Easy, No-Fuss Roast Turkey
This easy recipe for roast turkey is very simple, fuss free and will give you wonderful results – golden on outside, juicy on the inside.
Hosting Thanksgiving dinner is a BIG DEAL. Since it’s usually when the whole family gets together for the big feast, it can be nerve wracking to be in charge of something so important. It’s kind of like a rite of passage when you finally set up a big table and everyone asks YOU what they should bring.
I’ve tried many different ways to prepare a turkey for a holiday meal and in this post, I am sharing the easiest recipe and sharing all my tips with you so you get wonderful results. I’ve shared some of my favorite recipes for turkey with you in the past two years, my all time favorite – Brined Turkey and the Slow Roasted Turkey. I still love those recipes and still use them to this day.
I know brining a turkey, cutting up a whole turkey, flipping a turkey over and other such shenanigans can seem intimidating to some people and they are just looking for a method to have a perfect turkey without any fuss and bother. This is what this recipe is all about. Even the most inexperienced cook can easily master this recipe. If you can lift that heavy bird into the roasting pan, you too can have a perfectly crisp, golden bird with juicy meat.
Ingredients:
Scroll to the bottom of the page for the Printable Recipe with all the measurements
- 1 whole turkey (12-20 pounds)
- salt, pepper
- lemons (Instead of, or in addition to the lemon, you can also use an orange.)
- fresh herbs – parsley, thyme, sage, rosemary
- onions
- garlic
- carrots
- celery
- chicken broth
- You can also use vegetable broth instead of the chicken broth. The broth will catch all the turkey drippings and keep the roasting pan from smoking in the oven. (Plus, this will make the best foundation for the best turkey gravy.)
How To Make This Easy Roast Turkey
- Prep the turkey.
- Remove the neck and giblets from the cavity of the turkey. Discard the giblets or use them in another recipe. Save the turkey neck to make stock.
- Pat the turkey dry with paper towels. Season the turkey liberally with salt and pepper on both sides and in the inside cavity.
- For the best results, season the turkey and keep it in the refrigerator overnight. (See note below.)
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Now, add lots of aromatics to the turkey.
- Cut the lemons and 1 onion into quarters and cut one of the garlic heads in half. Stuff the cavity of the turkey with the lemons, onion, 1 garlic head and some of the herbs.
- Coarsely chop the remaining onions, peel the other head of garlic into cloves, coarsely chop the carrots and celery. Place all of the vegetables and more fresh herbs into the bottom of the roasting pan.
- Pour in the chicken broth into the roasting pan with veggies.
- The broth will prevent the turkey drippings from smoking on the bottom of the roasting pan. This will also create a lot of flavorful pan drippings that are infused with the other aromatics – onion, garlic, carrots, celery and herbs, which will give you the most amazing gravy. If you’re not making gravy, you can skip the vegetables and just pour some water into the bottom of the roasting pan.
- Tuck the wing tips behind the bird and tie the legs together.
- Place the turkey breast side up on a v-rack over the chopped vegetables in the roasting pan.
- Roast the turkey in the preheated oven until the breast meat is 160-165 degrees Fahrenheit and the thigh meat is 170-175 degrees Fahrenheit.
- My turkey was 14 pounds and took about 1 hour 45 minutes to cook through. (A 20+ pound turkey will take about 3 hours to roast.) If the turkey is browning too quickly, cover it with aluminum foil.
Serving the Turkey
When the turkey is cooked, make sure to let it rest for at least 15 – 30 minutes before carving it. (I’ve made the turkey 2 hours before carving it and it was still hot.) While the turkey is resting, you’ll have time to make the most delicious gravy, using the incredible turkey drippings that you’ll have at the bottom of the roasting pan.
Helpful Tips and Frequently Asked Questions
Figure about 1 1/2 pounds per person.
This will give the salt more time to penetrate into the meat and will also dry out the skin, which will help it crisp up better. If you don’t have room for it in your refrigerator or don’t have the time, you can skip this step. It will give your turkey a lot more flavor if you can season it in advance.
Make sure to let the turkey come to room temperature before you start roasting it. (If you take it out of the refrigerator and sit on the counter while you preheat the oven, that’s perfect.)
An instant read thermometer is very inexpensive and I would not make turkey without one. Poultry can overcook so easily and it will be so dry. Please do yourself a favor and get a thermometer. I use mine all the time.
When you rub the outside of the turkey with minced garlic and a variety of herbs and spices, they will quickly burn in the oven, since the turkey has to roast for quite a bit of time.
If you want to add more flavor, you can rub the herbs, spices and fresh garlic on the turkey skin during the last few minutes of roasting. Brush the turkey with oil or butter, then rub with minced garlic and any spices that you like.
Easy, No-Fuss Roast Turkey
This easy recipe for roast turkey is very simple, fuss free and will give you wonderful results – golden on outside, juicy on the inside.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 1 hour 45 mins
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 1 turkey 1x
- Category: Entree
Ingredients
- 1 whole turkey
- salt, pepper
- 2 lemons
- fresh herbs – parsley, thyme, sage, rosemary
- 3 – 4 onions
- 2 heads of garlic
- 5 carrots
- 3 celery stalks
- 1 1/2 – 2 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth
Instructions
- Prep the turkey. Remove the neck and giblets from the cavity of the turkey. Discard the giblets or use them in another recipe. Save the turkey neck to make stock. Pat the turkey dry with paper towels. Season turkey liberally with salt and pepper on both sides and in the inside cavity.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Cut the lemons and 1 onion into quarters and cut one of the garlic heads in half. Stuff the cavity of the turkey with the lemons, onion, 1 garlic head and some of the herbs. Tuck the wings behind the bird and tie the legs together.
- Coarsely chop the remaining onions, peel the other head of garlic into cloves, coarsely chop the carrots and celery. Place all of the vegetables into the bottom of the roasting pan with the rest of the fresh herbs. Pour in the broth.
- Place the turkey breast side up on a v-rack over the chopped vegetables in the roasting pan.
- Roast the turkey in the preheated oven until the breast meat is 160-165 degrees Fahrenheit and the thigh meat is 170-175 degrees Fahrenheit. If the turkey is browning too quickly, cover it with aluminum foil.
- When the turkey is cooked, make sure to let it rest for at least 15 minutes before carving it. While the turkey is resting, you’ll have time to make the most delicious gravy, using the incredible turkey drippings that you’ll have at the bottom of the roasting pan.
Notes
For the best results, season the turkey and keep it in the refrigerator overnight.
I like to season the turkey the night before and keep it uncovered in the refrigerator overnight. This will give the salt more time to penetrate into the meat and will also dry out the skin, which will help it crisp up better. If you don’t have room for it in your refrigerator or don’t have the time, it’s not a big deal to skip this step. Make sure to let the turkey come to room temperature before you start roasting it. (Take it out of the refrigerator and sit on the counter while you preheat the oven.)
Why not add garlic, spices and herbs to the turkey skin?
When you rub the outside of the turkey with minced garlic and a variety of herbs and spices, they will quickly burn in the oven, since the turkey has to roast for quite a bit of time.
If you want to add more flavor, you can rub the herbs, spices and fresh garlic on the turkey skin during the last few minutes of roasting. Brush the turkey with oil or butter, then rub with minced garlic and any spices that you like.
16 Comments
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Natasha of Natashaskitchen.com
Olga the sight of this is making me want turkey so badly with gravy and cranberry sauce; oohhh I can’t wait until Thanksgiving dinner! 🙂
olgak7
Thanks, Natasha:). I’m really looking forward to Thanksgiving dinner too. It’s always so awesome to get together with the whole family for some feasting.
Karen
How do you make the gravy? Do you just put the drippings in the blender? Thanks!
olgak7
Hi Karen,
Here’s the recipe to the gravy. Actually, I have the links in the post too. If you click on the word gravy, or on the picture of the gravy, that you bring you to the gravy recipe also.
Emma
Wow! What an amazing bird! Looks easiy and yummy.
olgak7
Thanks, Emma.
Eve Patterson
This recipe looks so yummy!! How big was the turkey that you used for this recipe? I hoping to make this for Thanksgiving tomorrow, but my mom seems doubtful it’ll be done in the time indicated. I have a 15 lb bird. Also, if my turkey came pre-brined from Trader Joes should I still liberally salt it and let it sit overnight?
olgak7
Hi Eve,
My turkey was 14 lbs, which I mentioned in the instructions. I’m not sure exactly how brined your turkey was. In my experience, most turkeys that are prebrined still need to be salted, but I’ve never bought a turkey from Trader Joe’s, so you would have to rely on the instructions that the turkey comes with, or ask someone at Trader Joe’s. To make sure that the turkey is cooked through, you will need to rely on a thermometer, not time, since all ovens are different. Also, as I mentioned in the recipe, putting the turkey in the refrigerator overnight is optional.
mommyskitchen
Your turkey looks so yummy ! I remember out thanksgiving table we always had a 15 pounder. Great blog
olgak7
Thank you:). 15 pounds is a nice size when you don’t have too many people.
Elli
Olga, I love your recipes!
I made my first turkey ever today. I seasoned it the night before and did the “turkey flipping” at 500 degrees first (like your other recipe) and then roasted at 350 F.
It turned out so delicious and juicy! My husband was over the moon 🙂
I also made the gravy and the green beans from your blog.
I must say…because of YOU and your willingness to share your recipes…I was able to create an amazing Thanksgiving meal. My hubby was very serious when he said: “It was the beast Thanksgiving meal I’ve ever had!”
Spasibo Olechka!
Tanya
Hi Olga I just made this turkey tonight it was moist and delicious. I think this is the best turkey I’ve ever eaten thank you so much😁
olgak7
I’m so happy to hear that, Tanya:). Thank you for taking the time to write.
Judy Valera
Hi Olga! I made this turkey for Thanksgiving. Received so many compliments from my family. Easy and delicious. Your instructions are easy to follow. Thanks!
olgak7
That’s wonderful! i’m so glad you and your guests were happy with the turkey. Thank you for taking the time to write.
m'liss
Great! Just what I was looking for.