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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
Absolute favourite go-to turkey recipe! Is there something I can substitute the white wine for in the gravy?
Thank you!
Thanks so much, Justine!! You can just use additional broth in place of the wine. Please let me know if you have any other questions!
i’ve been following this recipe since my first thanksgiving along back in like 2014 and i adore it. this year my larger oven is broken and i need to use my smaller countertop one- can this recipe be used for just a smaller turkey breast?
Hey Kali,
Thanks so much for making this recipe each year:) Yes, you sure can!
Butter Roasted Turkey Breasts
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 60 minutes
Serves: 6
2 skin on, bone in turkey breasts (about 4-5 pounds total)
1 stick (1/2 cup) salted butter
1/3 cup mixed chopped fresh herbs, such as thyme, sage, and parsley
zest of 1 lemon
kosher salt and black pepper
1 head garlic, skin left on and head cut in half horizontally
4 shallots, halved
1 cup white wine
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2. In a small bowl, combine the butter, herbs, lemon zest, and a pinch each of salt and pepper.
3. Gently loosen skin from the turkey breasts. Rub butter under the skin and all over the outside of breasts. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Arrange the thyme sprigs, garlic, and shallots in large roasting pan and then place the turkey breasts, skin side up, on top. Roast turkey breasts, rotating halfway through, until skin is crisp and golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of breasts registers 160 degrees F., about 45–55 minutes.
5. Transfer turkey breasts to a platter or cutting board and let rest 10 minutes. Carve and serve the turkey breasts with pan drippings and roasted shallots.
can I use this recipe with a convection oven?
Hi Diane,
Sure, I would just adjust your temp and cook time accordingly. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
This was amazing. Thanks so much. Can this be done with a 20lb turkey?
Hi Nancy,
Happy Holidays!! Thanks a lot for making this recipe and your comment, so glad it turned out well! Totally, you will just want to double the recipe. xx
I’m planning on making this for Christmas, if my Turkey is double the size of the recipe size, should I double the entire recipe and cooking time?
Hi Christine,
Yes, you will want to double the entire recipe and then for the cook time, add 12 minutes per pound to the temp at 350F. I hope this helps! xx
Absolutely Steller recipe! It was made exactly as stated but cooked on the smoker per recipe instructions, as Tieghan said in her recipe. In addition, a double layer of dampened and wrung-out cheesecloth was soaked in 1 cube of melted butter and laid over the top of the bird. It makes the basting stick and the bird golden when you remove the cheesecloth. Yeah, it’s decadent, but it’s once a year and worth the fat!! The best and most beautiful, juciy turkey in my 47 years of preparing Turkey!
Hey Kym,
Awesome!! So glad to hear the turkey turned out well for you in the smoker! So glad to hear it was enjoyed! Have the best week! xx
Can you do this to a turkey that’s been spatchcocked?
Hey Carley,
Totally! You will likely need to adjust your cook time though. Please let me know if you have any other questions!
This turkey was the bomb! So juicy and perfectly browned. It was a big hit!
Hi Cathy,
Yay!! That’s great to hear! Thank you so much for choosing to make this recipe for Thanksgiving! Happy Holidays! xx
I made this for Thanksgiving and it is a keeper!! I used a smaller turkey (under 11 lbs) and was a little worried it would be too dry – but I decreased the time as you had advised another commenter, as well as lowered temperature to 325 degrees the last hour. I also used a thermometer to know when to take it out of the oven and the result was perfection! And the gravy -soooo good! We’re still looking forward to eating leftovers! I love your recipes – thank you so much!
Hi Nancy,
Happy Weekend! Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I’m so glad it turned out nicely for you! Thanks so much for your kind message! xxT
Delicious! Never tried the cheese cloth before and so glad I did. Came out perfectly golden brown and the turkey was tasty. Made the gravy as well – easy peasy and yummy. Thank you! Looking forward to meeting you in Chicago for your upcoming book signing! 🙂
Thanks so much, Col! Love to hear you enjoyed this turkey:) Thanks for giving it a try! Can’t wait for the book signing!! Have the best weekend:) xx
This will be my new “go-to” Thanksgiving turkey recipe. I had never used cheesecloth before, and I’m quite sure it was the trick to make the turkey extra delicious. The combination of all of the fresh herbs, along with stuffing the cavity with the lemon, garlic and onion making the turkey drippings so flavorful (which I frequently basted the turkey with) made this classic recipe perfection. Everyone loved it! And I used a turkey breast instead of a whole turkey; the only issue was the cavity was too small for 2 lemons, one onion and a garlic head. Next time I would do one onion and one lemon.
Aww, thanks so much, Judy! I am so glad to hear this was a hit with your family. I appreciate you making it! Happy Holidays! xT
Hello! We just made this tonight for the very first time, and when we lifted the cheesecloth off the skin of the turkey on the top came off with it. I’m not sure what we did wrong, but do you have any recommendations regarding how to prevent the skin coming off with the cheesecloth. Other than that, the rest of the bird looks beautiful juicy tender as it should. It just looks like it’s balding on top 😂. Thanks for your insight for next year!
Hi Britt,
Wow, odd! I’ve never had anyone share this experience before. How much cheesecloth did you use? Was it soaked in butter? Did you baste over the cheesecloth? It definitely should not do that. So sorry! xx
Made this yesterday and it was really delicious! Thank you. Do you baste over the cheesecloth or remove it and baste directly on the bird? I lifted it and basted but wondered because the cheese cloth was dry. Very tasty and moist!
Hey Maryellen,
Amazing! Love to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks for making it and your comment! I baste over the cheesecloth. Hope you had a great Thanksgiving! xx
We made this for thanksgiving dinner last night and it was amazing. It stayed moist and was so flavorful.
I do recommend ensuring your turkey is on the lowest rack and you only have one layer of cheese cloth, as we had a near fire initially, but we were able to make a second butter soaked cheese cloth and avert crisis.
Thanks so much, Mandy! I am so glad you enjoyed this turkey and appreciate you making it! Happy Thanksgiving! xx
Perfect turkey recipe! I baked our 28 pound turkey following your recipe today, it was so easy to follow and the turkey turned out amazing! Everyone loved it and were amazed at the cheesecloth approach. Thank you for another great recipe, you never disappoint!
Hey Michelle,
Amazing! Love to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks for making it and your comment! Hope you had a great Thanksgiving! xx
Todos están con la boca hecha agua esperando para probar el pavo. El sabor es espectacular.
Hi Gladys,
¡Increíble! Me encanta saber que disfrutaste esta receta. ¡Gracias por prepararla y por tu comentario! ¡Espero que hayas tenido un gran Día de Acción de Gracias! xx
Can I use dried herbs? I forgot all my fresh herbs before we traveled to our cabin (no groceries near by) rookie mistake.
Hi Jasmin,
Yes, that will be just fine for you to do. Happy Thanksgiving! xx