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Detailed Roast Turkey (Roasted Turkey) Recipe
A complete roast turkey recipe from prepping the bird through making the accompanying gravy. The dish is not complete without the celery-and-toast mix—find the special link inside the recipe. The perfect, full Thanksgiving recipe you won't find anywhere else.
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Roast turkey — the perfect Thanksgiving recipe
Ingredients
- Turkey weighing 3 kilos
- Salt
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon seven-spice mix
- 1 teaspoon chicken seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- Unsalted softened butter
- Lemon
- Vinegar for cleaning the turkey
- 2 sprigs thyme, fresh or dried
- 1/2 cup flour
- The sauce or gravy:
- The pan juices that will result from roasting the turkey
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 6 tablespoons flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon seven-spice mix
- How to make the accompanying sauce or gravy:
- In a saucepan, melt 6 tablespoons of butter with 6 tablespoons of flour over medium heat, stirring until the butter melts and the mixture darkens a little with the flour
Method
- Clean the turkey. First remove the giblets (neck and gizzard). Then rub the bird with vinegar and flour and let it soak for 15 minutes. After that, rinse thoroughly with water.Timers: 15 min
- Drain the turkey well and pat dry with kitchen towels.
- Rub the turkey with butter, especially between the skin and the meat.
- Mix all the spices together and rub the turkey all over with the spice mix.
- Cut the lemon in half and place it inside the cavity with the thyme sprigs.
- Wrap the turkey tightly in aluminum foil on all sides. Use high-quality foil rated for oven use.
- Place the turkey in a large roasting pan and add about two cups of water to the pan.
- Put the pan in a hot oven for 10 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 180°C (350°F) and roast for 3 hours. Add water to the pan two or three times during roasting — whenever the liquid in the pan gets low or evaporates, add more.Timers: 10 min, 180 min
- When the turkey is cooked, cut the aluminum foil with scissors and brown the top for 5 minutes.Timers: 5 min
- Let the turkey rest for 15 minutes before carving.Timers: 15 min
- Meanwhile, use the juices that collected from the turkey inside the foil to make the gravy (giblet sauce).
- Note: If the turkey is frozen, transfer it from the freezer to the refrigerator at least 12 hours before roasting.Timers: 720 min
- Gradually add the pan juices collected from roasting the turkey, stirring in a circular motion to prevent lumps.
- Add the spices and salt, stir well, and simmer the gravy over low heat for about 5 minutes or until it thickens.Timers: 5 min
- Serve the roasted turkey with this gravy and the celery-and-toast mix
- Celery and Toast Mix — click the link to get the recipe
Notes and serving ideas
- Celery and Toast Mix






