A miraculous way to roast a turkey that uses butter-covered aluminum foil to protect the breast from the high heat while basting it. The foil is removed at the end so that the skin can crisp up. This article also talks about brining and whether or not you should do it. It also has a lot of tips for roasting a turkey perfectly.
You probably know that my parents owned and operated restaurants when I was growing up. What you might not know is that they also did a lot of catering. We estimate that they’ve catered over a thousand turkey dinners, with each dinner requiring numerous turkeys. Their dinners have always gotten great reviews, and now I’m going to show you how my mom roasts a turkey perfectly. We will first talk about what size turkey you need, and then we will talk about how to cook it (basting and crisping the skin with butter!) so that the meat is perfectly cooked and juicy. Even the breast meat is juicy.
Wrapping turkey in foil while cooking may seem counterintuitive. After all, don’t we want that crispy skin and brown exterior? But using foil when roasting turkey can help keep the delicate breast meat moist and tender. With the right technique, you can still achieve a beautifully burnished bird with tasty pan drippings for gravy. Read on to learn everything you need to know about cooking turkey in foil, from why it works to step-by-step instructions.
Why Cook Turkey in Foil?
There are a few reasons why wrapping turkey in foil can lead to better results:
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Prevents overcooking and drying out The breast meat on a whole turkey cooks faster than the legs and thighs Shielding the breast with foil slows down cooking so it stays juicy and tender
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Makes moist and flavorful meat Foil seals in moisture released by the turkey as it cooks This basting in its own juices gives you deliciously succulent meat,
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Allows even cooking: Heat circulates around the turkey inside the foil envelope for more uniform doneness, especially for stuffed birds.
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Easy cleanup: Foil contained all the drippings, making cleanup of your roasting pan much simpler. No more scrubbing up baked-on drips!
So while an uncovered turkey browns beautifully, foil-wrapped sections cook more gently with wonderfully moist meat. With the simple method below, you can get the best of both worlds!
Step-By-Step Guide to Cooking Turkey in Foil
Follow these easy steps for turkey with crisp skin and moist, tender meat:
1. Prep the Turkey
Remove neck and giblets, rinse cavity well, and pat dry with paper towels. Rub skin all over with butter or oil. Season cavity with salt, pepper, herbs, onion, and lemon if desired.
2. Preheat the Oven
Heat oven to 325°F. This moderate temp helps turkey cook through gently without overbrowning.
3. Brown the Skin
Place turkey breast-side up on lower rack of oven. Roast uncovered for 30 minutes to brown and crispen the skin.
4. Shield the Breast
Remove roasting pan from oven. Tent breast loosely with a sheet of foil, shiny side down. Return to oven.
5. Baste and Roast
Continue roasting, basting with pan drippings every 30 minutes. Remove foil for last 30 minutes if browner skin is desired.
6. Test for Doneness
Turkey is done when thigh meat registers 165°F and breast is at least 160°F on a meat thermometer. Let rest 30 minutes before carving.
7. Make Gravy from Drippings
Pour pan drippings into a fat separator. Use concentrated turkey juice from the bottom for richly flavored gravy.
And that’s it! With this simple foil tenting method, your holiday turkey or anytime roast turkey will have gorgeously burnished skin with melt-in-your-mouth tender meat everyone will love.
Foil vs. Roasting Bag: Which Is Better?
Besides loose foil tents, another option is cooking the turkey in a commercial oven roasting bag. Which is the better method?
Foil pros:
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Allows browning of exposed areas
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Can check/baste turkey easily
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Reusable and recyclable material
Roasting bag pros:
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Self-basting all over
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Very moist meat
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Easier to get bird in/out of oven
Foil cons:
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Need to periodically baste
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Only partial browning
Roasting bag cons:
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No chance for browning
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Plastic waste
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Can tear and make mess
For best results, we recommend using foil. It strikes a nice balance between protected, moist meat and delicious browned turkey skin your guests will rave about. But roasting bags work well too if you prefer even easier cooking.
Top Turkey Roasting Tips
Beyond using foil, here are some additional tips for roasting the perfect holiday turkey:
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Air dry the turkey in the fridge overnight before roasting for crisper skin.
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Rub herbs under the skin along with butter or oil for extra flavor.
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Use a V-rack to elevate the bird for more even cooking.
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Start breast down, then flip halfway through for moist, evenly cooked meat.
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Let it rest before carving so juices redistribute through the meat.
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Make giblet gravy with the flavorful pan drippings for the perfect finish.
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Use any leftovers for easy turkey sandwiches, soups, casseroles, and more!
With these handy turkey roasting guidelines, you’ll have a beautiful centerpiece bird for any festive occasion.
Frequently Asked Questions About Cooking Turkey in Foil
Still have some questions about roasting turkey with foil? Here are answers to some commonly asked questions:
Should you wrap the whole turkey in foil?
No, only the breast needs foil. Leaving the legs and thighs uncovered allows the skin to crisp and brown. Tent the breast loosely with foil so some heat can still circulate.
Should foil touch the turkey skin?
No direct contact between foil and skin is best. Drape foil to create a “tent” over the breast about 1-2 inches above the skin. This allows steam to escape so skin can get crispy.
When do you remove the foil?
Take foil off for the last 30-60 minutes. This helps the breast skin dry out and brown. For very brown skin, remove foil up to 90 minutes before turkey is fully cooked.
Can you reuse foil between turkeys?
It’s best to use fresh foil each time for food safety. Reusing foil risks transferring bacteria between raw poultry. Always start with new, clean foil.
What about stuffing cooked inside a turkey?
Use foil to help insulate and protect stuffing as well. Place strips of foil over the cavity opening once stuffed before roasting. Remove foil the last hour for browning.
Should you make a foil “tent” for other meats/poultry?
Yes, tenting with foil helps retain moisture and prevent overcooking for chicken, beef roasts, pork loin, and more. Just adjust cooking times as needed.
So go ahead and be bold with the foil! Using this simple technique will help ensure your holiday turkeys and roasts stay tender and juicy year after year.
Step #3: Season And Butter The Turkey
Next you’ll be seasoning liberally with salt and pepper, all over. But, there’s no seasoning in the below picture because this turkey was brined. If you have brined your turkey, don’t add anything to it here.
Brined or not, what you’re going to do is to take a big piece of aluminum foil. You’ll want a piece bigger than in the below picture. Let me explain. I forgot how my mom did it when I was taking these pictures. I thought she only put foil over the breast meat. She has since told me that I was wrong. So, get a piece of foil big enough to cover the whole bird. If you need to, you can use two pieces that overlap. Then smear one side of the foil with a lot of softened butter or margarine. You want a good cup (that’s two sticks) of butter spread on there.
Note, I think it’s best to use unsalted butter, especially if you’ve brined the turkey. Or just keep in mind that there’s salt in your butter when you’re seasoning the turkey. You can make the butter taste better before putting it on the foil if you want to take this butter thing to the next level. This is my recipe for Compound Butter for Turkey. Putting it on the foil before roasting is one way to use it, and adding little bits of it to sliced turkey that is already cooked is another way to use it.
Then, take that foil and put it butter side down onto the turkey. Press the foil against the turkey skin so that it’s making contact all over. The breast meat won’t dry out because of this foil, and the tasty butter will stay on the turkey for a lot of the cooking time. It will also drip into the roasting pan, leaving you with tasty baste juices and great drippings for your gravy.
Instructions For Roasting Turkey
Take the turkey out of the fridge 30 minutes before you cook it. This will make it less cold and help it cook more evenly. If you haven’t brined your turkey, just take it out of the box and pat it dry with paper towels. Don’t rinse it off since that only sprays potential bacteria around your kitchen. If you wet-brined your turkey, also just pat it dry, no need to rinse it. If you dry-brined your turkey, don’t do anything. It looks like a lot of seasoning is about to fall off in the picture above, but that was just the start of the process. By then end, it’s the finest of layers and you want to leave it on there.
If your turkey has giblets inside, you can do one of three things:
1) You can discard them;
2) You can make turkey broth with them to add to the beef drippings when you make gravy. This is a great idea if you’re brining the turkey because the turkey juices might get too salty. You can use this broth instead. To do this, put the giblets (removed from any packaging) into a medium saucepan. You can also remove any extra skin or fat from the turkey and add that. You can even add the wing tips, which don’t have much meat on them and often turn too dark when roasted. Only add enough water to the pan to barely cover the meat. In this case, less is more, since less water means the flavor will stay strong. Sage, thyme, rosemary are some of the fresh herbs that you can add. You can also use dried herbs or poultry seasoning, as well as raw onion, garlic cloves, carrots, and celery. You don’t have to peel the carrots or celery, and you can leave the peels on the onions and garlic. Just give everything a good rinse. Don’t add salt because that will make it harder to get your gravy seasoning right later. Give it all a stir, some items might be sticking out and that’s actually ideal. Bring the pot to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally, and then reduce it to a simmer. Let it sit there simmering for 30 minutes to an hour, stirring every now and then. Remove from the heat and strain away the aromatic pieces. Those can be discarded so that all is left is the broth.
3) Add them to the roasting pan, putting them around the turkey as it roasts. This will add extra flavor to your gravy. They will be strained out and thrown away before the gravy is served. Just mush them up a bit before you make the gravy.