If you have not brined and basted a turkey before, take this as your sign to do so this year! This turkey basting recipe will walk you through, step by step to a moist and delicious turkey!
What the heck is basting?
Basting simply means to pour fat over the surface of meat while it is cooking. This can be accomplished a few ways. It can be as simple as using a spoon to scoop the liquid and pour it over the meat, or as “complicated as using a basting bulb or brush. I personally prefer the basting bulb, but have tried all of the other methods. The bulb allows you to get more liquid at once than a spoon or a basting brush. You need to be careful when squeezing the bulb though, so you do not fling hot liquid around your oven. I think a basting bulb speeds up the process and means closing the oven sooner. Ultimately, this will come down to personal preference and the resources you have available.
Why should I baste turkey?
There is debate on this front. Some people say that basting is a waste of time and prolongs the cooking time, so could dry out the meat. Here are my honest thoughts: With this citrus and herb butter I find basting super helpful. With this recipe basting moves the bits of herb and orange peel from the bottom of the pan and redistributes them back onto the turkey. As for the cook time being longer because of the oven door opening, I don’t know that it matters if you are using a meat thermometer. You are roasting to 165 F beside the breast bone. Another plus for basting with butter is that it crisps the skin beautifully! This bird almost crinkles when it is cut because the skin is so crispy and delicious!
Other than basting, what do I need to do to cook a turkey?
You NEED to brine your turkey! Because turkey has to cook for such a long time, the breasts tend to dry out. I highly recommend brining your turkey! Yes this does require more forethought than simply cooking the turkey the day you want to eat it, but it is well worth it! Brining adds so much flavor and moisture to the meat that I will not make turkey any other way! Do yourself the favor of brining first. In this post I go over some basic bringing science and my DELICIOUS brining recipe, check it out!
What tools are helpful for this citrus herb butter turkey basting recipe?
- Julienne Peeler- it was a game changer this year! Instead of using a vegetable peeler to remove the peel and then mincing it. I instead used a julienne peeler and minced it from there! It did more than half the work for me! PRO TIP: Using a cold orange keeps the orange skin’s tension so the peeler is able to work more efficiently.
- Basting bulb- I have found that basting brushes take forever to cover the whole bird and spoons don’t do much better. A basting bulb sucks up the liquid and goes where you direct it! It is easy and requires less interaction with scaldingly hot liquid than either the brush or a spoon.
- Small silicone spatula- when you are mixing up one stick of butter with herbs and spices it works best to have a bowl and spatula proportionate to your ingredients amount. I found my small silicone spatula and a small bowl to be very helpful.
Ingredients
- 10-12 lb brined turkey, rinsed and patted dry
- ½ cup butter, unsalted and room temperature
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves removed and roughly chopped
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves removed and roughly chopped
- 1 tsp dried marjoram
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- Peel of 1 orange, minced (no pith)
Turkey basting instructions
1.Firstly, prepare the turkey for roasting. Place it in a roasting pan with sides and a rack in the bottom, breast side up, tucking the wings underneath the bird, and the legs tied together with butcher’s twine. If you don’t have twine you can make a small slit in the fatty skin between the legs to tuck the narrow portion of the legs through. This will hold the legs in place as the turkey bakes. I highly recommend using this brine on your turkey before roasting! Also, be sure to check the chest cavity for the neck and giblets! They make a delicious GRAVY!
2. Bake covered with foil for 2-2.5 hours, for a 12 lbs turkey. If you have a turkey over 15 lbs then bake covered for 3-3.5 hours.
3. Meanwhile assemble the compound butter by combining the butter, fresh rosemary, fresh thyme, dried marjoram, salt, and black pepper in a small mixing bowl.
4. I used a julienne vegetable peeler to cut the orange peel into thin strips then mince from there. You do not want the white pith of the peel, this can be fairly bitter instead of sweet like the zest. Add minced orange peel to the bowl with the butter and seasonings.
5. Use a small rubber spatula to mix until well combined. Set aside.
6. After the first round of cooking, remove the turkey from the oven and take off the foil. The turkey will be pale.
7. Increase your oven temperature to 350 F.
8. Next liberally apply the citrus herb butter to the turkey. Be sure to tuck some under the skin near the breast meat and cover all aspects of the legs and wings. It will be melting as you apply it.
9. Bake uncovered for 1-1.5 hours, for a 12 lbs turkey, the internal temperature near the breast bone should be 165 F. If you have a turkey over 15 lbs then bake for 1.5-2.5 hours. The baking time will ultimately depend on the internal temperature of the bird. If the turkey starts to get too brown on top, then loosely cover with foil again.
10. While it is cooking, baste the turkey every 30 minutes. This means take the fat and butter from the bottom of the pan and pour it all over the bird. I typically tilt my pan enough to fill one corner of the roasting pan with liquid. Then use the baster to suck up the liquid and liberally apply it to the whole bird.
11. After the turkey reaches the appropriate temperature, remove it from the oven and allow it to rest at least 20 minutes before carving. While it is cooling down be sure to whip up some delicious GIBLET GRAVY!
12. Enjoy your deliciously moist turkey!
Citrus Herb Butter for Basting Turkey
Ingredients
- 10-12 lb brined turkey, rinsed and patted dry
- ½ cup butter, unsalted and room temperature
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves removed and roughly chopped
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves removed and roughly chopped
- 1 tsp dried marjoram
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- Peel of 1 orange, minced (no pith)
Instructions
1.Firstly, prepare the turkey for roasting by placing it in a roasting pan with sides and a rack in the bottom, breast side up, tucking the wings underneath the bird, and the legs tied together with butcher’s twine. If you don’t have twine you can make a small slit in the fatty skin between the legs to tuck the narrow portion of the legs through. This will hold the legs in place as the turkey bakes. I highly recommend using this brine on your turkey before roasting! Also, be sure to check the chest cavity for the neck and giblets! They make a delicious GRAVY!
2. Bake covered with foil for 2-2.5 hours, for a 12 lbs turkey. If you have a turkey over 15 lbs then bake covered for 3-3.5 hours.
3. Meanwhile assemble the compound butter by combining the butter, fresh rosemary, fresh thyme, dried marjoram, salt, and black pepper in a small mixing bowl.
4. I used a julienne vegetable peeler to cut the orange peel into thin strips then mince from there. You do not want the white pith of the peel, this can be fairly bitter instead of sweet like the zest. Add minced orange peel to the bowl with the butter and seasonings.
5. Use a small rubber spatula to mix until well combined. Set aside.
6. After the first round of cooking, remove the turkey from the oven and take off the foil. The turkey will be pale.
7. Increase your oven temperature to 350 F.
8. Next liberally apply the citrus herb butter to the turkey. Be sure to tuck some under the skin near the breast meat and cover all aspects of the legs and wings. It will be melting as you apply it.
9. Bake uncovered for 1-1.5 hours, for a 12 lbs turkey, the internal temperature near the breast bone should be 165 F. If you have a turkey over 15 lbs then bake for 1.5-2.5 hours. The baking time will ultimately depend on the internal temperature of the bird. If the turkey starts to get too brown on top, then loosely cover with foil again.
10. While it is cooking, baste the turkey every 30 minutes. This means take the fat and butter from the bottom of the pan and pour it all over the bird. I typically tilt my pan enough to fill one corner of the roasting pan with liquid. Then use the baster to suck up the liquid and liberally apply it to the whole bird.
11. After the turkey reaches the appropriate temperature, remove it from the oven and allow it to rest at least 20 minutes before carving. While it is cooling down don’t forget to whip up some delicious GIBLET GRAVY!
12. Enjoy your deliciously moist turkey!
For my full Thanksgiving menu click HERE!
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