If you love moist, juicy turkey meat and perfectly crunchy skin, you’ll love this no-fuss Easy Roast Turkey recipe. A simple high-to-low temperature method and a flip of the turkey mid cooking ensure a perfect holiday turkey every time.
My husband is our turkey cooker for holiday meals. In fact he’s taken over making most of the holiday dishes. He loves to cook and Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s are times he really can spend the time making new recipes.
Historically we’ve been turkey briners. We discovered the method years ago and typically a version of brining is what we do for our Thanksgiving bird. If you aren’t familiar with brining, it is a method of combining salt, sugar and other herbs or liquids in which the turkey is immersed for an extended period of time before roasting. The intention is to increase the moisture saturation of the turkey leaving extra moist meat. My recipe for White Wine Ginger Thyme Brined Roast Turkey is an example of this (and a delicious one).
When I first learned to cook, turkey brining wasn’t ‘the thing’. I wanted to share a turkey recipe with you before Thanksgiving and it struck me that if you have not mapped out the timing of thawing your turkey, time for brining, or if you don’t have space in your refrigerator for a 5 gallon food-grade bucket, brining is a ‘no go’. And brining isn’t the only way to ensure fabulous turkey!
The method I’m sharing today is a no brine recipe but does include a trick; flipping the turkey part way through. One of my favorite chicken recipes does something similar and by flipping the bird and changing the temperature it always is perfectly moist and juicy.
Today’s recipe starts with the breast down on high heat. This allows the juices to migrate into the breast, the meat that is notorious for drying out, before it’s flipped to cook breast side up to ensure that crackling skin we all love! The cavity is stuffed with celery, onions, apples and some herbs for aromatic flavor in the meat. Otherwise it’s very straight forward leaving a tasty turkey without a big fuss.
There are a few things to consider before starting. I was listening to NPR last week and they said the most common question asked of the Butterball Turkey Help Line for turkey support on Thanksgiving is ‘how long does it take to thaw a turkey’. I have that answer for you: plan 24 hours per 5 pounds of the turkey. An easier way is thawing it in water, changing the water about every 30 minutes (of course keeping it cold). That’s what I did with the 15-pound turkey I cooked today and it was thawed within 24 hours. This recipe must start with a thawed turkey!
For this recipe, the turkey is rinsed with cold water and patted dry with paper towels the night before cooking, and it is placed on a baking sheet in the refrigerator uncovered. This allows the skin to dry out a bit which helps create that crunchy cooked skin. The turkey also needs to be removed from the refrigerator to warm up the morning of cooking. I recommend allowing a few hours at room temperature before roasting.
Using a roasting pan that is no deeper than 2 inches prevents the turkey from beginning to steam in any rendered juices. We cover our V-roasting rack with heavy foil (dull side facing the turkey), punctured with holes so the juices can drain into the pan.
Lastly using an instant read thermometer ensures perfect cooking time for your turkey. Since all turkeys weigh different amounts the best way to test the doneness of the turkey is when the thigh (don’t touch the bone with the thermometer) meat reads 165 degrees. Based on the size of the turkey checking for doneness can begin around 2 hours of cooking.
The 15 pound turkey I cooked for this post took 2 hours and 33 minutes. Due to differences in oven temperature accuracy, differing turkey weights, the temperature of the turkey when it’s placed in the oven, the cook time may vary slightly. If using and instant read thermometer, you can always cook a turkey to be perfectly juicy with beautiful golden, crisp skin every time!
EQUIPMENT – WHERE TO BUY: There are a few items that are key for this recipe and you’ll find you will use them in many recipes. A heavy roasting pan, a V-rack for roasting, an instant read thermometer and butcher twine to truss the turkey legs. There are many varieties of these and I will include those that I use below.
Easy Roast Turkey
Relying on an instant read temperature to determine them the turkey is done will make it perfectly every time.If cooking a smaller or larger turkey, the general rule of thumb if cooking a turkey only on 325 the entire time is to allow 15 minutes per pound of the turkey.
The initial 45 minutes accelerates this rate but will give you a general guide to calculate the cooking duration.Note on prep time: the prep time includes 2 hours of the turkey sitting at room temperature to warm up before cooking.
Ingredients
- 1 15- pound Turkey* , thawed; rinsed and patted dry with paper towels (giblets and neck removed; can reserve for gravy)
- 1 small Apple , rinsed, cored cut into wedges
- 2 small Celery Stalks (with leaves), rinsed and cut into 2-inch segments
- 1 small Onion , peeled and cut into wedges
- 3 medium Garlic Cloves , peeled
- 6-8 fresh Thyme sprigs , rinsed
- 3 stems fresh Italian Parsley , rinsed
- 3 tablespoons Vegetable Oil
- 2 teaspoons Kosher Salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground Black Pepper
Instructions
- The night before roasting: put the turkey on a baking sheet uncovered in the refrigerator to sit overnight.
- The day of roasting the turkey: Remove turkey from the refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature for two hours. (When ready to roast the turkey) Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cover V-rack (roasting rack) with foil (dull side outward), poke holes and spray with cooking spray; place in a roasting pan no deeper than 2-inches. Combine the salt and pepper into a small bowl.
- Coat the cavity of the turkey with some of the oil (easiest down with your hand), and some of the salt and pepper, rubbing all around the cavity. Fill the cavity with the onion, apples, celery, garlic and herbs. Brush the remaining oil all over the outside of the turkey and rub in the remaining salt and pepper to coat. Truss the turkey legs (ignore if the legs were done before purchasing) and place breast DOWN in the prepared rack in the roasting pan.
- Cook the turkey for 45 minutes (note: cook 45 minutes with the breast down even if cooking a different size turkey).
- Remove the roasting pan from the oven and turn the oven temperature DOWN to 325 degrees. Using several paper towels (and avoiding touching the hot roasting pan) turn the turkey over so the breast is now UP. Note: avoid using utensils which can puncture the skin. Cook for 1 hour.
- After an hour wrap foil around the wing tips to avoid them burning and return to oven.
- At 2 hours cooking time, check temperature in the thick part of the thigh with an instant read thermometer (without touching the bone). Return to oven and cook until the temperature of the thigh reaches 165 degrees. Note: the temperature can rise quickly as the turkey is almost done. Once the turkey temperature registers in the 140 degree range check again in 15-20 minutes to avoid over cooking. Once the thigh registers 165 degrees, remove from oven and lightly tent with foil; allow to rest for 30 minutes before carving.
Recipe Notes
*Should your turkey different in weight, larger or smaller, follow the recipe through flipping the turkey and once breast up measure the temperature and remove when the thigh registers 165 degrees (quicker with a smaller turkey and more time for a larger turkey).
Rachee says
With Thanksgiving coming (in the US) I have to try this recipe! This sounds and looks delicious!
Toni Dash says
I hope you will! I wanted to share something not over complicated that is also predictable with juicy meat and crisp skin. Easily adaptable to any size turkey.
Stacie @ Divine Lifestyle says
I can’t wait to make this for Thanksgiving! The past few years, I’ve started to get creative with my roast turkey, and this sounds absolutely delicious.
cheryl larimer says
I can sometimes take on too much for holiday dinners trying to get everything perfect and something for everyone. This Thanksgiving I will try this one so I can enjoy more of the holiday with family instead of cooking and fretting about the food.
Toni Dash says
Isn’t that the truth? When I’ve done the entire meal I feel saturated with the smells and never hungry when it’s time to eat! This recipe really is simple. The only thing you have to pay attention to (besides flipping the turkey) is watching the internal temperature for doneness.
Melissa @ The Staten Island family says
I will have to share this post with my turkey-eating friends! You truly give step by step instructions that will help anyone create a Thanksgiving feast that is gourmet!
Susan says
My mother always used a method similar to yours, and her turkey always had nice, crispy skin. I’m pretty sure she didn’t leave it uncovered in the fridge overnight, though. And she always put the stuffing (dressing) in the bird. I will never forget the day my mother was trying to flip the turkey and it ended up on the kitchen floor…
Toni Dash says
Oh no! That sounds like one of those holiday movies Susan, when the dog is waiting right there to grab the bird and head out the dog door! The leaving it in the refrigerator overnight uncovered is something my husband does (and he’s well practiced and researched on the turkey front). You really don’t notice anything different with the turkey when it’s cooked (e.g. it doesn’t dry out the meat) but the skin really is heaven!
Pam Wattenbarger says
It’s just not Thanksgiving without a turkey, is it? This sounds like the perfect way to prepare the turkey!
Toni Dash says
It’s not! No matter how much we might think we can change it up, it’s not quite the same I think.
Emily says
This turkey looks delicious! I am looking forward to Thanksgiving in the next few weeks. I love eating cold turkey the next day. It has become a weird family tradition.
Toni Dash says
Well probably not ‘weird’ since I think every family really looks forward to that second meal cold the next day! We love it too.
Anitra | The Mom on the Move says
So I guess this is why my skin is never crispy when I cook a turkey! I’m just plop it in the oven and keep it moving. ???? now I know better.
Toni Dash says
I’ve done more hours of research on this topic than I will admit Anitra. There is a delicate balance between crisp skin and dried out meat. I think leaving this exposed in the refrigerator the night before, flipping it (if you leave it breast down the entire time the juices all run there and it never crisps up), searing it on high heat (seals it) then cooking on low heat (keeps it moist) are all the magic that makes it happen. I wonder if the pilgrims thought this much about cooking turkey at the first Thanksgiving….
Anitra | The Mom on the Move says
I am sure they did not. LOL Now, I have done the cook it breast down and flip it, but setting it aside and changing the temperature is not something I’ve tried. My husband has been on a turkey frying kick lately anyway, so we don’t get to roast many anymore. Which is sad because I love stuffing in the turkey. But that’s a different post. 😉
Toni Dash says
LOL! I will say one Thanksgiving we were living in Northern Virinia and my brother lived in Virginia Beach for a short time. He got the turkey frying set up and deep fried the Thanksgiving turkey. It was fantastic! I thought it would be soggy and oily but far from it. I can see why your husband is hooked!
Tracy @ Ascending Butterfly says
You had me at White Wine. One bottle for me, one for the bird! LOL 🙂
Toni Dash says
That’s actually my other turkey recipe mentioned in this post that is brined in white wine! It’s definitely good too!
Milena says
I’ve always brined my turkey because that’s how my sister made it. I’d love to try something easier! This looks great!
Cynthia says
Such great information. I have never tried roasting a turkey breast side down. Makes a lot of sense though. We brined a turkey for the first time last year and loved it. I think we will do it again.
Toni Dash says
We love brining too although this method is quicker and takes less room. The breast portion down is only for 45 minutes; flipping it and decreasing the heat ensures all the skin will be crispy!
Ashley @irishred02 says
It is almost that time of year! I think I have finally perfected my turkey!
Marcie W. says
I have yet to attempt my own turkey since I am usually intimidated by all of the multiple steps that go along with the cooking process. This method seems much easier and like something I can actually manage.
Toni Dash says
YOU CAN DO IT!!! The key is the instant read thermometer and staying on top of the internal temperature. It’s easy. I believe in you!
Cassie Tucker says
My husband and I were just talking about finding a simple turkey recipe! We have ever had to cook our own bird on Thanksgiving before and we were kind of lost, lol
Toni Dash says
It’s scary. But doesn’t need to be. This one is easy just watch the temperature with the instant read thermometer and you’ll be good to go!
Erin @ Stay at Home Yogi says
I have never cooked a turkey before and honestly it’s a little intimidating! You make it sound so easy and look so beautiful though!
Theresa says
I am feeling seriously bummed about Thanksgiving this year after seeing this juicy, delicious looking bird. It’s my first Thanksgiving as a vegetarian, so I’ll be living vicariously through watching my family and looking at delicious turkeys like this posted online. Your cook method sounds perfect!
Toni Dash says
Oh no! I’m sure you have good reason for choosing that path and that there will be many delicious options for you too!
Crystal says
I’m still sort of scared of making the turkey on Thanksgiving, it’s the centerpiece of the meal and so much pressure. You make it sound so easy.
Our Family World says
Wow! Honestly, I’ve never tried to cook turkey before but my sister do!
Reesa Lewandowski says
I never stuff mine with aromatics like that! What a delicious idea!
Jeanine says
Yum this looks and sounds just delicious. I can’t wait for us to have our next turkey dinner. It isn’t until December, but I’m counting down the days.
Ann Bacciaglia says
I will be making a turkey in a few weeks. I will have to try this when I make it. I usually make Ham but want to switch it up this year.
Seattle Travel Blogger says
This looks delicious! Nice presentation and well-thought out directions. Thanks.
Kiwi says
I never cooked Thanksgiving by myself yet. I heard turkey is pretty easy to cook but you broke it down great!
Rosey says
IT’s almost turkey time, woohoo! I need to get a thermometer. I always think it doesn’t matter… until it does! that I don’t have one.
Tonya says
I thought I was the only one to cook my turkey on high to start. My aunt taught me this secret years ago and my turkey always turns out delicious! This post is making me hungry!
Tess says
I’m the Thanksgiving source at our house. i did not know about these easy tips-thanks!
Kelly Hutchinson says
I have always had the hardest time roasting a turkey. Thank you for making it achievable this year!
Louise Bishop says
I love the brining method. I personally think it gives it better flavor and moistness overall!
Toni Dash says
I do too Louise BUT I can attest to this method producing moist, juicy meat with crispy skin in a fraction of the time and effort too! It’s great to have options.
Kita Bryant says
That turkey looks amazing! I never was very smooth at making my turkey and I definitely have never tried brining before!
Megan @ MegUnprocessed says
Great photography!
Amanda Love says
This is making me excited for Thanksgiving! I love that it’s not that difficult to make too. It looks really yummy! I’d love to keep the recipe.
Jocelyn Cañasa Brown says
Thanks for this! I never am able to make my turkey come out tasting great.
Brianne says
Thank you for this post. I am hosting Thanksgiving this year and panicked about making the turkey!
Beverley Press says
thank you Toni you saved my life and that of my turkey…this is just what I needed, Happy Holidays xoxo
Jennifer Farley says
This recipe sounds great! I will have to try it this year!
Aysegul says
These look INSANELY good!! I can’t wait to try the recipe. Thanks for all the super helpful process photos and tips!
Barbara Schieving says
So many great tips for a perfect turkey.
Sandy @ RE says
This is the easiest recipe. Gives you confidence if you’re roasting a turkey for the first time.
Sandy @ RE says
This recipe gives you confidence if you’re roasting a turkey for the first time. So good.
Lori @ RecipeGirl says
I need all the help I can get with turkey- thank you!
Cathy Pollak says
I can’t wait to try this method!
adrianne Spoerlein says
Toni: I completely trust your recipes – they’ve never failed me. I thought when I first read this article that you commented about stuffing. My family is devout traditionalists and they want stuffing from inside the bird. I’m definitely going to follow the technique outlined here and just wondered if you have insight into how much longer to calculate into the cook time. The other difficulty is that I’m cooking at home and taking to their house ((20 minute ride) although, I may just volunteer to cook at their house. LESS hassle that way.
Toni Dash says
Hi Adrianne. I’m wondering if you read my recent Spicy Chorizo Sage Cornbread Dressing recipe and that’s where you saw a reference to stuffing? I actually never cook stuffing (cooked inside the bird) due to the concerns over salmonella. It’s challenging to each cook the stuffing to the point of food safety while NOT overcooking the turkey. So unfortunately I don’t have guidance on how to alter this recipe to accomodate cooking stuffing safely and the turkey (but if you CAN coax your family into eating dressing, the same as stuffing just cooked outside the bird, I have a few great recipes here for that!).