Erin’s turkey recipe will be my new Thanksgiving tradition. I did the dry brine and although I was very skeptical that the turkey would be done in the time she suggested, she was spot on and so glad I didn’t cook it for another hour as other recipes suggested. It was perfectly juicy and browned. Her recipe was very well written, easy to follow, helpful photos and she includes every detail for the novice or experienced cook.
I used this turkey recipe this year and the turkey turned out really good, flavorful and juicy…and also LOOKED beautiful! What’s odd is that it produced completely inedible gravy from the pan juices. The pan juices were bitter and sour, and the gravy had to be discarded because it was so bad. I used a good quality sauv blanc, as recommended in the recipe. I also used the lemon, cut into quarters, left over from the dry brine recipe as an aromatic during the roasting of the bird…in addition to carrot celery, onion and garlic. Was it the wine? The lemon? A combination of the two? I’m stumped as to what happened, but it produced horrible gravy.
Shannon, I am really scratching my head on this too! Was anything burned to your roasting pan? Was the lemon in the bottom of the pan also? I’d love to help troubleshoot because the gravy is usually SO GOOD. I’m glad the turkey itself was fab!
Hi Erin – thank you for your reply. Nothing was burned. The lemon was in the bottom of the roaster. The pan juices were scant. Had to add chicken stock to make a gravy. Even with the addition of stock the gravy was inedible. I had a seasoned gravy maker helping me and she couldn’t figure out why it was so bitter and sour.
I have been cooking turkey for 25 years. NEVER has it been as good as this year!! I followed this recipe to a tee – fresh turkey (19 lbs!), dry brine, roasted at 425 then lower (WITH a bottle of WINE!) – everything. It. Was. AMAZING. So juicy and delicious!!!! I now feel like I’m set on how to make the perfect Thanksgiving dinner for the rest of my life.
I am so sorry to hear you had trouble with the recipe, Ger. It was written in Step 9 of the recipe, which is the only place it could go when following the recipe or it wouldn’t make sense to do. Also we covered it in the tips and tricks section of the blog post.
The juiciest Turkey that I ‘ve ever had 🤩🤩. I was skeptical pulling the turkey out of the oven after the the themormeter read 160F for the breast since it was in for only an hour at 325F. No one believe me that I cooked the turkey for only 1h and 45 minutes. Can’t thank you enough. Will definitely try more recipe from you ❤️❤️
Hi Mary, I’ve not tested this out as far as using an electric roaster but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. You’ll have to watch the timing because I believe electric roasters cook meats faster just by doing a quick research on them. Let us know how it goes if you decide to experiment!
Cooked this last year almost exactly as written and everyone raved about it! this year I’ll need to cook an extra breast for a larger group- can I cook a turkey breast alongside the whole turkey in the oven? Any tips for cooking an extra breast along with the whole turkey?
Hi Kristina, as long as you have oven space, I don’t see why not. Timing will depend on the size of your turkey breast but rule of thumb is that it is 20 minutes per pound. Let me know how it goes!
Hello! I’m cooking Thanksgiving for the first time and truly appreciate the thoroughness of your recipes. We have a very small gathering so I’m going to do a bone-in Turkey breast (7-8lbs range), but I’d still like to follow this roasting recipe if possible. Based on the recommendation to check 15mins earlier for every lb under 14, I’d be looking at it potentially being done 1 hour and 45 mins “early”, which would be around 45mins cook time total (Assuming that I understood the instructions and did the math correctly). In this case, would I want to reduce the time I have the temp at 450? Or should I keep that at 45 mins and just be ready to pull the turkey when it’s ready? I have one of the electronic thermometers I can leave in the turkey and that will beep once it hits 155°, so I shouldn’t have to worry about temperature fluctuations from opening and closing the door a ton.
Thanks so much again for the recipe (and the other great recipes on your site) and for any guidance you can provide.
Hi Katie, this is slightly more challenging because the turkey breast will cook much faster. I haven’t tried it myself so let’s walk through it a little. The purpose of roasting at a high temperature to start off with is to crisp the skin, so with such a smaller breast it will crisp up much faster. I think you’ll have to watch it and check at the 25-30 minute mark. As soon as it looks crispy enough I’d cut the heat to 325 degrees until it is done. Definitely use the thermometer so you don’t over cook the breast. Let us know how it goes!
okay so i havent tried recipe yet but this will be my first thanksgiving ever cooking myself. i need turkey gravy homemade. can i do that with the wine ? if so is there a recipe you could guide me to that would prepare the steps for me agter the turkey is done and what im doing? thank you so much!
I made this turkey for Thanksgiving this year, and honestly, it was way easier than I thought it would be. The instructions were clear, and I didn’t feel stressed the whole time. The turkey came out juicy, especially the breast. My family liked it, and it was a nice change from the dry turkeys I’ve had in the past. Thank you!
I am using your recipe to cook Thanksgiving Turkey today, and I hope you can answer my questions:
I have to omit the wine since my child will eat this, do i substitute with something else or just leave it out?
Hi Asli! You can use chicken or turkey broth/stock instead of wine (you definitely want some liquid). I think the butternut squash would get too soft, so I’d recommend simply omitting the carrots. I actually have done that before and it still tasted great!
I followed this recipe for my first time cooking a whole turkey, and I was surprised how well it turned out. The turkey was moist, and the flavor was good but not too strong, just classic Thanksgiving. I did have to keep an eye on the oven since my oven runs a bit hot, but overall, it was a solid recipe.
I hosted Thanksgiving this year and I have made a turkey once before. The day before Thanksgiving i found this recipe and decided at noon on Wednesday that I would do the wet brine (i know, I always push my luck). After a few hang ups..the turkey was thawed and in the wet brine at 9pm. Not only did I use the wet brine recipe from here, I also used the cooking instructions! This was the best turkey that all parents and grandparents ever ate!! It was delicious!
Best Turkey Ever! Erin, you never disappoint!
Great to hear! Thank you so much Vicki!
Erin’s turkey recipe will be my new Thanksgiving tradition. I did the dry brine and although I was very skeptical that the turkey would be done in the time she suggested, she was spot on and so glad I didn’t cook it for another hour as other recipes suggested. It was perfectly juicy and browned. Her recipe was very well written, easy to follow, helpful photos and she includes every detail for the novice or experienced cook.
Makes me so happy to hear! Thank you Mimi!
I used this turkey recipe this year and the turkey turned out really good, flavorful and juicy…and also LOOKED beautiful! What’s odd is that it produced completely inedible gravy from the pan juices. The pan juices were bitter and sour, and the gravy had to be discarded because it was so bad. I used a good quality sauv blanc, as recommended in the recipe. I also used the lemon, cut into quarters, left over from the dry brine recipe as an aromatic during the roasting of the bird…in addition to carrot celery, onion and garlic. Was it the wine? The lemon? A combination of the two? I’m stumped as to what happened, but it produced horrible gravy.
Shannon, I am really scratching my head on this too! Was anything burned to your roasting pan? Was the lemon in the bottom of the pan also? I’d love to help troubleshoot because the gravy is usually SO GOOD. I’m glad the turkey itself was fab!
Hi Erin – thank you for your reply. Nothing was burned. The lemon was in the bottom of the roaster. The pan juices were scant. Had to add chicken stock to make a gravy. Even with the addition of stock the gravy was inedible. I had a seasoned gravy maker helping me and she couldn’t figure out why it was so bitter and sour.
I have been cooking turkey for 25 years. NEVER has it been as good as this year!! I followed this recipe to a tee – fresh turkey (19 lbs!), dry brine, roasted at 425 then lower (WITH a bottle of WINE!) – everything. It. Was. AMAZING. So juicy and delicious!!!! I now feel like I’m set on how to make the perfect Thanksgiving dinner for the rest of my life.
Makes me so happy to hear! Thank you Jenn!
You should have stated earlier that the breast needed to be covered with foil 1 hour in. Absolute disaster!
I am so sorry to hear you had trouble with the recipe, Ger. It was written in Step 9 of the recipe, which is the only place it could go when following the recipe or it wouldn’t make sense to do. Also we covered it in the tips and tricks section of the blog post.
The juiciest Turkey that I ‘ve ever had 🤩🤩. I was skeptical pulling the turkey out of the oven after the the themormeter read 160F for the breast since it was in for only an hour at 325F. No one believe me that I cooked the turkey for only 1h and 45 minutes. Can’t thank you enough. Will definitely try more recipe from you ❤️❤️
That makes me so happy to hear! Thank you Van!
Does the dry “brine” need to be wiped off before brushing with butter? Used orange zest and concerned about possible burning, TIA!
Hi Adrienne, no need to wipe or rinse off the dry brine. Enjoy!
hello – do you know if this can be cooked in an electric roaster? Do I need to modify any measurements?
Thank you!
Hi Mary, I’ve not tested this out as far as using an electric roaster but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. You’ll have to watch the timing because I believe electric roasters cook meats faster just by doing a quick research on them. Let us know how it goes if you decide to experiment!
I would make this recipe again
Thank you Toni!
We absolutely loved it!
Great to hear, Cathleen! Thank you!
Cooked this last year almost exactly as written and everyone raved about it! this year I’ll need to cook an extra breast for a larger group- can I cook a turkey breast alongside the whole turkey in the oven? Any tips for cooking an extra breast along with the whole turkey?
Hi Kristina, as long as you have oven space, I don’t see why not. Timing will depend on the size of your turkey breast but rule of thumb is that it is 20 minutes per pound. Let me know how it goes!
Hello! I’m cooking Thanksgiving for the first time and truly appreciate the thoroughness of your recipes. We have a very small gathering so I’m going to do a bone-in Turkey breast (7-8lbs range), but I’d still like to follow this roasting recipe if possible. Based on the recommendation to check 15mins earlier for every lb under 14, I’d be looking at it potentially being done 1 hour and 45 mins “early”, which would be around 45mins cook time total (Assuming that I understood the instructions and did the math correctly). In this case, would I want to reduce the time I have the temp at 450? Or should I keep that at 45 mins and just be ready to pull the turkey when it’s ready? I have one of the electronic thermometers I can leave in the turkey and that will beep once it hits 155°, so I shouldn’t have to worry about temperature fluctuations from opening and closing the door a ton.
Thanks so much again for the recipe (and the other great recipes on your site) and for any guidance you can provide.
Hi Katie, this is slightly more challenging because the turkey breast will cook much faster. I haven’t tried it myself so let’s walk through it a little. The purpose of roasting at a high temperature to start off with is to crisp the skin, so with such a smaller breast it will crisp up much faster. I think you’ll have to watch it and check at the 25-30 minute mark. As soon as it looks crispy enough I’d cut the heat to 325 degrees until it is done. Definitely use the thermometer so you don’t over cook the breast. Let us know how it goes!
okay so i havent tried recipe yet but this will be my first thanksgiving ever cooking myself. i need turkey gravy homemade. can i do that with the wine ? if so is there a recipe you could guide me to that would prepare the steps for me agter the turkey is done and what im doing? thank you so much!
Hi Cam! Yes, here is our turkey gravy method using the drippings from the turkey! https://www.wellplated.com/turkey-gravy-recipe/
Unbelievably great! I consider myself to be a fairly good cook – this was by far the best turkey I’ve ever served. Everyone agreed –
10 out of 10
Yay! So glad to hear, Karen! Thank you!
I made this turkey for Thanksgiving this year, and honestly, it was way easier than I thought it would be. The instructions were clear, and I didn’t feel stressed the whole time. The turkey came out juicy, especially the breast. My family liked it, and it was a nice change from the dry turkeys I’ve had in the past. Thank you!
Yay! So glad to hear, Hannah! Thank you!
Hi Erin,
I am using your recipe to cook Thanksgiving Turkey today, and I hope you can answer my questions:
I have to omit the wine since my child will eat this, do i substitute with something else or just leave it out?
Can I use butternut squash instead of carrots?
Thank you!
Hi Asli! You can use chicken or turkey broth/stock instead of wine (you definitely want some liquid). I think the butternut squash would get too soft, so I’d recommend simply omitting the carrots. I actually have done that before and it still tasted great!
Using this recipe again this year because everyone loved how well it came out last year! Thank you!!
So glad to hear, Rayne!
I followed this recipe for my first time cooking a whole turkey, and I was surprised how well it turned out. The turkey was moist, and the flavor was good but not too strong, just classic Thanksgiving. I did have to keep an eye on the oven since my oven runs a bit hot, but overall, it was a solid recipe.
So glad it worked well for you, Nadine! Thank you!
I hosted Thanksgiving this year and I have made a turkey once before. The day before Thanksgiving i found this recipe and decided at noon on Wednesday that I would do the wet brine (i know, I always push my luck). After a few hang ups..the turkey was thawed and in the wet brine at 9pm. Not only did I use the wet brine recipe from here, I also used the cooking instructions! This was the best turkey that all parents and grandparents ever ate!! It was delicious!
Yay! It’s gorgeous, Jamie!
My husband hates turkey because it’s dry. This recipe is a gem! Turkey was moist and well flavored. He said it was the best turkey he had ever eaten.
Yay! So glad to hear, Carla!