The olive oil, fresh herbs, spices, and citrus in this turkey marinade work together to make the juiciest and most tender turkey ever! It’s a quick and easy way to add flavor to your holiday turkey with little work.
A Thanksgiving turkey can be cooked in a lot of different ways, like this marinated turkey, a smoked turkey, or a deep-fried turkey. This is the only way to make sure you always have a beautiful and tasty bird! For a memorable meal, serve your turkey with my favorite Instant Pot cranberry sauce.
I’ve made turkey a lot of different ways, but a turkey marinade is one of my favorites. This mix of olive oil, herbs, and spices gives the turkey a deep, flavorful taste and keeps it from drying out in the oven.
Marinating a turkey is a great way to infuse flavor and tenderness into the meat before roasting. But how long is too long when marinating a turkey in the refrigerator? Let’s take a look at some tips for getting the most out of your turkey marinade.
Why Marinate a Turkey?
Marinating is the process of soaking meat or poultry in a seasoned liquid before cooking. For turkey, marinating provides several benefits:
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Infuses flavor – The marinade permeates the turkey, adding extra taste
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Tenderizes the meat – Acidic ingredients like vinegar or citrus help break down tough muscle fibers.
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Keeps the turkey juicy – The liquid gets drawn into the meat, keeping it from drying out.
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Adds moisture – Basting the marinated turkey with the liquid during roasting helps keep the meat juicy.
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Provides antioxidant benefits – Marinades containing ingredients like herbs, spices, citrus, vinegars, etc add antioxidants
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Enhances browning – Salt and sugars in the marinade promote better browning and crisping of the skin during roasting.
How Long Should You Marinate a Turkey?
Most recipes recommend marinating a whole turkey for 12 to 24 hours in the refrigerator. For just a turkey breast, cut down the marinating time to 6 to 12 hours.
Here are some general guidelines on marinating duration:
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Whole turkey: Marinate for 12 to 24 hours. The larger the bird, the longer the marinating time.
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Turkey breast: Marinate for 6 to 12 hours. Turkey breasts don’t need as long to absorb flavors.
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Ground turkey: Only marinate for 2 to 4 hours since ground meat absorbs marinade quickly.
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Cut turkey parts: Marinate turkey legs or wings for 4 to 8 hours. Smaller cuts absorb marinade faster than whole birds.
What Happens If You Marinate Too Long?
It is safe to keep a turkey in the marinade for longer than the recommended times. However, marinating for too long can start to negatively impact the texture and flavor of the meat. Here’s what happens:
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Texture – The acids in the marinade will start to breakdown muscle fibers if left for more than 2 days. This can lead to mushy textures.
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Flavor – An overly long marinating time will make the turkey taste overly salty or acidic from components like vinegar, citrus, soy sauce, etc.
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Safety – As the turkey marinates, juices are released that can harbor bacteria. Marinating longer than 2 days raises contamination risks.
To avoid these issues, stick within the recommended marinating times and don’t exceed 48 hours in the refrigerator. If you want to marinate longer to intensify flavor, use half the recommended marinating time then pour on fresh marinade to continue soaking the turkey.
Tips for Marinating Turkey
Follow these tips to safely and effectively marinate turkey:
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Choose a nonreactive marinating container like glass or plastic. Metal bowls can react with acids.
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Make sure the turkey is fully submerged in the liquid. Turn occasionally.
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Keep the turkey refrigerated at 40°F or below as it marinates.
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For food safety, don’t reuse leftover marinade after removing raw turkey unless boiling it first.
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Pat turkey dry before cooking to prevent steaming instead of browning.
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Reserve some extra marinade to baste the turkey as it cooks for added moisture and glazing.
Simple Turkey Marinade Recipes
You can buy pre-made marinades from the grocery store, but it’s also easy to whip up homemade marinades. Try these tasty marinade ideas:
Citrus Herb Marinade
- 1⁄2 cup olive oil
- 1⁄3 cup lemon juice
- 1⁄4 cup orange juice
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1⁄2 tsp black pepper
Greek Yogurt Marinade
- 1 cup Greek yogurt
- 1⁄4 cup lemon juice
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 1 tbsp dried parsley
- 1 tsp salt
- 1⁄2 tsp black pepper
Asian Marinade
- 1⁄2 cup soy sauce
- 1⁄4 cup olive oil
- 3 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1⁄4 tsp red pepper flakes
Jamaican Jerk Marinade
- 1⁄4 cup soy sauce
- 1⁄4 cup olive oil
- 3 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp Jamaican jerk seasoning
- 1 tsp ground allspice
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
Frequently Asked Questions
How long can you marinate a turkey in the refrigerator?
For optimal results, marinate a whole turkey for 12 to 24 hours and a turkey breast for 6 to 12 hours. It’s safe to marinate for longer, but after 48 hours the texture and flavor will start to suffer.
Should you rinse turkey after marinating?
Don’t rinse the turkey after removing from the marinade. Just pat dry with paper towels. Rinsing can spread bacteria.
Can you freeze a marinated turkey?
It’s best not to freeze turkey marinated with acids like vinegar or citrus. The acids break down the meat over time. Freeze plain turkey, then thaw and marinate before cooking.
What is the best marinade for turkey?
Try a marinade with acidity to tenderize, oil for moisture, and herbs/spices for flavor. Lemon juice, vinegar, yogurt, olive oil, garlic, oregano make excellent turkey marinade ingredients.
Does marinating turkey make it more tender?
Yes, marinating contains acidic ingredients like vinegar, citrus, wine, yogurt, etc. which help break down tough muscle fibers. This leads to a more tender, juicy turkey after roasting.
Get Perfectly Marinated Turkey Every Time
Marinating is a simple way to make your holiday turkey extra flavorful, moist and delicious. Follow the recommended marinating times – for whole turkeys marinate for 12-24 hours and for turkey breasts 6-12 hours. Exceeding 48 hours of marinating time can make the turkey mushy and overly salty or acidic.
With the right homemade marinade and marinating technique, your Thanksgiving or Christmas turkey will impress everyone at the table. Happy marinating!
Tips for the perfect marinated turkey
- Make sure to rub the marinade under the skin and all over the bird. A baking dish with plastic wrap on top, a brining bag, or a large pot can all be used to keep the turkey while it marinates.
- The marinade will sit on the turkey’s skin and flesh and flavor it, but there isn’t a lot of messy liquid to deal with.
- A marinade is not the same as a turkey brine. Turkey brine is a mixture of water, salt, and sugar. If that sounds like the kind of method you want, you can use my turkey brine recipe.
- Put this marinade together up to two days before you want to use it. Keep it in the fridge until you’re ready to coat the turkey.
- You can roast, smoke or grill your marinated turkey. No matter what way you cook it, don’t forget to use a thermometer to check when the turkey is done. If you stick a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the breast or thigh, it should read 165 degrees F.
- This marinade makes enough to cover a turkey that weighs about 12 to 14 pounds. If the turkey is bigger, you might need to use twice as much marinade.
How do you make turkey marinade?
Whisk together olive oil, soy sauce, lemon juice, orange juice, fresh herbs, garlic and seasonings. Pour the mixture over a thawed turkey. Let the turkey sit in the marinade until you’re ready to cook it. Remove the turkey from the marinade, cook as desired, then slice and serve.
This recipe calls for simple ingredients that you may already have on hand.
- Olive Oil: This forms the base of the marinade. It works with any kind of olive oil, but I like to use extra virgin olive oil.
- Adding soy sauce to turkey might seem like an odd idea, but it gives it a rich, savory flavor and some much-needed salt.
- I use a mix of orange and lemon juice, and the best juices are the ones that are just squeezed.
- To get the zest off of one orange and one lemon, use a microplane or grater.
- Herbs: I use chives, sage, parsley, and thyme, among other fresh herbs. Even though fresh herbs taste better, you can use 1/3 as many dried herbs if you need to.
- Garlic: To make the turkey taste even better, add a lot of freshly minced garlic.
- Spices: To finish the marinade, I add salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and sweet paprika.