Categorized:

  • Main Dish
  • Poultry
  • Thanksgiving

Tagged:

  • butter
  • carrots
  • celery
  • garlic
  • onions
  • thyme
  • turkey
How to Cook Turkey - 1

How to Cook Turkey {In an Oven Bag}

Ingredients

  • 12 - 24 lb. turkey (fresh or frozen and fully thawed)
  • 1/4 cup butter, softened
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced (1 Tbsp)
  • 1 tsp dried thyme, or 1 Tbsp chopped fresh*
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
  • 4 celery ribs, chopped into 2-inch pieces
  • 1 large yellow onion, peeled and chopped into chunks
  • 2 carrots, peeled and chopped into 2-inch pieces

Instructions

  • Move oven rack one level below center and preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • In a small mixing bowl stir together butter, garlic, thyme and season with a little salt and pepper.
  • Remove neck and giblets from turkey and remove any pin feathers left behind. Tuck wings under turkey. Season cavity of turkey with salt and pepper.
  • Using the back end of a wooden spoon separate turkey breast skin from breast. Rub butter underneath skin (again I just use the back end of the spoon), smooth over skin to spread butter out. Altnerately you can just rub butter over skin but I feel it seasons better when rubbed underneath.
  • Season all over turkey with a fair amount of salt and pepper.
  • Add 1 Tbsp flour to the Reynolds Kitchens Turkey Size Oven Bag and shake. Place oven bag in a roasting pan, add celery, onion and carrots to oven bag. Place turkey over vegetable layer in oven bag.
  • Close oven bag with the oven safe tie included. Cut 6 slits across top of the oven bag to allow steam to escape then tuck ends of oven bag into the pan.
  • Cook unstuffed turkey according to size (the breast should register 165 degrees in center of thickest portion in several places and the thigh 175 degrees on an instant read thermometer): 12 - 16 lb turkey: 2 - 2 1/4 hours 16 - 20 lb turkey: 2 1/4 - 2 1/2 hours 20 - 24 lb turkey: 2 1/2 - 3 hours
  • Let turkey rest 20 minutes. Carefully cut top of oven bag open, transfer turkey to carving board and carve.

Notes

  • Plan about 1 lb of turkey per person, for example a 12 lb. turkey should feed about 12 people, a 24 lb. turkey should feed about 24 people.
  • To thaw a frozen turkey allow about 24 hours for ever 5 pounds of turkey thawing in a refrigerator set to 40 degrees. I like to add an extra day just to be safe. A fully thawed turkey can be held in the refrigerator 2 more days.
  • *Other herbs work great here including parsley, rosemary, sage or marjoram. You can also add lemon zest to the butter mixture if desired.
  • Ensure that oven bag does not touch top element or sides of oven or it can melt.

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