkey, fresh or frozen
For the Butter Rub
- ¾ cup Butter, softened
- 4 Garlic Cloves, finely chopped
- 1 Lemon, zest
- ½ Orange, zest
- 1 tbsp Rosemary, finely diced
- 1 tbsp Thyme, finely diced
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
For Stuffing the Cavity of the Turkey
- 1-2 Onions
- 1 Lemon, quartered
- ½ Orange, quartered
- 1 Stock Rosemary
- 1 Stock Thyme
- 1 Stock Sage
- 1 tsp Salt
- ½ tsp Black Pepper, freshly cracked
For the Tray
- 1 Onion
- 3 Carrots
- 4 Stalks Celery
- 3 Garlic Cloves
- 1 Cup Chicken Broth
For Basting
- ¼ cup Butter Rub (from above)
- 1 tbsp Honey
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
Method
- If you are using a frozen turkey, it will need at least 2-3 days to thaw in the refrigerator. If you are using a fresh turkey or a frozen defrosted turkey, it is advisable to keep the turkey out of the refrigerator anywhere between 1 to 3 hour so that it comes close to room temperature before preparing to cook it.
- Preheat the oven to 425F/220C
- In a bowl mix all the ingredients for the butter rub. You can prepare a little extra right away and keep a portion separately for basting the bird. Keep the prepared butter rub aside for now.
- Remove the giblets and the neck from the chest cavity. Wash and pat dry the turkey all around.
- Season the cavity of the turkey with salt and pepper and fill it with the quartered onions, lemon, orange, and a bunch of herbs.
- Using your fingers gently separate the skin from the flesh of the turkey without tearing it. Now take a generous spoonful of the butter rub and place it under the skin of the turkey. Holding the skin down with one hand, use the other hand to gently spread the butter mix under the skin. Repeat the process on the other side of the breast and the two legs as well.
- Season the outside of the turkey with salt and pepper. Melt the remaining butter that’s in the bowl and mix in some olive oil into it. The oil will prevent the butter from burning. Brush it all over the turkey, getting every nook and cranny. Using a kitchen string, secure the legs together.
- To prepare the roasting pan, coarsely chop the onion, carrots, celery and garlic and toss them in. To one side, place the neck and any other spare part that you want. Pour in the chicken stock.
- Place the rack on the top of the veggies and gently place on the prepared turkey. Tuck the wings behind the turkey to prevent it from burning.
- Now put the prepared turkey in the oven at 425F/220C in the center rack for 30 minutes turning it around after 15 minutes. The general rule is to roast the turkey for 15 minutes per pound or 30 minutes per kilogram. The safest way is to check with a meat thermometer during the last 30 minutes of roasting. The internal temperature at the thickest part of the breast should be 160F/70C and at the joint of the leg (thickest part) should be 170F/75C. It will reach 165F/75C and 175F/80C outside the oven.
- If you have not prepared a little extra of the butter mixture already, while the turkey is in the oven prepare a little more of the butter mixture which we had prepared for seasoning the turkey and to that add honey and olive oil and give it a mix. This is going to give the turkey a golden glow and crispy skin.
- After the first 30 minutes, lower the rack to the second level from the bottom and lower the temperature of the oven to 325F/160C.
- Baste the turkey and return it back to the oven. If the turkey is beginning to brown too rapidly, tent it using an aluminum foil.
- During the last 30 minutes of roasting, keep checking the internal temperature of the turkey with a meat thermometer. As soon as the turkey reaches 160F at the thickest portion of the breast and 170F at the thigh, it is time to take the turkey out of the oven, cover it with aluminum foil and allow it to rest for an hour or two before carving and enjoying.
- Enjoy it warm with turkey gravy and cranberry sauce.
