Best Herb Rubbed Turkey Recipes

LOW-SODIUM HERB-RUBBED TURKEY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. In a small bowl, mix garlic, herbs and spices until blended. Sprinkle flour into oven bag; shake to coat. Place bag in a roasting pan; add vegetables and sprinkle with 5 teaspoons herb mixture., Pat turkey dry. With fingers, carefully loosen skin from turkey breast; rub half of the remaining herb mixture under the skin. Secure skin to underside of breast with toothpicks. Rub remaining herb mixture over inside of turkey. Tuck wings under turkey; tie drumsticks together., Place turkey in bag over vegetables, breast side up; close bag with nylon tie. Cut six 1/2-in. slits in top of bag; close with tie provided. Bake 2 to 2-1/2 hours or until a thermometer inserted in thickest part of thigh reads 170°-175°. , Remove turkey from oven bag to a serving platter; tent with foil. Let stand 20 minutes before carving. Strain contents of oven bag into a small saucepan, discarding vegetables; skim fat from cooking juices. In a small bowl, mix cornstarch and water until smooth; gradually whisk into cooking juices. Bring to a boil; cook and stir 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve with turkey.

HERB-RUBBED TURKEY

Steps:

• Remove giblets from turkey; set aside. Loosen skin around turkey breast, leg and thigh. Combine seasonings; rub under skin, in body and neck cavities and over skin if desired. Place vegetables in the cavities. Skewer openings; tie drumsticks together. Place breast side up on a rack in a roasting pan. Lightly coat with cooking spray. Roast, uncovered, at 325° for 3 to 3-1/2 hours or until a thermometer reads 180° (cover loosely with foil if browning too quickly). Baste with pan drippings if desired., Remove papery skin from garlic bulbs (do not peel or separate cloves). Brush with 1 teaspoon oil. Wrap in heavy-duty foil. Roast at 325° for 1 hour or until garlic is soft. Cool for 10-15 minutes. Cut top off heads, leaving root end intact. Squeeze garlic into a bowl. Mash to a smooth paste; set aside., To make broth, cut reserved gizzard and heart into several pieces. (Save liver for another use or discard.) In a Dutch oven, saute neck, gizzard and heart in remaining oil over medium-high heat until no longer pink. Add the vegetables; cook until browned. Gradually add 6 cups of water, stirring to loosen browned bits. Tie peppercorns, cloves and herbs in a cheesecloth bag; add to pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 2 hours or until broth is reduced by half. Discard giblets and spice bag. Cool broth; strain, discard vegetables., When turkey is done, cover and let stand for 20 minutes. Pour drippings and any loosen browned bits into a measuring cup; skim fat. Add enough broth to measure 3 cups. In a saucepan, combine the cornstarch and remaining water until smooth. Add broth, salt, pepper and 2 tablespoons roasted garlic. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove and discard turkey skin and vegetables in cavities before carving. Serve with gravy.

HERB-RUBBED TURKEY WITH ROASTED-GARLIC GRAVY

Steps:

• One day ahead:
• Process herbs and garlic in food processor until finely minced. Set aside.
• Rinse turkey inside and out with cold water; pat dry with paper towels. Trim excess fat. Place turkey in large nonreactive bowl. Starting at neck cavity, loosen skin from breast and drumsticks by gently inserting fingers between skin and meat. Sprinkle kosher salt and pepper under and over skin. Then spread garlic-herb rub under skin and gently press skin to adhere. Lift wing tips up and over back; tuck into turkey. Refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight.
• To roast:
• Let turkey stand at room temperature 1 hour before serving. Set oven rack at lowest position and preheat oven to 350°F. Spread sliced onions on bottom of heavy-bottomed roasting pan and place fitted rack over top. (Or place the turkey directly on bed of onions. They will prevent sticking and flavor drippings.) Brush turkey with grapeseed oil and carefully transfer to rack. Brush one side of double-folded sheet of aluminum foil with grapeseed oil and tent, greased side down, over turkey breast. Place turkey in oven so legs face back of oven and bird, breast side up, faces door. Place wrapped garlic on oven rack.
• Roast 45 minutes. Remove garlic from oven. Remove foil from turkey and turn pan around. Roast until thermometer inserted in thickest part of thigh registers 170°F and juices run clear when thigh is pierced with fork (see note below), about 1 hour 15 minutes. Transfer turkey to platter and reserve pan drippings. Let turkey stand 20 minutes before carving.
• Prepare gravy while turkey rests:
• Pour drippings into 4-cup glass measure, and skim off fat that rises to surface, reserving 1 tablespoon fat (see tip below). Add enough broth to drippings to measure 3 cups.
• Separate roasted garlic cloves. Squeeze pulp into small bowl and mash well with fork. In medium saucepan over medium heat, heat reserved fat. Add garlic and flour, and cook, whisking constantly, until lightly browned, about 30 seconds. Gradually whisk in broth mixture. Bring to boil over high heat, whisking constantly, and remove from heat. Carve turkey and serve with gravy.

HERB-RUBBED TURKEY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with rack in lowest position. Place turkey on roasting rack set in a large roasting pan. Working from both ends of the turkey,slide fingers under skin to separate it from the flesh (being careful not to tear skin). Spread herb rub under skin.
• Loosely fill neck cavity and large cavity with 4 cups stuffing. Using kitchen twine, tie legs together securely. Rub all over with butter, and season generously with salt and pepper. Place neck, giblets, and 3 cups water in bottom of roasting pan.
• Cover turkey loosely with aluminum foil. Roast 1 hour, then baste with pan juices every 30 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted intothickest part of thigh (avoiding bone) registers 125 degrees, 2 to 3 hours total.
• Remove foil; raise oven heat to 400 degrees. Roast, basting every 15 minutes, until thermometer inserted in thigh (avoiding bone) reaches 170 degrees, 45 minutes to 1 hour more (temperature will rise about10 degrees as turkey rests). If browning too quickly, cover loosely with foil; add more water if pan becomes dry.
• Transfer turkey to a cutting board, cover loosely with foil, and let rest at least 30 minutes before carving.Reserve pan with drippings for White-Wine Gravy. To carve: Remove and slice breasts; remove wings. Pull each leg away from body, cutting through thigh joint;cut through leg joint to separate thigh from drumstick.

HERB AND SPICE RUBBED TURKEY

Steps:

• 1. TURKEY THAWING TIMES-Approximately 8 to 12 pounds......1 to 2 days in refrigerator 10 to 16 pounds.....2 to 3 days in refrigerator 16 to 20 pounds.....3 to 4 days in refrigerator 20 to 24 pounds.....4 to 5 days in refrigerator
• 2. Cut carrots and celery in 4 or 5 pcs. each. Cut onion into quarters. I don't bother to peel carrots or take skin off of onion or garlic. Mix together olive oil and all spices in small bowl.
• 3. Remove gizzards from inside bird as well as neck from inside the neck cavity. Rinse bird off with water, make sure to drain water out of cavity. Pat dry with paper towels. Using 1/3 of the rub mix, pour into cavity and rub well. Place most of the carrots, celery, onions and the garlic into cavity until filled up. Place the remainder in the neck cavity. (You can boil the neck and gizzards to make broth if desired, discard liver, it will cause your broth to be bitter).
• 4. Using your fingers, gently go between skin and meat on both sides of turkey breast and seperate the skin from the meat, being careful not to rip the skin. If you have a really large bird, you might need to make a small incision in the neck flap skin and to seperate the skin from meat on the other end of the breast. Now using part of your rub, place some under the skin on both sides of the turkey breast rubbing into the meat. Once you've done that, make sure your bird is good and dry (using paper towels) and rub remainder of oil and spices on the skin of the bird.
• 5. Place on lowest rack in oven if using roasting pan with rack inside. If baking flat on the bottom of a pan, place on the next higher rack. Make a "tent" out of foil to place loosely on top of bird, this will keep turkey from browning too much on top. Place about 2c of water in bottom of roaster, you will need to add water every so often.
• 6. Bake on 400° for 30 min., then reduce heat to 325°, here is a chart for approximate baking times: TURKEY ROASTING TIMES 6 to 8 pounds......2-1/2 to 3 hours 8 to 12 pounds.....3 to 4 hours 12 to 16 pounds....4 to 5 hours 16 to 20 pounds....5 to 5-1/2 hours 20 to 24 pounds....5-1/2 to 6 hours Always use a meat thermometer to gauge doneness. For an unstuffed turkey, place the meat thermometer in the thickest part of the thigh, taking care that it does not touch any bone. Roast the turkey until the meat thermometer reaches 180 degrees F.