How to Cook Turkey Pieces Perfectly in the Oven

To roast turkey pieces instead of a whole turkey, you’ve heard how quick and easy it is. The turkey is also more juicy. Now learn how to do it!.

Eating the big Thanksgiving turkey each year is something to look forward to. But the process of thawing, brining, and cooking that whole turkey might be more of a dreaded process. If you’d rather not follow the steps I’ve written out for you on how to roast a turkey, I have an easier and more interesting idea for you.

roasting turkey in pieces! Cooking turkey pieces separately makes them taste even better and is much easier to handle.

Cooking turkey pieces instead of a whole turkey ensures that every piece is perfectly cooked While there won’t be the dramatic moment of carving a turkey at the table, the reward of juicy and moist turkey is well worth it. Follow these simple steps for oven-roasted turkey success.

Get Turkey Pieces

There are a few options for finding turkey pieces

Ask your butcher to cut up a whole turkey into parts.
Purchase pre-cut turkey pieces like drumsticks, thighs, breasts etc. from the meat section of your grocery store. They are often sold frozen or next to the fresh chicken.
Break down a whole turkey yourself into parts like breasts, drumsticks, wings, thighs etc. This takes time and a very sharp knife but allows full control.

I recommend buying pre-cut turkey pieces for ease and convenience. Choose the cuts your family loves. Go heavy on drumsticks and thighs if those are preferred over breast meat.

Prep the Pieces

Thaw frozen turkey pieces overnight in the refrigerator if needed.
Pat the pieces dry with paper towels.
Leave the skin on for crispy flavorful skin.
Season generously all over with salt, pepper and any other desired seasonings like sage, thyme, rosemary etc.
You can also smear pieces with a flavorful compound butter.
For extra moisture and flavor, try soaking pieces in a brine overnight before cooking.

Roast at Lower Temp

Preheat oven to 325°F.
Place pieces skin-side up on a rimmed baking sheet lined with a rack. Use two sheets if needed.
Keep white and dark meat separate on different sheets.
Pour 1-2 cups turkey broth or water into the sheet pan.
Roast until breasts reach 150°F and thighs reach 165°F internally. This will take about 2-3 hours.

Finish at High Temp

Remove pieces from oven as they finish cooking.
Tent them with foil to rest.
Crank oven up to 425-450°F.
Return all pieces to hot oven for 10-15 minutes.
This helps crisp and brown the skin beautifully.

Check for Doneness

Investing in a good meat thermometer ensures perfect doneness:

Insert an instant read thermometer into the thickest part of each piece to check temperature.
For white breast meat, pull at 150°F.
For dark thighs and legs, pull at 165°F.
The skin may not brown until the high heat finish.

Let Rest and Carve

Allow pieces to rest at least 10 minutes tented in foil before carving.
Slice breasts across the grain for tenderness.
Separate leg quarters into drumsticks and thighs.

Your turkey pieces are ready to serve! Moist, tender and full of flavor.

Make Delicious Gravy

Don’t skip the gravy! Use the pan drippings to make the easiest, most flavorful gravy ever:

Remove turkey pieces and put on a platter.
Pour off excess fat from the pan.
Place pan on stove over medium heat.
Add 1-2 cups chicken broth and scrape up any browned bits with a wooden spoon.
In a separate bowl, whisk flour into melted butter.
Whisk flour mixture into the hot pan drippings.
Cook 2-3 minutes until gravy thickens.
Season gravy to taste with salt, pepper and other flavorings like sage.

Tips for Oven Turkey Success

Follow these tips for the best oven-roasted turkey pieces:

Dry Brine – Salt pieces generously a day ahead and refrigerate uncovered for moisture and flavor.
Use a Rack – Elevate pieces on a rack over a sheet pan so air circulates all around.
Cook White & Dark Meat Separately – They require different temperatures and cook times.
Lower then Higher Heat – Cook at 325°F until done then finish at 450°F for crispy skin.
Let Rest – Allow pieces to rest at least 10-15 minutes before carving for juicy meat.
Make Gravy – Use the flavorful pan drippings to make an easy, delicious gravy.

The Benefits of Roasting Turkey Pieces

Cooking turkey in individual parts instead of a whole bird has many advantages:

Cooks Evenly – Each piece roasts perfectly without over or undercooking.
Saves Time – Pieces cook faster than a large whole turkey.
Easy to Carve – No wrestling with a whole turkey or tricky carving.
Juicier Meat – Pieces have more surface area exposed to heat for moisture.
Crispier Skin – The skin browns better when uncovered plus the high heat finish.
Customizable – Choose more of your family’s favorite pieces like thighs or drumsticks.

Roast Turkey Pieces for a Perfect Thanksgiving

Forget wrestling a whole turkey on Thanksgiving. Roasting turkey pieces makes for a much easier, tastier holiday meal. Each piece cooks to tender, juicy perfection. The skin crisps up beautifully. And you can customize with more drumsticks or thighs if those are preferred.

Best of all, roasting pieces means no worrying about undercooked dark meat or drying out the breast. Dinner is ready faster too. Just follow my tips above for oven-roasted turkey success. Your Thanksgiving table will be filled with perfect, delicious turkey and smiles all around!

how to cook turkey pieces in the oven

Pros Of Cooking Turkey Pieces

Turkey pieces cook faster. Pieces of turkey cook faster than a whole turkey, so you can do other things in the oven and eat faster.

Turkey pieces are easier to cook perfectly. The legs and breasts of a turkey cook at different times, so it’s easy to overcook it. Since the legs and breasts are connected, the breast can often get dry and overcooked while the dark meat stays undercooked. When roasting turkey pieces, the thighs, legs, wings, or breast can all cook in their own time. It’s possible to put the pieces in and take them out of the oven as needed until they’re cooked all the way through.

Turkey pieces are easier to brine. Brining a whole turkey is an absolute pain. It’s big and slippery, and it can be hard to keep cold for as long as you need to. It takes up less room to use turkey pieces, and they don’t need to be in the brine for as long. For those who want to brine their turkey parts, here is the best and easiest turkey brine recipe! Here is also information on how to brine turkey parts. If you’d rather dry brine your turkey parts, here’s a really great turkey dry brine recipe. Keep in mind, though, that if you don’t brine your turkey very often, you can probably skip this step because roasting turkey parts will work so much better than roasting a whole turkey.

Everyone gets more of their favorite pieces. You can buy more of a certain cut of turkey when you buy turkey pieces. For example, if everyone in your family likes dark meat, you don’t need to buy a turkey breast; instead, you can stock up on turkey thighs and legs.

There’s no carving involved. In my family, no one has learned how to carve a turkey. I don’t know about yours. It’s not an honor, it’s more like an unwanted chore. Turkey pieces eliminate those anxious feelings about carving it wrong. You have to slice the breast meat, but that’s it!.

There’s more crispy skin! I’ve save the best for last. Because the pieces are detached, there’s more surface area, and more skin exposed to the heat. The result is more of crispy skin, which really is the best part of roast turkey, right?.

Separate Dark And White Meat

For a perfectly cooked turkey, you must separate the dark meat from the white meat because they need to be cooked at different times. The breast of a whole turkey can dry out while you wait for the dark meat to get hot, even if it has been brined. Cooking pieces eliminates this because each piece can be removed from the oven when it’s ready.

The turkey pieces cook in two phases. They go back into a very hot oven for a short time to finish cooking and brown and crisp the skin. Lower and slower until they’re almost at the right temperature. This method gives you the ultimate control over the internal temperature of the turkey pieces.

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FAQ

How long does it take to cook pieces of turkey?

Information

Turkey Product	Weight	Timing
Breast, Half	2 to 3 pounds	50 to 60 minutes
Breast, Whole	4 to 8 pounds	1 ½ to 3 ¼ hours
Thighs, Drumsticks	¾ to 1 pound each	1 ¾ to 2 ¼ hours
Wings, Wing drumettes	6 to 8 ounces each	1 ¾ to 2 ¼ hours

What temperature should cooked turkey pieces be?

All poultry should reach a safe minimum internal temperature of 165 °F (73.9 °C) as measured with a food thermometer. For reasons of personal preference, consumers may choose to cook poultry to higher temperatures. For more tips and approximate cooking times for turkey,see: Let’s Talk Turkey.

Should turkey be covered or uncovered in the oven?

Should I roast turkey covered or uncovered? To ensure you have the tastiest and most moist turkey for your Thanksgiving meal or Christmas dinner, you need to bake the turkey covered to trap in all the juices. You can either use aluminum foil, or you can use a covered roasting dish.

What to do with turkey parts?

The backbone, neck and giblets can be used to make stock for gravy, and the legs, breast and wings can be cooked until they are perfectly done, and removed to rest. Brining is optional, but recommended for moisture and flavor. I have found that even turkeys that have been treated with a solution benefit from brining.