This Garlic Butter Herb Roasted Turkey Recipe is slow roasted until perfectly golden brown while remaining moist and tender on the inside.
This recipe starts with a blend of roasted garlic, fresh herbs and butter that's slathered over the entire bird then seasoned to create the most flavorful crispy skin.
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Why this recipe works
Roasting a turkey can be very intimating whether you're serving a small or large crowd. The very thought of brining a turkey can make the process even more overwhelming especially if it's your first time. Today, I'm going to walk you through the process of roasting a turkey that doesn't require brining, is simple to do, and delicious.
This roasted turkey recipe will require that you baste the turkey several times throughout the cooking process to make it moist and succulent. This step cannot be left out under any circumstances.
What goes into this recipe
Ingredient Notes
- Use unsalted butter instead of salted butter as this will allow you to control the amount of kosher salt that is added while seasoning.
- The garlic must be roasted before making the roasted garlic herb butter as roasting will make the garlic extremely soft whereby you can squeeze the garlic out of the garlic skin into the bowl of butter.
- Although this recipe calls for kosher salt, onion powder, black pepper, and smoked paprika, feel free to use other complimentary seasonings.
- Fresh herbs are used in this roasted turkey recipe. If you have more left over and do not want them to go to waste, chop them up, divide them evenly across an ice cube tray and cover the herbs with olive oil. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and store in the freezer to use in pastas at a later date.
How to make this roasted turkey recipe
- Cut the top of the bulb of garlic to expose the cloves and drizzle olive oil over the top then wrap in foil and place in the oven to roast until golden brown.
- Remove from oven and squeeze the cloves into the softened butter add the chopped herbs and mix with a fork until ingredients are incorporated.
- Remove the bag of giblets and the neck and discard then wash and pat the turkey with paper towels until completely dry.
- Slather the backside with the butter mixture and season. Place a piece of parchment paper inside the roasting pan and place the turkey in the roasting pan with the breast side down (the parchment paper will prevent the breast-side from sticking. This will allow the back side to brown first. Place in a 415 degree preheated oven for 35 minutes.
- Remove bird from the oven and place on a clean plate or baking sheet for a moment. Remove the parchment paper and discard.
- Add the chopped veggies to the same roasting pan and add the bird back to the roasting pan with breast-side up. Slather with remaining butter mixture and season. Reduce oven temp to 350 degrees and put bird back in oven.
- Begin thoroughly basting the turkey with the pan juices every 30 minutes until it's done (Set an alarm clock, so you will not forget ) .
- It's done when it reaches an internal temp of 165 degrees. Do NOT overcook, if so the breast will come out dry which you do not want.
Please refer to 'Tips' down below to ensure that your roasted turkey comes out perfectly.
How to make homemade gravy
Don't let those delicious pan juices go to waste instead make a homemade gravy from this roasted turkey recipe.
- Add those pan juices to a pot and bring to a boil.
- Add 1 Tablespoon of all-purpose flour and whisk for several seconds to get rid of the raw taste from the flour.
- Slowly pour in 1 cup to 1-½ cups of chicken broth and bring to a gently boil then lower to a simmer until gravy has thickened (this can take 15 minutes or so).
- The gravy has thickened when it coats the back of your spoon.
FAQs
You can roast a turkey uncovered at a low temperature until it turns a beautiful golden brown; however, to prevent it from browning too much cover the turkey with foil while still roasting.
For this roasted turkey recipe, slathering it with a softened butter herb mixture before seasoning and basting the turkey with its pan juices throughout the cooking process will keep it moist. Brining the turkey before roasting will also do the trick. In addition, using a meat thermometer to check for doneness, so it does not overcook. Also, allowing the turkey to rest before carving is best.
Every 30 to 40 minutes during the cooking process. Making sure to close the oven promptly to prevent too much heat from escaping from the oven which can potentially add on several extra minutes of cooking time.
The most accurate way is to use a meat thermometer. Place the thermometer into the thickest part of the breast. When the internal temperature of the breast reaches 165 degrees it's done. If you cook over that temperature, the breast will come out dry. Keep an eye on the temperature 30 to 60 minutes before the finish time.
You can season your turkey the night before. If you do this, make sure you remove the turkey from the fridge early the next morning, so it comes to room temperature. This could take about an hour or so or possibly longer depending on the size.
Expert Tips
- Do not place turkey on top of a roasting rack instead allow the turkey to sit in its pan juices.
- If your turkey is frozen, make sure you thaw the turkey completely before roasting depending on the size, it can take up to 2 days possibly 3 days.
- When defrosting, keep the turkey in its original packaging and place in a roasting pan to prevent it from leaking then into the fridge it goes.
- Always make sure your turkey has reached room temperature, so it will cook evenly.
- Remove the bag of giblets and turkey neck from the cavity and discard or add the neck if making homemade soup.
- Tuck the wings under the bird and tie the legs with kitchen string to prevent the legs from spreading apart while roasting.
- If you do not have a meat thermometer, I highly recommend investing in one. This will take the guess work out of wondering if your turkey is done.
- Your turkey is done when the thickest part of the breast registers at 165 degrees.
- Remove the turkey from the oven a few minutes before it reaches 165 degrees as the residual heat will continue to cook the bird further.
- When the turkey is done, use the pan juices to make a delicious homemade gravy to pour over the turkey.
- Allow the turkey to rest for at least 20 to 30 minutes before carving.
Related Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Garlic Butter Herb Roasted Turkey Recipe
Garlic Butter Herb Roasted Turkey RecipeEquipment
- Roasting pan
Ingredients
- 10 lb fresh turkey
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt (plus½ tablespoon for inside of the cavity)
- ½ tablespoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika (regular paprika works too)
- 3 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 stalks celery (roughly chopped)
- 2 carrots (roughly chopped)
- 4 shallot bulbs (2 -for inside cavity; 2 for pan, sweet, yellow or white onions can be used instead of shallots)
- 3 cloves garlic (to go inside cavity of turkey)
Roasted Butter Herb Mixture
- 1 stick unsalted butter (soften (not melted))
- 1 bulb garlic (1-2 bulbs of fresh garlic)
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
- 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon fresh sage
Instructions
- Roughly chop shallots, celery, and carrots. Finely chop fresh herbs. Set aside.
Roasted Butter Herb Mixture
- Cut the top off the bulb of garlic to expose the cloves and drizzle olive oil over the top then wrap in foil and place in a 415 degree preheated oven to roast until golden brown. This may take approximately 30 minutes. When done, remove from oven and unwrap.
- Meanwhile, add a stick of softened butter to a small bowl, add the fresh chopped herbs and squeeze in the roasted garlic cloves (do not add the skin of the garlic). Mash in the roasted garlic cloves with a fork. Stir all the ingredients together until well combined.
Turkey
- Remove the bag of giblets and the neck and discard. Wash and pat the turkey with paper towels until completely dry. Slather the back-side with the butter mixture and season well. Add the roughly dropped shallots and extra garlic cloves inside the cavity.
- Place a piece of parchment paper inside the roasting pan and place the turkey in the roasting pan with the breast side down (the parchment paper will prevent the breast-side from sticking to the pan. This will allow the back side to brown first. Place in a 415 degree preheated oven for 35 minutes.
- Remove bird from the oven and place on a clean plate or baking sheet for a moment. Remove the parchment paper and discard. Add the chopped veggies to the same roasting pan and add the bird back with breast-side up.
- Slather the breast-side with remaining butter mixture and season well. Reduce oven temp to 350 degrees and add bird back to oven.
- Begin thoroughly basting the bird with the pan juices every 30 minutes from the time it's placed in the oven until the turkey is done. (Set an alarm clock, so you will not forget).
- It's done when it reaches an internal temp of 165 degrees. Use a meat thermometer to check the internal temp of the thickest part of the breast. Do not overcook, if so the breast will come out dry which you do not want.
- Remove the turkey from the oven and allow it to rest for at least 20 to 30 minutes before carving.
Notes
- Do not place turkey on top of a roasting rack instead allow the turkey to sit in its pan juices.
- If your turkey is frozen, make sure you thaw the turkey completely before roasting depending on the size, it can take up to 2 days possibly 3 days.
- When defrosting, keep the turkey in its original packaging and place in a roasting pan to prevent it from leaking then into the fridge it goes.
- Always make sure your turkey has reached room temperature, so it will cook evenly.
- Remove the bag of giblets and turkey neck from the cavity and discard or add the neck if making homemade soup.
- Tuck the wings under the bird and tie the legs with kitchen string to prevent the legs from spreading apart while roasting.
- If you do not have a meat thermometer, I highly recommend investing it one. This will take the guess work out of wondering if your turkey is done.
- Your turkey is done when the thickest part of the breast registers at 165 degrees.
- Remove the turkey from the oven a few minutes before it reaches 165 degrees as the residual heat will continue to cook the bird further.
- When the turkey is done, use the pan juices to make a delicious homemade gravy to pour over the turkey.
- Allow the turkey to rest for at least 20 to 30 minutes before carving.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. For the most accurate results, we recommend calculating the nutritional information using the specific ingredients and brands you use.
Terryg50 says
Love this recipe. I’ll be cooking this for thanksgiving. Delicious
Cree says
Hey Terry - Thanks so much. I look forward to hearing how it turned out.