Roasted Turkey Recipe
New Year's Eve is a special day celebrated with different traditions around the world. Since my childhood, the classic New Year's Eve dish around me has been either a whole chicken or stuffed chicken, and those of us who cook chicken believe that wealthy people eat turkey for New Year's. I've had very wealthy friends, but I've never personally encountered anyone who eats turkey on New Year's Eve. Maybe I just haven't crossed paths with them, but it feels like the idea of eating turkey for New Year's has been instilled in us through TV commercials, movies, and shows. I'm not sure how successful this has been, but thinking that it might have had some influence on certain people, I decided to share a roasted turkey recipe this year.
Turkish cuisine is rich and deeply rooted. Typically, New Year's tables include stuffed vegetables, olive oil-based dishes, and various appetizers alongside the main course. For this reason, I roasted potatoes instead of preparing pilaf as a side. Since potatoes can also be enjoyed with appetizers, they seem like a better alternative to pilaf.
However, if you want to stuff the turkey with pilaf or serve it on the side, my baked chicken dolma might come in handy.
Tips for Cooking Turkey:
- Bring the turkey to room temperature before cooking. A cold turkey takes longer to cook in the oven.
- Spreading butter under the skin helps the turkey stay moist and speeds up the browning of the exterior.
- Adding an orange inside the turkey gives the meat a light sweetness and a refreshing aroma. Alternatively, you can use apples or lemons.
- Using parchment paper while roasting prevents the turkey from burning on top.
- Basting the turkey occasionally with its juices results in a more flavorful dish, but if you don’t want to bother, roasting it as is will suffice.
How Long Does It Take to Cook Turkey?
Although turkey is known to take longer to cook than chicken, this is not entirely true—or at least not anymore. Unless you’re roasting a very large turkey, you can treat it similarly to chicken. A general rule of thumb is to cook the turkey for about 1 hour per kilogram, which should yield tender, perfectly cooked meat.
Enjoy the recipe
Roasted Turkey Recipe with Video
Ingredients
- A whole turkey (3.5-4 kg),
- 2 tablespoons room-temperature butter,
- 1 kg baby potatoes,
- 1/2 orange,
- Fresh thyme,
- Fresh rosemary,
- 1 heaping teaspoon of salt.
Preparation
- Take the turkey out of the fridge half an hour before cooking to bring it to room temperature,
- Pat the turkey dry with paper towels, pluck any small feathers if necessary, and place it in a large baking tray,
- Mix the salt with the butter,
- Rub the salted butter all over the turkey and under the skin wherever your hand can reach,
- Place the chopped orange and fresh herbs inside the turkey,
- Tie the legs together with suitable kitchen twine,
- Cover the turkey with crumpled parchment paper and roast in a preheated oven at 180°C for 2.5 hours,
- Remove the turkey from the oven and arrange the potatoes around it,
- Return the tray to the oven and roast for another hour,
- Transfer the turkey and potatoes to a serving dish,
- Blend the remaining juices in the tray and drizzle over the turkey and potatoes when serving.
Enjoy your meal!