Roast Turkey Breast

5 from 1 vote

Cooking the breast separate from the legs and thighs means that you can optimize cooking for the delicate white meat with tender and juicy results. A dry brine helps to produce crispy skin and a well seasoned bird. This is also ideal for smaller gatherings.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword american, Christmas, dairy-free, dinner, egg-free, holiday, lunch, main, nightshade-free, nut-free, thanksgiving, turkey

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 3

Dry Brine 1

Total Time 1 3

Servings

Calories 339kcal

Author Jenny Ross

Ingredients

6 pounds turkey breast 1 whole bone-in skin-on, patted dry (you can use a 4-6 pound turkey breast - with bone in, the 6 pound turkey will yeild about 4 pounds meat)

Gravy Base

1 cup onion roughly chopped, 1 small yellow onion
1/2 cup carrot peeled and roughly chopped, 1 medium carrot
1/2 cup celery roughly chopped, 1 celery rib
1 garlic clove peeled and smashed
2 bay leaves
2 cups chicken stock

Herb Butter

1/2 cup butter softened, or butter flavored coconut oil, semi solid
4 cloves garlic minced
1/2 teaspoon paprika optional, omit for nightshade-free
2 teaspoons dried thyme
2 teaspoons dried rosemary crumbled
1 1/2 teaspoons dried sage
1/2 cup fresh parsley minced
1/2 teaspoon black pepper fresh ground

Instructions

Trim the neck of the turkey and reserve for gravy making. Dry brine the turkey by salting the top and bottom of the turkey breast with 1% salt by weight (this works out to about 4.5 grams salt for every pound of turkey). Place salted breast, uncovered in the refrigerator overnight (this allows the skin to dry out, producing more crisp skin).
Preheat the oven to 275ºF and line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Add the gravy base ingredients, spreading them evenly across the pan and set aside.
Carefully separate the skin from the turkey breast using your hands, making sure not to tear the skin. Combine the herb butter ingredients and stir until smooth. Spread this mixture all over the breast meat under the skin.
Roast turkey until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of a breast piece registers 150°F, 2 to 3 hours total.
While the turkey roasts, begin the gravy (see related recipe).
Remove the turkey from the oven and let rest for 20 minutes. Pour the vegetables and juices from under the bird through a fine mesh strainer and add to the gravy. Reserve the turkey on the same roasting pan and just before serving, heat in a 500ºF oven until golden and the skin is crispy. Slice before serving.

Nutrition