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Thanksgiving will soon be here and every year there are a few new people who are looking for a roasting a turkey recipe. Well, whether it’s you first time or you’ve done it many times before, you will find this Butter Herb Turkey the easiest way to roast a turkey this holiday season.
When it comes to making the holidays easier, I love finding ways to do things simply. This roasting a turkey recipe is one of those simple things that produces incredible results. My Butter Herb Turkey is full of flavor, juicy and you don’t have to spend all day worrying about your bird. This recipe is simple, delicious and dare I say, hard to mess up?
This method of roasting a turkey recipe is stress free because you don’t have to baste, brine, dry out in the fridge over night or use a cheese cloth.There’s no flipping the bird over or opening the oven over and over again. This Butter Herb Turkey recipe will be a fuss free way to enjoy Thanksgiving again while helping you to create a turkey that everyone loves.
Turkey thawing and prep
Unlike other roasting a turkey recipes, you don’t have to do much prep here. Just make sure your bird is thawed. To thaw a turkey all you have to do is give it one day in the refrigerator for every 5 pounds. If you have a 10 lb. turkey, then it only needs two days in the refrigerator. A 20 lb. turkey? Four days in the refrigerator. Add a pan or a cookie sheet under it in case any of the juices drip out.
Once the turkey is thawed and you’re ready to cook, remove the turkey from the packaging and remove the neck, which is found in the chest cavity and the giblets, which is usually found in the neck cavity.
Then you can either pat the bird dry with a paper towel or rinse it in the sink and then pat dry. I know this is a GIANT debate among people. Do what you’re comfortable with. Some people will say that rinsing in the sink will contaminate your sink and that if you cook the turkey to the correct temperature, you’re killing all the bacteria. I know others will always wash no matter what anyone says. You do you on this one.
At this point I also like to tuck the wings of the bird under. Once they’re tucked I move the turkey to the roasting pan. We have {THIS} All Clad roasting pan that I bought last year, but you can also just use a more simple pan- including the throw away ones. However, having one you can use again and again is better for the environment and it’s usually an investment piece that you can have for many years to come.
No brining, no basting, no stuffing
There’s a lot of things you don’t have to do for this roasting a turkey recipe. In fact, that’s why I love it so much.It truly is the easiest way to make Thanksgiving simple.
You can still achieve a moist and delicious turkey without brining, especially if it is a store-bough, high quality turkey like a Butterball. However, if you hunt your own or grow your own, brining is something you want to do.
This Butter Herb Turkey requires no basting, The herb butter mixture will produce a turkey that’s incredibly juicy and delicious for you without all that work.Plus, each time you open your oven to baste the bird, you’re changing the temperature in the oven. As long as you follow the below steps for the herb butter mixture, you should have no problems.
For this recipe, avoid the stuffing inside. In fact, I’m not a big fan of stuffing inside for any turkey recipe. You need to overcook the turkey in order to get the stuffing to the correct temperature to consume.And no one wants a dry, over-cooked turkey or stuffing that’s been undercooked in the belly of the bird. Instead, try my Italian Sausage stuffing recipe that you can make in a baking pan. It is the only stuffing I will eat. Just don’t tell my grandma that. 🙂
The key to making the best turkey
The key to this roasting a turkey recipe is to not overcook the bird. Overcooking it will dry out all the meat and you can get it right with some simple math.
This Butter Herb Turkey recipe will cook at 325 degree and you want to cook it for 15 minutes per pound. So, my turkey was about 14 lbs.
- 14 x 15 = 210
- 210 / 60 (minutes in an hour) = 3.5
- So for my Butter Herb turkey I roasted it for 3 and a half hours.
When you think the turkey is done, use a meat thermometer to make sure it’s the correct temperature, which is 165 degree F. We use this thermometer {HERE} to check our meats. When time is up I check my turkey and if it is at least 160 degrees, I will take it out and tent it with tin foil for about 20 minutes. It will continue to cook inside the foil and that will bring the temperature up the last 5 degrees.
If you wait until the turkey reaches 165 degrees and then tent it, the turkey will be overcooked. If it’s at 165 when you remove it from the oven, don’t tent it.
No matter what, let the turkey rest when it comes out of the oven – tented or not. Give it at least 20 minutes before you start cutting into it. Don’t go longer than 40 minutes. This extra time will be helpful for making gravy with the drippings, prepping sides or setting the table.
How to get the Butter Herb Turkey ready
Once the turkey has been thawed and prepped with the neck and giblets removed and the bird patted down, it’s time to get the seasonings going.
First, I like to add onions, carrots and celery to my roasting pan. If you aren’t using a roasting pan or you are using a throw away pan, you will need these items to place under the turkey.To cook properly, a little air needs to circulate below the bird. Adding a layer of vegetables on the bottom will work best for this roasting a turkey recipe. While my roasting pan has a rack, I still add the vegetables for flavor.
Next, stuff the cavity. Anything you add to the inside of the turkey will help to flavor it. (However, don’t eat those things after the turkey is done.) I like to keep my turkey savory and use onion, garlic cloves sliced, rosemary, sage, oregano and parsley. At this point, also make sure the turkey’s wings are still tucked under.
Using the Butter Herb mix
Once the cavity has been stuffed, I like to then made my Butter Herb mix. I use thyme, rosemary, oregano, parsley and sage again in this. And those chopped herbs get mixed with one stick of butter. However, I make this twice because you will want one whole stick for the outside and one whole stick to go under the skin.
When the butter is mixed with the herbs, separate the skin above the breasts and using a spoon or your hand, add one stick of the butter mix under the skin. I find it’s easier using my hands, although certainly not more pleasant. It’s easiest to work with melted butter for this. About 30 second in the microwave should do.
Then, add the second butter mix to the outside of the bird. Cover the turkey with the butter herb mix. This creates the full flavor for the Butter Herb Turkey. You want this mix to be a little less melty. About 15 seconds in the microwave will do. Add sea salt and pepper over the butter herb mix.
Lastly, tie the legs of the bird together with some cooking twine and then tent the turkey. make sure that none of the aluminum foil is touching the skin of the turkey.
Roasting the Butter Herb Turkey
To roast the turkey you want to adjust your oven racks so the turkey can sit on in the center of the oven. For me this means I have to take one of the racks out of the oven. Preheat the oven to 325 and when it’s ready, add the tented turkey to the oven and cook for about half the time. For me this was about 1 hour and 45 minutes.
Once the turkey is halfway done, remove the foil and continue roasting. You don’t have to baste at all. If you want to check the turkey throughout the last hour, use the oven light instead of continuing to open and close the oven.
When it’s done, re-tent the turkey as discussed above.
Completing your meal
Since the turkey isn’t the only food you will need on Thanksgiving, check out these side dishes, desserts and co*cktails too!
Side Dishes
- Italian Sausage Stuffing
- Lemon and Herb Baby Potatoes
- No Knead Dutch Oven Bread
- Whipped Cranberry Butter
- Bacon and Brussel Sprouts
co*cktails
- Apple Cider Mimosa
- Spiced Pear co*cktail
Desserts
- Cranberry Upside Down Cake
- Pumpkin Cupcakes
Leftovers
- Savory Turkey Soup
- White Bean Turkey Chili
Thank you so much for stopping by today, friends! You can find the full printable recipe for the Butter Herb Turkey below. I hope that you find this is the easiest roasting a turkey recipe you’ve ever used. Happy eating and Happy Thanksgiving!
Butter Herb Turkey
This Butter Herb Turkey will be the easiest turkey you've ever made and also one of the most delicious.
5 from 17 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: dinner
Cuisine: American
Keyword: butter herb turkey, herb butter turkey, roasting a turkey recipe
Author: Rachel
Equipment
Roasting pan
Ingredients
Turkey ingredients
- 1 10- 20 lb. high quality turkey Varying size
- Salt and pepper to taste
Butter Herb Rub Ingredients
- 2 sticks salted butter, divided
- 2 Tbsp. fresh thyme, minced and divided
- 2 Tbsp. fresh rosemary, minced and divided
- 2 Tbsp. fresh oregano, chopped and divided
- 2 Tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped and divided
- 2 Tbsp. fresh sage, chopped and divided
Cavity Ingredients
- 1/2 yellow onion
- 4 cloves garlic, sliced
- 2 sprigs rosemary
- 2 sprigs sage
- 2 sprigs oregano
- 1/3 cup parsley I leave this un chopped and just stuff it in the cup to get the correct amount.
Ingredients for the roasting pan
- 1 large yellow onion, quartered
- 5 stalks celery, sliced
- 3 carrots, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, sliced
Instructions
Removed the thawed turkey from the refrigerator 1 hour before cooking. This is a good time to start chopping the vegetables and herbs.
Adjust the oven rack and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
Add the chopped vegetables to the roasting pan.
Remove the turkey from the packaging, dry and remove the neck and giblets. Tuck the wings under it and move the turkey to the roasting pan.
Season the cavity with salt, pepper and the cavity mix above.
Using your fingers, gently loosen and separate the skin from the turkey breast. Really just enough to get a spoon in.
Mix half the butter (1 stick) and herbs (1 Tbsp. of each) to place in between the skin and the breast. You can melt this in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds.
Using a spoon or your hand, spoon the melted butter mix between the skin and the breast.
Mix the second half of the butter (1 stick) and herbs (1 Tbsp. of each) and melt in the microwave for about 15 seconds.Slather this all over the outside of the turkey.
Tie the legs together and then tent the turkey with tin foil. Make sure none of the foil is touching the turkey.
Roast for 15 minutes per pound at 325 degrees F and when you are halfway done, remove the tin foil.
Continue to roast the rest of the time until the internal temperature of the turkey is 165 degrees F.
Let the turkey rest for 20 - 30 minutes. If the temperature still needs to come up a few degrees, tent the turkey again while it rests.
Make the gravy or prep the sides at this time.
