This roast turkey recipe is easy enough for a beginner. The biggest myth in American cookery is the belief that a juicy, perfectly cooked turkey is difficult for the novice cook to achieve. One of the secrets to a moist, delicious, and beautiful turkey is spreading butter under the skin. You can season the butter any way you want. The possibilities are endless.
Ingredients
- kosher salt: 2 Tbsp
- ground black pepper: 1 Tbsp
- poultry seasoning: 1 Tbsp
- whole turkey, neck and giblets reserved: 1 piece (12 pound)
- onions: 2 piece (chopped)
- ribs celery: 3 piece (chopped)
- carrots: 2 piece (chopped)
- bunch fresh sage: 0.5 piece
- sprigs fresh rosemary: 3 piece
- butter: 8 Tbsp (softened)
- water: 6 cups
- bay leaf: 1 piece
- butter: 1 Tbsp
- all-purpose flour: 0.25 cup
- balsamic vinegar: 0.25 tsp (optional)
- fresh sage: 1 Tbsp (chopped)
- salt and ground black pepper: (to taste)
Metric Conversion
Stages of cooking
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Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
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Mix together kosher salt, black pepper, and poultry seasoning in a small bowl. Tuck turkey wings under bird and season the cavity with about 1 tablespoon poultry seasoning mixture. Reserve remaining poultry seasoning mixture.
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Toss together onions, celery, and carrots in a large bowl. Stuff about 1/2 cup vegetable mixture, sage, and rosemary sprigs into the turkey cavity. Tie legs together with kitchen string. Use your fingers or a small spatula to loosen skin over turkey breast. Place about 2 tablespoons butter under skin and spread evenly. Spread remaining 6 tablespoons butter all over the outside of skin. Sprinkle turkey with remaining poultry seasoning mix.
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Spread remaining vegetable mixture into a large roasting pan. Place turkey on top of vegetables. Fill the pan with about 1/2 inch of water. Shape a sheet of aluminum foil over breast of turkey.
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Roast turkey in the preheated oven until no longer pink near the bone and the juices run clear, about 3 1/2 hours. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone, should read 165 degrees F (75 degrees C). Remove the foil during the last hour of cooking and baste turkey with pan juices.
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While turkey is roasting, make stock: Place neck and giblets in a medium saucepan with water and bay leaf. Simmer over medium heat for 2 hours. Strain stock and discard neck and giblets. There should be at least 4 cups of stock. Set stock aside.
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Remove turkey from the oven. Carefully pour pan juices, about 3 cups, into a shallow bowl. Skim off turkey fat from pan juices, reserving about 2 tablespoons fat. Set aside pan juices. Cover turkey with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil and allow to rest in a warm area for 10 to 15 minutes before slicing.
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While turkey is resting, make gravy: Heat 2 tablespoons reserved turkey fat and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Transfer onion from the roasting pan into the skillet. Cook and stir until onion is browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in flour; cook and stir for about 5 minutes more. Whisk in 4 cups stock and reserved pan juices until smooth; skim off any foam. Stir in balsamic vinegar. Simmer, whisking constantly, until gravy is thickened, about 10 minutes. Stir in sage; season with salt and black pepper. Cynthia Ross
