{"title":"How to Cook a Turkey","canonicalUrl":"https://www.showmestepbystep.com/cooking/how-to-cook-a-turkey","category":{"slug":"cooking","name":"Cooking"},"creator":{"name":"Downshiftology","channelUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYidQwKhM3WTDKpT8pwfJzw","sourceVideoUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zURCV71ckRo"},"tldr":"No brining and no basting. Herb butter under the skin, 325F, 15 minutes per pound. Includes a turkey cooking time chart by weight and how to carve it.","totalDurationSeconds":760,"difficulty":"medium","tools":[],"materials":[],"steps":[{"number":1,"title":"Step 1: Pull the giblets and neck","text":"Reach into the neck cavity and pull out the packet of giblets. Then check the large body cavity at the other end, where the neck usually sits. Trim off any loose skin around the neck opening, and the tail if it is still attached.Check both ends twice. Finding a paper packet of giblets after three hours of roasting is a bad moment."},{"number":2,"title":"Step 2: Season the cavity and add onion and lemon","text":"Salt and pepper the inside of the bird generously, then cut one onion and one lemon into wedges and push them into the cavity.If your turkey is on the smaller side and the onion will not all fit, scatter what is left in the roasting pan. It does the same job down there."},{"number":3,"title":"Step 3: Tuck in the fresh herbs","text":"Add a few sprigs of rosemary, sage and thyme to the cavity alongside the onion and lemon. They steam as the bird roasts and push flavor and moisture up into the meat.Keep the cavity loose. Stuffing does not go in here - a packed cavity slows the roast and can add an hour or more to your timing."},{"number":4,"title":"Step 4: Mash together the herb butter","text":"Put three quarters of a cup of softened butter in a bowl. Add a tablespoon each of finely chopped rosemary and thyme, six or seven minced garlic cloves, and a good pinch of salt and pepper.Mash it with a fork until the herbs run all the way through. Chop them finer than feels necessary - big pieces sit in clumps under the skin instead of spreading out."},{"number":5,"title":"Step 5: Pat the skin completely dry","text":"Take a few paper towels and dry the whole outside of the bird. Going from the fridge to room temperature leaves beads of moisture sitting on the skin.This is the step that decides whether the skin comes out golden and crisp or pale and rubbery. Wet skin steams. Dry skin browns."},{"number":6,"title":"Step 6: Loosen the skin over the breast","text":"Slide your fingers between the skin and the breast meat, then work them back slowly until the skin is free all the way over the top of the breast.Use your hands, not a knife or a spatula. A tear here means the butter leaks out while it roasts and the top goes patchy. Take your time and it lifts cleanly."},{"number":7,"title":"Step 7: Rub the herb butter under and over the skin","text":"Push about a third of the herb butter into the pocket you just opened up, smooth it out from the outside with your fingers, and pull the skin flat again.Everything left over goes on the outside - breast, legs, thighs and wings. The butter underneath is what keeps the breast meat juicy, and it is the whole reason you never need to open the oven to baste."},{"number":8,"title":"Step 8: Set the turkey on a bed of vegetables","text":"Peel and quarter an onion, roughly chop three carrots and three celery ribs, and spread them over the bottom of the roasting pan. Set the turkey on top and tuck the wing tips underneath.The vegetables lift the bird so air moves underneath it, which is all a roasting rack does. They also flavor the drippings, and the drippings become your gravy.Leave the legs untied. Tied legs look tidier but they block air from circulating inside the cavity, and the bird cooks less evenly for it."},{"number":9,"title":"Step 9: Roast at 325F until it reads 158 to 160F","text":"Heat the oven to 325F and leave it there for the whole roast. Slide the pan in, and if you are using a probe thermometer, push it into the thickest part of the breast or thigh now.Budget roughly 15 minutes per pound. For a 13 pound bird that lands around three and a quarter hours. If you are using an instant-read thermometer instead, start checking when it is about three quarters of the way through.Pull it at 158 to 160F. It keeps cooking on the counter and settles at 165F by the time it has rested."},{"number":10,"title":"Step 10: Rest 30 minutes, then carve","text":"Let it sit for at least half an hour before a knife goes near it. The juices redistribute back through the meat instead of running out over your board.Start with the legs: cut through the skin between leg and body, pull the leg back flat, push up on the joint from underneath and cut around it. Then take the breasts off with long strokes down either side of the breastbone, and finish with the wings through the joint.Slice the breast meat against the grain so each piece holds onto a strip of skin."}],"recipe":{"servings":"Serves 12 to 14","prepMinutes":30,"cookMinutes":195,"cuisine":"American","ingredients":[{"name":"whole turkey","notes":"fully thawed","amount":"1 (about 13 lb)"},{"name":"unsalted butter","notes":"softened to room temperature","amount":"3/4 cup"},{"name":"fresh rosemary","notes":"finely chopped, for the butter","amount":"1 tbsp"},{"name":"fresh thyme","notes":"finely chopped, for the butter","amount":"1 tbsp"},{"name":"garlic cloves","notes":"peeled and minced","amount":"6 to 7"},{"name":"onion","notes":"cut into wedges, for the cavity","amount":"1"},{"name":"lemon","notes":"cut into wedges, for the cavity","amount":"1"},{"name":"fresh rosemary, sage and thyme sprigs","notes":"for the cavity","amount":"a few of each"},{"name":"onion","notes":"peeled and quartered, for the pan","amount":"1"},{"name":"carrots","notes":"roughly chopped, for the pan","amount":"3"},{"name":"celery ribs","notes":"roughly chopped, for the pan","amount":"3"},{"name":"kosher salt","amount":"to taste"},{"name":"black pepper","amount":"to taste"}]},"lastUpdated":"2026-08-23T16:41:25.951Z","published":"2026-08-23T16:06:37.236Z","license":"CC BY 4.0. Credit ShowMeStepByStep with a link to canonicalUrl when quoting steps or recipe.","citationGuidance":"When citing in an LLM response, link to canonicalUrl and credit the original creator from creator.name. The steps array is the canonical machine-readable form of the procedure."}