Buttering a turkey's skin adds flavor and helps it brown during cooking. Roasting a buttered turkey is fairly simple, but requires several hours in the oven. The cooking time is an approximation as many factors can alter the total time required to cook the turkey thoroughly, such as the starting temperature of the turkey, the accuracy of your oven's temperature setting and the size of the bird. Covering the turkey, obstructing heat flow with too large a roasting pan and using a shiny pan that deflects rather than absorbs heat all extend cooking time too, notes the Exploratorium's Science of Cooking.
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Do not cook a turkey at a lower temperature, cautions the United States Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service.
Step 2
Remove the giblet bag and neck from the inside of the turkey. Rinse the bird down thoroughly with cold water and blot it dry with paper towels.
Step 3
Microwave 3/4 C unsalted butter for 1 minute in a microwave-safe dish. Coat the the turkey's skin liberally with the melted butter using a cooking brush. Melt a bit more butter if necessary for complete coverage. Apply any herbs, spices or seasoning rubs you've opted to use.
Step 4
Pinch the loose skin at the turkey's shoulders and pull it up gently. Point the tips of the wings toward it and tuck them under the skin. Pull up the loose skin at the tail in the same manner and secure the tips of the turkey's legs beneath it.
Step 5
Transfer the buttered turkey onto the rack of a shallow roasting pan, with its breast facing the ceiling. Pour 1/2 cup of water or broth into the pan.
Step 6
Press an oven-safe meat thermometer down into a thigh muscle. Put a sturdy aluminum foil tent over the buttered turkey.
Step 7
Put the buttered turkey on a low enough oven rack that the bird is approximately in the middle of the oven chamber.
Step 8
Roast the turkey for an hour and a half. Remove and discard the aluminum foil tent. Rotate the roasting pan 180 degrees to promote even cooking.
Step 9
Melt another 3/4 cup unsalted butter in the microwave. Pull the turkey out one hour before the end of the estimated cooking time and re-coat the skin. Return the turkey to the oven, with the roasting pan back to its original position.
Step 10
Stop cooking the buttered turkey when the meat thermometer indicates its internal temperature is 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Check that the temperature is the same in the breast and wing.
Step 11
Rest the buttered, roasted turkey for 20 minutes before carving.
Tips and Warnings
- Smaller turkeys of about 10 lbs. need to cook around 3 hours, medium turkeys of about 18 lbs. need to cook around 4 hours and larger turkeys of about 24 lbs. need to cook around 5 hours. Replenish the water or broth in the bottom of the roasting pan when it evaporates. Refrain from basting a buttered turkey. Basting doesn't make the meat any more moist; it only helps brown the skin, which the butter does. Basting also releases heat from the oven, lengthening cooking time. Thaw a frozen turkey in the refrigerator for 24 hours per every 4 lbs. of its weight.
Things You'll Need
- Paper towels
- 3/4 C unsalted butter
- Microwave-safe dish
- Cooking brush
- Shallow roasting pan
- 1/2 C water or broth
- Oven-safe meat thermometer
- Aluminum foil
- 3/4 C unsalted butter
References
- University of Illinois Extension; Turkey for the Holidays: Traditional Roast Turkey (Unstuffed); 2011
- University of Illinois Extension; Turkey for the Holidays: Turkey FAQs; 2011
- Science of Cooking; Timing the Perfect Turkey; Ann Gardiner and Sue Wilson
- United States Department of Agriculture; Let's Talk Turkey---A Consumer Guide to Safely Roasting a Turkey; January 2011
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