Here are steps to making a perfect whole Thanksgiving turkey flavored with lemon, sage, and a secret marinade that may already be in your pantry.

Impress your guests this holiday by serving this lemon sage roasted turkey that is moist, flavorful, and beautiful on a platter. It is anything but boring!!!

 

Mastering a whole Thanksgiving turkey.

I’ve never been able to master the art of making a whole turkey. It has always turned out bland and super dry. Thankfully, my friend Iris has taught me how to make a turkey that rivals anything I could buy from a caterer. She created this recipe for me to share with my followers just in time for Thanksgiving. Iris’s years at Oxmoor House as a taste tester and food stylist gave her just the skills needed to create this turkey that we can all enjoy on our table. She also took all of the photos of this beautiful bird. She is amazing!!!

Save money by roasting your own turkey.

For many years, I have ordered our Thanksgiving turkey from various caterers or kitchens in town. I’ve spent about $50 for every turkey, most of which averaged 10-12 pounds. The turkey in these photos was 18 pounds and cost less than $20. Add the marinade, lemons, and sage, and I spent roughly $25. That is a huge savings.

What kind of turkey do you buy?

For this recipe, I used an 18-pound frozen turkey from Publix that was not pre-brined. Fresh turkey would definitely work well, but I haven’t seen whole turkeys at the meat counters lately. Fresh turkey usually start showing up in stores just before Thanksgiving, and they are usually sold at a great price.

Do you brine a whole Thanksgiving turkey?

You could brine a whole Thanksgiving turkey, but that would be a definite challenge due to the size of the bird and refrigerator space needed to keep it overnight. Iris created this recipe to do an “internal brine” where marinade is injected into the turkey. It acts as a brine due to the high salt content in the Dales, but it just works from within. A meat injector can be found almost anywhere, often attached to marinades in the grocery store.

How do you marinate a turkey?

A marinade is key to getting a full deep flavor into the turkey.  This recipe calls for a marinade of melted butter, Dale’s hickory marinade, lemon juice and garlic powder. This is injected into the turkey at most of the meaty spots (breasts, thighs, legs). Dale’s has a high salt content (even the low-sodium version), but it is perfect for brining. The hickory flavor is also so delicious. The lemon juice adds flavor and is also a good acid to tenderize the meat.

How else do you flavor the turkey?

In addition to injecting the turkey with marinade, you use fresh lemon and sage to round out the flavors. Lemon slices and sage leaves are tucked underneath the turkey skin. The lemon rinds are tucked inside the turkey cavity along with onion wedges.   In the photo below, you can see the skin peeled back to reveal the lemon and sage underneath.

How do you get a brown exterior on the turkey?

The brown crispy looking skin on the Thanksgiving turkey comes from roasting on high first (475 F) and then reducing heat to 300 for slower cooking. This brown exterior acts as a “seal” to prevent the turkey from drying out as it cooks. It almost acts like an oven bag made of turkey skin.

How long do you cook a whole turkey?

Once you cook the turkey at 475 F for 15 minutes to brown the skin, you reduce the heat to 300 F. Before closing the oven door, you’ll want to insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh (being careful not to touch the bone). You cook at 300 F until the thermometer registers 165 F. This takes generally 2-3 hours for a 15-16 pound turkey. When you see the thermometer reach 165 F, remove the turkey and allow it to sit for at least half an hour to settle.

In the video below, I show how the Thanksgiving turkey looks from the oven and share some tips that make this recipe turn out well every time.

What foods go best with a roasted Thanksgiving turkey?

The time of year that I make a whole turkey is either Thanksgiving or Christmas. Below are some of the menu items we put on our holiday table.

• My Grand’s cornbread dressing (make ahead & freezer friendly).
• Lemon-herb turkey breast in a slow cooker or my perfect whole roasted turkey. 
• Brown Sugar Crusted Spiral Sliced Kentucky Legend Ham
• Best and easiest cranberry sauce.
• Oven mushroom rice (aka “church lady rice).
• Our favorite Mississippi green beans.

I hope that you will try making your own turkey this year; you can do it!!!! If you make this one, please let me hear how it turns out. As always, thanks so much for stopping by. Be blessed, and stay savvy!!!