Super-Easy Oven-Roasted Turkey
1465 days ago
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We’ve all seen them – countless roasted turkey recipes claiming to be the easiest, simplest or tastiest. However, many times the techniques and ingredients used in these recipes don’t work out when they’re put to the test.
We found that this Easy Roasted Turkey recipe did fit the bill when it came to ease of preparation, use of readily available ingredients and, in the end, a well-cooked turkey with a crispy skin.
All the vegetables can be prepped quickly and easily using the Vegetable Knife. Its sharp, wide blade allows you to chop them and then scoop them up to transfer to a bowl.
Preparing the Turkey
Kitchen shears, like Cutco’s Super Shears, are invaluable for prepping the turkey. Use them to cut off the outer packaging and snip off any unwanted skin and fat from the turkey. If your turkey comes with a plastic leg fastener, the shears also work great for removing that after cooking.
Before roasting, be sure to cover the turkey completely with the softened butter, making sure to reach the crevices of the legs and wings.
Once everything is in the roasting pan and in the oven, other than basting the bird every half hour or so, there’s nothing else that needs to be done but wait as the kitchen fills with the wonderful smells of roasting vegetables and butter-basted roasted turkey.
Reserve the cooked vegetables and juices for basic turkey gravy to pour over mounds of fluffy mashed potatoes and juicy slices of meat.
When choosing a turkey, plan for 1-to 1 and a quarter pounds per person. If you’re a fan of leftovers, like me, plan to add a couple extra pounds for making soup, sandwiches or pot pie later.
After cooking and before carving, let the turkey rest 30 to 45 minutes to allow the juices to redistribute. Carve the turkey using Cutco’s sturdy Carving Fork to anchor the bird in place and our carving knife, the 9" Carver, to make long sweeping strokes, for perfect slices. Watch our How to Carve a Turkey video for tips on how to do it.
*Orginally published Oct. 24, 2017
Ingredients
- 1 12-pound turkey, thawed if frozen
- 12 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 medium onions cut in wedges, divided
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- Kosher salt
- 2 carrots cut into 2-inch pieces
- 2 stalks celery cut into 2-inch pieces
- 1 cup low sodium chicken broth (if needed)
Directions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Remove the giblets and neck from the cavity of the turkey. Reserve the neck and discard the giblets. Pat the turkey dry using paper towels. Stuff with the thyme and half of the onion wedges.
- Tie the legs together with kitchen twine. Tuck the wing tips under the body to prevent them from burning.
- Rub the turkey all over with the butter and season inside and out with salt.
- Place the turkey neck, carrots, celery and remaining onions in a large roasting pan. Put a roasting rack in the pan and place the turkey on top of it.
- Roast the turkey, basting with the pan juices every 30 minutes. Basting the turkey will result in an evenly browned skin.
- If the turkey begins to darken too much before it is done, tent it loosely with foil. If the vegetables start to burn and stick to the pan, add some broth.
- Roast until the thickest part of the thigh registers 165°F, about 2-1/2 to 3 hours. Tilt the turkey to empty juices into the pan. Transfer the turkey to a large carving board, tent with foil and allow to rest for 25 minutes.
- Reserve the juices and vegetables in the roasting pan to make gravy.
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