Thanksgiving is almost here, and that means it’s time for a turkey post! I love this time of the year, and Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. It’s so nice to cook a big dinner and get together with friends and family, especially after the past couple of years. Like last year, I have come up with a Thanksgiving menu complete with a list of groceries, equipment, and a schedule. I’m hoping it will be even better than last year’s, but that’s a tall order. Let’s find out by kicking things off with this Roast Turkey In A Bag. It promises to make the meal’s centerpiece super easy with absolutely no basting required. Sounds too good to be true, I know, but let’s find out if it works.
Roast Turkey In a Bag is a fool proof way to bake a delicious, juicy, and tender turkey. No dry meat here! Enjoy this yummy turkey this Thanksgiving and holiday season!
The Ingredients
This recipe is simple, and the ingredients were not at all unusual. What was unusual was that I didn’t have anything by the pepper on hand. I had a little shopping to do, but it was easy.
I went with a 13.46-pound pre-brined frozen turkey from Wild Fork Foods. It was lovely and very budget-friendly at $26. The rest of the ingredients were easily found at my regular grocery store.
The Process
This recipe started off with thawing the turkey. It takes about 1 day per 4-5 pounds, so I set my turkey into a pan to catch the drippings and waited.
I had a lot to do once the big day rolled around, but I’m happy to say my Roast Turkey In A Bag was the easiest part. I set a stick of butter on the counter the night before, so it was perfectly softened. That made making the herb butter so easy.
After that, I cut the celery, onions, and carrots into large pieces and stuffed all the aromatics into the turkey’s cavity (most everything fit, but I did have a couple of extra pieces that I just threw into the bag). Then it was time to use all that the freshly made herb butter.
Speaking of herb butter, this is a classic technique that I really appreciate! It’s all about flavoring the butter with herbs and spices, then rubbing it all over the turkey (or any poultry) to make the skin turn golden brown.
This recipe even had me rub some of the herb butter underneath the breast skin. It’s a little detail with a big payoff. Taking the time to do this adds extra flavor to the meat and keeps it from drying out. No one likes dry turkey breast!
Getting a greased-up turkey into a roasting bag was a little tricky, but I managed to do it by myself. Then I closed up the bag, cut a few holes to let the steam escape, added a meat thermometer to the thigh, and popped that sucker into the oven (in a pan with a roasting rack, BTW). Here’s how my time was spent for this recipe:
- 23 minutes to prep
- 2 hours 15 minutes to cook
- 15 minutes to stand
- 2 hours 53 minutes total
