Easy Roasted Turkey Recipe for Thanksgiving
This easy roasted turkey recipe shows you how to roast a Thanksgiving turkey that stays moist, even if it is your first time. Butter under the skin, a foil tent, and a few simple steps do most of the work.
All the prep happens before the turkey goes in the oven. Once it is roasting, you have the rest of the day to make your side dishes.
A Turkey Story From Our Dating Days
We get so excited about Thanksgiving that we usually make a small turkey dinner in October or early November. It has become a fall tradition for us.
It also takes me right back to when Jim and I were first dating.
We started dating in June, and by fall Jim had a plan. He showed up at my dad’s house, where I was living at the time, with a turkey for us to roast for dinner. It was still frozen.
He had no idea you need a thawed turkey, not a frozen one. We put it in the sink in warm water and ate dinner around 12:30 or 1 in the morning.
It was such a sweet idea.
Please don’t thaw yours in warm water like we did. Plan ahead and thaw it in the refrigerator, which is why step 1 below is all about thawing.
Ingredients Needed for Easy Roasted Turkey
- 1 whole turkey, 16 to 18 pounds, thawed, with the giblet bag removed
- 1 stick butter (1/2 cup), half cut into 1/4 inch pads and half melted
- 6 to 8 celery stalks, washed
- 6 to 8 whole long carrots, washed
- 1 1/2 cups water, turkey stock or vegetable stock
- Salt and pepper, if you like
- Stuffing for the cavity, optional (try my homemade cracker stuffing)
- Lemon and orange halves for the cavity, optional if you are not stuffing the turkey
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Equipment For A Roasted Turkey
- Extra-Long Aluminum Foil
- Roasting Rack or Celery & carrots
- Pastry Brush
- Turkey Baster
- Roasting Pan
- Cooking Twine
How to Prepare Your Turkey for Roasting
- Thaw the Turkey: Thaw your turkey in the refrigerator for days before you want to cook it. An 18-pound frozen turkey needs 5 days, and a 12-pound turkey needs 3 days. My Turkey Cooking Time and Defrosting Time Calculator tells you how many hours your turkey needs.
Pro tip: Start thawing early, because a turkey that is still icy inside will not cook evenly. - Prep the Pan: Heat the oven to 350°F. Spray or butter the inside of a clean, dry roasting pan. Lay the celery and carrots on the bottom to make a veggie rack, or use a roasting rack.
- Unwrap and Rinse: On cooking day, take the turkey out of the fridge and remove the wrapping. Take out the giblet package, a wax paper bag with the neck and organs. Rinse the inside and outside with cold water.
Pro tip: Save the neck and giblets if you plan to boil them for gravy. Otherwise, toss the bag in the trash. - Place the Turkey: Set the turkey on top of the celery and carrots.
- Butter the Turkey: Cut half a stick of butter into 1/4 inch pads and melt the other half. Loosen the skin over the breast with your hand and slide the butter pads underneath. Brush the melted butter over the outside, then add salt and pepper if you like.
- Stuff and Tie: If you are cooking stuffing inside the turkey, fill the cavity loosely so it cooks all the way through. If not, add lemon and orange halves instead. Tie the legs together with cooking twine either way.
Pro tip: Loose stuffing cooks through by the end of the roasting time. Packed stuffing does not. - Add the Liquid: Pour 1 1/2 cups of water, turkey stock or vegetable stock into the bottom of the pan.
- Make the Foil Tent: Lay two long strips of foil on top of each other and fold one long edge over about 1 inch. Tent it over the turkey and fold the edges onto the roaster so the foil does not touch the turkey.
Pro tip: Leave the tent on for most of the cooking time. You will take it off for the last hour.
How to Roast the Turkey
- Roast and Baste: Roast the turkey at 350°F for about 4½ hours. To find the time for your size, use my Turkey Cooking Time Calculator. About every hour, open the oven, spoon the pan liquid over the top of the turkey, and put the foil tent back.
- Brown the Skin: One hour before the turkey is done, take the tent off and baste again. Finish roasting uncovered so the skin browns.
- Check the Temperature: Check the thickest part of the breast, the thigh and the stuffing. The turkey is done at 165°F in all three places.
Pro tip: Cooking time is a guide, but the thermometer tells you for sure. - Rest and Carve: Let the turkey rest for 15 minutes so the juices stay in the meat. Then carve it. Butterball has a helpful guide on how to carve a turkey, linked to the same page you use now.
Grab these cute free printable recipe cards!
What to Serve with Easy Roasted Turkey
- Saltine Cracker Turkey Stuffing Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving
- Homemade Fresh Cranberry Relish Sauce Recipe
- Traditional Green Bean Casserole
- Simple Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes
- Candied Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallows
- Hash Brown Potato Bake Casserole
- Easy Corn Bake Casserole
- Classic Homemade Pumpkin Pie
- Easy Pecan Pie
- Homemade As American Apple Pie
- Pie Crust – Easy as Pie
Easy Roasted Thanksgiving Turkey
A simple roast turkey with butter under the skin and a foil tent to keep it moist. All the prep happens before it goes in the oven, so you can make your side dishes while it roasts.
- Total Time: 0 hours
- Yield: 10 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 1 whole turkey (16 to 18 pounds), thawed, giblet bag removed
- 1 stick butter (1/2 cup), half cut into 1/4 inch pads and half melted
- 6 to 8 celery stalks, washed
- 6 to 8 whole long carrots, washed
- 1 1/2 cups water, turkey stock, or vegetable stock
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Stuffing for the cavity, optional
- Lemon and orange halves for the cavity, optional if not stuffing
Get Recipe Ingredients
Instructions
- Thaw the turkey in the refrigerator. Plan 5 days for an 18-pound turkey and 3 days for a 12-pound turkey.
- Heat the oven to 350°F. Spray or butter a clean, dry roasting pan, then lay the celery and carrots on the bottom, or use a roasting rack.
- Remove the wrapping and the giblet package. Rinse the turkey inside and out with cold water, then set it on the celery and carrots.
- Cut half the butter into 1/4 inch pads and melt the rest. Loosen the skin over the breast and slide the butter pads underneath. Brush the melted butter over the outside and season with salt and pepper.
- Fill the cavity loosely with stuffing, or add lemon and orange halves. Tie the legs together with cooking twine.
- Pour the water or stock into the bottom of the pan.
- Layer two long sheets of foil, fold one long edge over about 1 inch, and tent it over the turkey. Fold the edges onto the pan so the foil does not touch the turkey.
- Roast for about 4 1/2 hours. Baste with the pan liquid about every hour, then put the tent back.
- One hour before the turkey is done, remove the tent, baste again, and finish roasting uncovered.
- Check the thickest part of the breast, the thigh, and the stuffing. The turkey is done at 165°F.
- Rest the turkey for 15 minutes, then carve.
Notes
1. Thaw an 18-pound turkey for 5 days in the refrigerator and a 12-pound turkey for 3 days.
2. Find your cooking time with my Turkey Cooking Time Calculator on craftingafamilydinner.com.
3. Keep the foil tent from touching the skin so it browns evenly.
4. Fill the cavity loosely so the stuffing cooks through.
5. Leave the foil tent on until the last hour, then remove it to brown the skin.
- Cook Time: 4 hr 30 min
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Roasting
- Cuisine: American
