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It’s finally time for Turkey Talk!! I LOVE this herb and butter roasted turkey with white wine pan gravy.
Like November is here! I have only been waiting for this day since like, the beginning of August! I am such a freak, I mean who starts thinking about the holidays in the heat of the summer? Basically what I’m trying to say is that this post has been a long time coming.
While everybody was enjoying all the things that go along with October, I was roasting turkeys, mashing potatoes and eating Thanksgiving dinner. Or well, at least towards the end of October I was. I try to be on top of things, but then somehow I always fail.
UGH.
But hey! I got the turkey made and um, I am pretty dang happy with it. I mean, come on. Doesn’t it look perfect?!?!
It is!!
Ok, so here’s the deal. When it comes to the holidays, I am all about traditional. I love traditions and to be honest, I don’t like breaking them. That said, I do love to switch little things up just a little with things like side dishes and desserts. But the turkey?
The turkey has to be classic. Herbs and butter. Nothing fancy, nothing overdone. Just classic, simple and delicious flavors.
For as long as I can remember, my mom has always cooked the Thanksgiving bird. Even last year, she cooked the turkey. She is a good turkey roaster and we had a good thing going. I’d do the sides + desserts + apps and she handled the turkey…although last year, I do recall that she and my dad were out hiking for most the time the turkey was cooking leaving me to tend to it.
Actually, as I recall, she and dad were still hiking when people began arriving for dinner. Typical.
Anyway, I love my mom’s classic turkey, so I took inspiration from her, read a whole bunch online and then made some turkeys (yup plural, and I still have three more to make between now and Christmas). And you guys, I swear by this turkey you see here today.
It’s perfection and I could not be more excited about it.
As you can read from the title, Herb and Butter Roasted Turkey with White Wine Pan Gravy, my turkey is simple and traditional. Pretty sure it doesn’t get much more classic than this.
Just the way I like it.
The secret to my turkey is a butter soaked cheesecloth. I read about this method of cooking the bird in this month’s Food and Wine. The second I read about it, I knew I had to try it. It’s flipping genius!
You soak a layer of cheesecloth in melted butter (mine is full of fresh thyme, sage, parsley and lemon zest!) and then drape the butter soaked cheesecloth over the bird. Then you roast the turkey with the cheesecloth ON the bird. The cloth protects the skin from burning all while basting the turkey with butter the entire time it roasts.
Genius I tell you, and the skin comes out perfect, the meat is incredibly moist and the flavor is spot on! You do not even need to tent the bird with foil, the butter soaked cheesecloth works magic guys and it could not be easier.
Soo the gravy though?!? My mom has alway has always had trouble with gravy. Like it was either clumpy, too thin or flavorless. I get it, gravy can be hard, but this pan gravy will make your life simple. Nothing too tricky and it gets made in the very same pan you roast the turkey in. Hello less dishes – YES!
Plus, the flavor is out of this world. It’s all about those pan drippings. 🙂
So are you excited yet?? Are you going to start planning Thanksgiving? It’s T-minus twenty days away and I have then next couple weeks packed with my personal Thanksgiving menu. Think sweet taters, pies, cookies, mashers, casseroles, salad, bread and the works. I may even throw a few drinks your way this holiday season too.
Wait, question: are we into drinks? Like cocktails? With booze? Let me know.
It’s gonna be a really good November. But since Turkey is the star of the show, I figured I would start there.
Next up are the apps, sides, desserts and a couple easy dinners too (you know cause we all gotta eat between now and the big day – duh!).
YUM. Did you break out the stretchy pants yet, cause I think it may be time. I am full-force (like intensely so) in all holiday GO mode, so excited!
SIDE NOTE: My dad asked, since we had turkey in October, if that meant we could skip it at Thanksgiving. I practically looked at him like he was insane. I mean, what??!? Who skips the turkey on Thanksgiving? Guys, he is out of his mind I tell ya. Like losing it BIG TIME.
Or he’s just a giant Scrooge, thinking a combo of both actually.
Herb and Butter Roasted Turkey with White Wine Pan Gravy.
Servings: 8
Calories Per Serving: 671 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 1 (14-16) pound turkey, giblets and neck removed
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2 tablespoons fresh sage, plus more for stuffing the bird
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, plus more for stuffing the bird
- 3 tablespoons fresh parsley
- zest of 1 lemon
- 3 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
- 1 piece large of double lined cheesecloth
- 2 lemons, halved
- 1 garlic head, tips sliced off
- 1 onion, halved
- 7-8 cups low sodium chicken or turkey broth
White Wine Pan Gravy
- 1 cup white wine
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- drippings from the turkey
- 2-3 cups low sodium chicken or turkey broth, as needed
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped sage
- kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- 1. Remove the turkey from the fridge one hour before roasting. Remove the giblets + neck and allow to come to room temperature.2. Make the butter. In a medium bowl, combine the 1 stick butter, the sage, thyme, parsley, lemon zest, salt and pepper. 3. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Position a rack in the lower third of the oven. Place the turkey in a large roasting pan.4. Season the cavity of the turkey with salt and pepper and fill the cavity with the, lemons, garlic and onion. Gently lift the skin of the turkey by using your fingers and going in between the skin and body of the bird. Rub the herb butter under the skin of the bird, spreading some of the butter on top of the skin as well. Take the remaining 1 stick butter and melt it over the low heat on the stove or in the microwave. Dampen your cheesecloth with warm water and squeeze dry. Submerge the cheesecloth in the melted butter, making sure all the cheese cloth has soaked up the butter. Lay the cheesecloth over the bird, covering most of the bird. Drizzle any remaining butter over the turkey.5. Pour 4 cups of chicken broth into the bottom of the roasting plan. Place the roasting pan in the oven and roast for 45 minutes at 450 degrees F. After 45 minutes reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. and continue cooking for another 2 hours (until the turkey registers 160 F. on a meat thermometer), adding 1-2 cup of broth half way through roasting. I like to baste the turkey with the drippings 2 times throughout cooking and when doing so rotate the roasting pan.6. Remove the turkey from the oven and remove the cheesecloth, transfer the turkey to a cutting board, tent loosely with foil and let rest 20-30 minutes before slicing.7. Make the gravy. Strain the liquid from the roasting pan, skimming off most of the fat. I like to pour the broth into a 4 cup measuring cup and then place in the freezer for 10 minutes. This helps the fat rise to the top of the surface. Once you have skimmed the fat, add enough broth to equal about 4-5 cups total of drippings/broth.8. Place the roasting pan over two burners and add a splash of wine (about 1/2 cup) to deglaze the pan. You want to scrape up all those brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Once the pan is throughly deglazed, add the butter and once melted, add the flour whisking to combine. Cook stirring constantly, until the mixture is golden, around 5 minutes.9. Increase heat to medium high and add the remaining 1/2 cup of white wine, whisking as you go to let the wine reduce down. Slowly add reserved broth, stirring constantly, until the mixture is smooth. Stir in the sage and cook, continuing to stir, until the gravy has thickened to your desired thickness, around 8 to 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm with the turkey.
Notes
To save a little time, you can prepare the compound butter up to a week in advance. Just store, covered in the fridge until ready to use.
Here is the cheesecloth I use.
That picture? It makes you happy and excited, right?? I know, me too!!
This post was originally published on November 2, 2015
I just made this for thanksgiving and it was amazing!!!! Thanks! My only issue was that the wings were underdone so we finished them in a skillet on the stove. Any tips on how to avoid this? When we checked the temp it was 160 so I was very perplexed when we started carving. Otherwise it was sooooo beautiful and brown.
Hey Patricia,
Thanks for giving the recipe a try. What size was your bird? If the breast was done the wings should have been totally fine. Let me know how I can help! xTieghan
Best turkey and gravy I’ve ever made! Thank you!
I am so happy to hear that! Thank you MK! xTieghan
My first time ever roasting a turkey and it was delicious! So juicy and flavorful – everyone loved it. Thank you for another amazing recipe.
Thank you Marti! xTieghan
This turned out absolutely amazing! We stuffed it as well. Had a 21# fresh bird from local turkey farm so used 3 sticks of butter and had to cook it close to 5 hours. Juiciest most flavorful turkey I have ever had and I’ve only made turkey maybe 2 other times so thankful for you easy instructions! Just perfect!
Thank you so much Jennifer! I am really glad this recipe turned out so well for you! xTieghan
I made my very first turkey this Thanksgiving and I used your recipe – it turned out so well!! Thank you so much for posting!
Thank you for trying this Melissa! I am really glad ti turned out so well for you! xTieghan
Made this for thanksgiving today.
More or less followed the recipe but I dry brined the bird for two days before, used more herbs and lined the pan with onions and homemade stock.
Cooked at 350 the whole time. The nutty odor of the butter and cheesecloth was an underrated perk.
I am really glad you enjoyed this recipe, Jeremy! Thank you for trying it! xTieghan
My parents cancelled Thanksgiving at the last minute, so I decided to make a turkey at the last second for the rest of my family. I’d never done it before, so I chose this recipe since Tieghan never leads me astray. It was easy, and the turkey turned out delicious! I’m so glad I didn’t have to spend lots of time prepping and brining, because I got a late start. If I ever need to roast a whole turkey again, I’ll come back to this recipe. Thanks, Tieghan!
Hi Amy! I am so happy this recipe turned out perfectly for you! Thank you so much for trying this one! xTieghan
Best turkey I have ever made and the gravy was devine!
Thank you so much Danielle! xTieghan
I made this recipe as my first ever turkey and I don’t think I’ll ever stray from it! I combined this with the white wine make ahead gravy to save some time and it came out so great. The turkey is traditional, juicy and flavorful. The cheesecloth method is amazing!! Who would have thought? Thank you for this amazing recipe and for making my first time hosting Thanksgiving a breeze!
I am so happy this recipe turned out so well for you, Tori! Thank you for trying it!! xTieghan
This recipe is amazing!! 10/10 would recommend.
We did a 12 hour brine – buttered the turkey with the compound, then sprinkled our salt brine and left it overnight. The next day, we stuffed the cavity and added the cheesecloth and popped into oven. Came out perfect! You rock.
Yum! Thank you so much for trying this recipe, Sadiq! xTieghan
I used this recipe for the first time cooking a Turkey and it turned out GREAT! The recipe was so easy to follow and the execution was easy too. The bird turned out perfect just by following the instructions. That says a lot to me as so many recipes are poorly written. Awesome flavor, tenderness and appearance. Yum!
I am really glad this recipe turned out so well for you, Christine! Thank you! xTieghan
I really dislike turkey- I have made ham the last few years. However, my son requested turkey, so I turned to this recipe. WOW! Not only did I have seconds, but I kept the leftovers, instead of pawning them off. Total game changer!
Thank you so much Amy! xTieghan
Got a rave review from this turkey from my family! Thr CHEESECLOTH is golddddd!!!! This recipe is fire!! Thank you Tieghan!!!
Thank you for trying this one, Tavia!! I am so happy you loved it! xTieghan
Delicious! I made this for Thanksgiving and it was just perfect. We have a convection roast setting on our oven that I used. The turkey was just wonderful. This is the first time I’ve ever made a full Thanksgiving dinner myself and this was a great recipe!
Thank you so much Melissa! xTieghan
Working on this turkey as I type this. Thought that today would be a great day to tell you how thankful I am for your talent and for pushing me well last my comfort zone this year of following you!!
To you , your family and all your followers …. wishing everyone a safe , healthy … and most of all … love filled season !!!
Judi
I am so happy this turned out so well for you Judi! Thank you! xTieghan