Best Roast Turkey Recipe

An easy baked turkey recipe seasoned with the best homemade turkey rub, citrus, and fresh herbs! Slightly sweet with a little kick gives your holiday roast turkey TONS of flavor. Even better, there's no need to brine or baste the turkey during baking! It's a Whole Lotta Yum!

 

The Perfect Oven Roasted Turkey!

If you're a little nervous about cooking the Thanksgiving turkey for your family, truly, have no worries! We're breaking it down as easily as possible to help you make the best roast turkey recipe you've ever made!

So many people end up with dry turkey when they're trying to cook an entire bird in the oven. Usually, this is due to overcooking the turkey, but we're going to teach you how to get it right and what to look out for.

We're also sharing more than one seasoning option, PLUS we show you how to get a perfectly juicy turkey without a brine, but we give you tips on how to brine the turkey if you so choose!

Ingredient Notes

Our roasted turkey is unstuffed, which means that we're cooking our family favorite sausage stuffing on the side and not cooking it in the bird.

And we did season the outside of the turkey skin with a simple sweet and savory rub using basic spices, but we also show you how to cook it with herb butter if that's your preference too! We seriously love it both ways and vary it up from year to year.

** Please see the recipe card at the bottom of the post for the exact quantities **

• whole turkey, defrosted - defrosted is the key here! You're looking at at least a 4-7 day defrost time depending on the size of your turkey, so please factor that in. You of course can purchase a defrosted turkey, they just cost more.
• oranges - used to stuff the turkey cavity. The citrus helps to keep the meat juicy and it infuses extra flavor into the turkey meat.
• onions
• spring each fresh herbs
• turkey rub ingredients (listed below in detail)

Kitchen tools

• Roasting pan

Prep the turkey

1. Thawing

• Frozen Turkey: If your turkey is frozen, you'll need to thaw it. The safest method is to thaw it in the refrigerator, allowing about 24 hours of thawing for every 4-5 pounds of turkey. Make sure your turkey is in a tray or large dish to catch any drips.

2. Cleaning and Preparing

• Remove Packaging: Take the turkey out of its packaging. Some turkeys come with a plastic or metal truss holding the legs together; you can remove this.
• Giblets and Neck: Remove the giblets and the neck from the turkey's cavities. You can reserve these for making gravy or toss them (or cook the meat for a pet).
• Pat Dry: Using paper towels, pat the entire surface of the turkey dry, inside and out helps get the skin crispy during cooking.

3. Brining the turkey (optional)

• Brining is a method of soaking the turkey in a saltwater solution, sometimes with added sweeteners, herbs, and spices. This process seasons the turkey and helps it retain moisture.
• If you're brining your turkey, you'll need to do it for several hours to overnight, then remove it from the brine and pat dry.
• You can follow our simple recipe for brining a turkey.

4. Seasoning

• Butter or Oil: Rubbing the skin with softened butter or oil can increase browning and flavor. For extra flavor and moisture, gently separate the skin from the meat (particularly the breast) and spread some butter or herb mixture underneath.
• Herbs and Spices: Fresh herbs like rosemary, thyme, and sage can be tucked under the skin, sprinkled inside the cavity, or laid on top. You can also season the exterior of the turkey with a mix of salt, pepper, and other desired seasonings.
• Fruits and Aromatics: For added flavor and moisture, you can stuff the turkey's cavity with fruits (like apples, oranges, or lemons) and aromatics (like onions, garlic, and celery). We especially love to add orange slices and onions.

5. Trussing

• Trussing means you're tying the turkey's legs and wings close to its body. This is totally optional, it's just a neater presentation if you're serving the turkey whole on the platter. Use kitchen twine to tie the legs together and secure the wings to the body.

6. Roasting Pan Prep

• Rack: Place the turkey on a rack in a roasting pan, keeping the turkey off of the bottom of the pan helps heat to circulate and for all sides of the turkey to brown.
• Liquid (Optional): You can add a cup or two of broth, wine, or water to the bottom of the pan for extra moisture. Yummy served over the turkey pan drippings before serving!

How to Roast a Turkey in the Oven

Step 1: Bring your turkey to room temperature by removing it from the fridge 1 hour before baking. Remove the neck and giblets.

Preheat the oven to 325F and pat the outside of the body dry with paper towels.

Step 2: Combine the dry poultry rub ingredients (the garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, chili powder, salt, pepper, sweetener, cayenne, rosemary, thyme, and sage) in a small bowl and add the extra virgin olive oil. Stir together to make a paste.

Step 3: Fill the inside of the turkey cavity with orange slices, lemon, onion, and fresh herbs. Don't overstuff it since you'll want to have airflow on the inside of the cavity.

Step 4: Loosen the turkey breast skin by gently sliding your fingers underneath. Spread some of the rub under the skin and directly on onto turkey meat.

Step 5: Spread the rub mix over the outside of the body, you might not use it all depending on how large it is.

Step 6: Place the bird on a rack inside of a roasting pan. Tuck the wings under the body of the turkey to keep them from burning.

Step 7: Roast the turkey in the oven for about 15 minutes per pound, or until the internal temperature reaches 160 F when checked in the thickest part of the thigh or breast. If it's browning too quickly, loosely cover it with foil.

Step 8: Let the turkey rest for 30 minutes before carving it. It will continue cooking during the rest period and should be at 165 F. Carve it, and place it on a platter decorated with more fresh citrus slices and fresh herbs. Enjoy!

How long to roast a turkey per pound

The cooking time for a turkey can vary based on multiple things, including how accurate your oven thermostat is, whether the inside of the cavity was stuffed, and how frequently you open the oven door. Here's a general guideline on how long to cook a turkey in an oven preheated to 325°F (165°C):

Unstuffed Turkey:

• 4 to 6 lbs: 1.5 to 2.5 hours
• 6 to 8 lbs: 2.5 to 3 hours
• 8 to 12 lbs: 3 to 4 hours
• 12 to 16 lbs: 4 to 5 hours
• 16 to 20 lbs: 5 to 5.5 hours
• 20 to 24 lbs: 5.5 to 6 hours

Stuffed Turkey:

• 4 to 6 lbs: Not usually applicable (turkeys this small aren't typically stuffed due to size)
• 6 to 8 lbs: 3 to 3.5 hours
• 8 to 12 lbs: 3.5 to 4.5 hours
• 12 to 16 lbs: 4.5 to 5.5 hours
• 16 to 20 lbs: 5.5 to 6 hours
• 20 to 24 lbs: 6 to 6.5 hours

These times are just approximations. Please use a meat thermometer to make sure the whole turkey is safely cooked. The internal temperature should reach:

• 165°F (74°C) for the breast meat
• 175°F (80°C) for the thigh meat

If you're roasting your turkey at a different temperature or using a different cooking method, the times will adjust accordingly.

Helpful Tips

• We use about 3 tablespoon rub + 3 tablespoon olive oil for a 10 lb turkey, about 4 tablespoon of each for a 14 lb turkey, and 5 tablespoon each for an 18+ lb turkey. The recipe above will season a small to medium turkey, you'll need to make extra rub if you have a very large turkey. Leftover rub is delicious on chicken and pork too and will keep for up to 6 months when stored in an airtight container in the cupboard.
• Opening the oven to baste it actually slows down the cooking time but you of course can periodically baste the turkey juices if you prefer to. Many readers do!
• If you like to brine your turkey, we do have a super simple turkey brine recipe. If you don't have a rack for the roasting pan, place the body on a bed of whole carrots, sliced onions, and celery.
• You can tie the drumsticks together if you want to serve a whole bird on your holiday table, but we usually skip this and serve the it carved into slices.
• Interior oven temperatures can really vary, by up to 25 F! We recommend using an inexpensive oven thermometer and know how hot or cold your oven is cooking before turkey day. 

Recipe Variations

• Herb Butter: Mix softened butter with fresh herbs like rosemary, thyme, and sage. Rub this mixture under and over the skin for a rich flavor and extra crispy skin.
• Turkey in a Bag: Cooking a turkey in an oven bag can speed up the cooking time and keep the meat incredibly moist. You can add seasonings, vegetables, and even a splash of white wine to the bag for flavor.
• Glazed: In the last hour of roasting, brush the meat with a glaze made of ingredients like maple syrup, honey, orange marmalade, or even pomegranate molasses for a sweet, caramelized finish.
• Citrus-Marinated: Marinate your poultry in a mix of orange, lemon, and lime juices, zest, and fresh herbs.

Serving ideas

All the classic Thanksgiving side dishes!

• Sage onion stuffing
• Easy corn casserole
• Green bean casserole
• Sweet potato casserole
• Broccoli bacon salad
• Creamy baked mac and cheese
• Cranberry sauce
• Make ahead gravy
• Pumpkin pie
• Easy apple crisp

Storage and leftovers

Storing- Slice the turkey and let it cool to room temperature before storing. Put the meat in an airtight container, it'll keep in the fridge for 4 days.

Freezing- We recommend storing leftovers in heavy-duty freezer bags or using a vacuum sealer to store the leftovers. Make sure to squeeze out the extra air the air to prevent freezer burn. For best quality, eat the frozen turkey within 2-3 months.

Reheating:

1. From the Fridge: Reheat it in a preheated oven at 325°F (165°C). Place the turkey in a roasting pan, and you might want to add a splash of broth or water to prevent drying out. Cover with aluminum foil and heat until the internal temp reaches 165°F (74°C) for about 20 minutes.
2. From the Freezer: Thaw it in the fridge for 24 hours before reheating. Follow the fridge reheating tips. If you're in a hurry, you can also use the defrost function on your microwave to thaw, but make sure you reheat it right away.
3. Microwave: Using an oven is best, but a microwave works in a pinch, especially if you're just reheating a small amount. Put the turkey on a microwave-safe plate, cover with a microwave-safe lid or wrap, and use the 'reheat' function or medium power setting. Check frequently and rotate the slices for even reheating.

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