Kittencal's Perfect Roasted Whole Turkey (Great for Beginners)

"Here you will find easy step-by-step instructions that will result in the best juiciest turkey you will ever have! cooking the turkey breast-side down will create a tender juicy turkey without brining or using other methods --- if you are stuffing the turkey you will need approximately 8 cups of prepared stuffing for an 18-pound turkey --- the cooking time for this recipe is for an 18-pound stuffed turkey cooked at 325 degrees F but you have the option of stuffing or not --- my best advise for a beginner is to use a meat thermometer inserted in the breast area, this way you will be assured that your turkey is cooked to the proper temperature, you can cover the uncooked stuffed turkey with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight and just pop it in the oven the following mid-morning or whenever you are ready to cook the turkey --- make certain that you have lots of chicken broth handy for this recipe as you will most likely need to keep adding more into the pan while cooking --- see cooking times on the bottom for whole turkeys --- see my recipe#145064"
 
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photo by SharonChen photo by SharonChen
photo by Karen R. photo by Karen R.
photo by Chef shapeweaver photo by Chef shapeweaver
photo by TaniaPGonzalez .. photo by TaniaPGonzalez ..
photo by Food.com photo by Food.com
Ready In:
4hrs 25mins
Ingredients:
7
Serves:
12-15
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ingredients

  • 1 (18 lb) whole turkey
  • 13 cup melted butter, cooled (can use margarine)
  • 13 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 tablespoon white salt (or use as much salt as desired)
  • fresh ground black pepper (lots of pepper!)
  • 2 quarts chicken stock (might use less)
  • 8 cups favorite prepared stuffing (optional)
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directions

  • Set oven to 325 degrees F, convection oven heat set to 320 degrees F.
  • Set oven rack to lowest position.
  • Remove the giblets and neck from the cavity.
  • Rinse the turkey well with cold water inside and out then pat dry with a paper towel.
  • Place the turkey on a rack on a roasting pan.
  • In a small bowl mix together the melted butter with oil (I also like to add in 1 teaspoon garlic powder with the oil/butter mixture if you are a garlic-lover then use it).
  • Fill the inside cavity loosley with prepared stuffing (if you are not using stuffing then tie the legs together with cotton butchers twine).
  • Using clean hands rub the outside of the turkey with the oil/butter/garlic mixture.
  • Season the turkey all over with salt and lots fresh ground black pepper.
  • If you are NOT stuffing the bird place breast-side down on the rack, if stuffing leave breast-side up.
  • Place/tent a large piece of heavy foil over the turkey.
  • Place the pan in the oven, then pour about 4-5 cups chicken broth in the pan.
  • Keep basting the turkey about every 30-40 minutes with the pan juices on the bottom of the pan (removing the foil and re-tenting every time you baste).
  • If you see the juices starting to evaporate then add in more broth to the pan about 2 cups at a time.
  • After about 2-1/2 hours of cooking time remove the foil.
  • Keep roasting (325 degrees F) until the internal thermometer reads 180 degrees F (80 degrees C).
  • The total cooking time for this 18-pound stuffed bird should be about 4 hours.
  • Transfer the cooked turkey to a large serving platter, cover loosley with foil and let rest 30 minutes before carving (DO NOT slice the turkey before 30 minutes or all juices will flow out of the bird!).
  • --------------------------------------------.
  • **NOTE** cooking times for whole turkeys cooked at 325 degrees are as follows.
  • For an 8-12 pound turkey, roast for 2-3/4 to 3 hours.
  • For a 12-14 pound turkey, roast for 3 to 3-3/4 hours.
  • For a 14-18 pound turkey, roast for 3-3/4 to 4-1/4 hours.
  • For an 18-20 pound turkey, roast for 4-1/2 to 4-3/4 hours.

Questions & Replies

  1. oops - delete please
     
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Reviews

  1. Very moist and tender, I cooked mine unstuffed, kept it breast side down for 3 of the 4 hours and then flipped it over to brown the breast, basting every 40 min. or so. I put 5 cups of broth in at the beginning and never had to add more..in fact, I ended up with triple what I started with due to the juice from the turkey! Delicious.
     
  2. Two years ago I tried another recipe on this site and it failed. I was not taking chances this year and knew I could rely on anything by Kittencal. I used her brine first. I roasted an 18lb turkey. It took about 35 minutes longer than anticipated to come to the right temperature. It was juicy and delicious. Everyone raved about it. Thanks for another successful meal!
     
  3. This turkey turned out fantastic AGAIN but this time on my Kamado Kooker charcoal grill. It is the be the best one I've ever grilled. Here's what I did as my personal variation:<br/>Start with an 17 lb. fresh, natural turkey. Rinse it well, then brine it for 12-14 hours.<br/>Rinse it well after brining, rub with the recipe plus add a tbs. dry rub to the mix. Add a couple of sprigs of fresh rosemary to the bird cavity.<br/>Place into a large, disposable aluminum roasting pan, breast side down. Tie the wings tight to the side of the bird. Add the liquid, cover with foil tent. Maintain a 325 temperature.<br/> Make sure to baste every 40-50 mins. Rotate the bird 90 degrees after about 3 hours. This helps even out the cooking.<br/>Defiantly use an electric meat thermometer to get the thigh meat up to 160.<br/>Keeping the temperature constant was the biggest challenge, as it usually is on any grill. But the result was well worth the effort. The meat turns out packed with flavor, juicy and succulent.
     
  4. Came out really good! I think next time we'll put the turkey in breast side up at 400 till golden, then flip it over. Ours didn't look as good as some of the pictures posted. Loved how easy it was to prepare. Thanks for posting!
     
  5. this produced a really yummy turkey, but I want to point out that convection ovens should NOT be turned down to 320. I did that, and although the turkey was delicious, it took more than 2 hours longer than expected.
     
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