This Chipotle Citrus Thanksgiving Turkey recipe is juicy, tender and roasted to golden perfection for the best holiday feast!
The holidays are right around the corner and I’m bringing you THE BEST Thanksgiving turkey recipe ever!
Slathered in a flavorful compound butter made from chipotles, orange and lime zest, fresh rosemary, garlic, oregano, salt, black pepper and lots of butter, this roast turkey is juicy, tender and super moist. It’s everything you could ever want in a Thanksgiving turkey. And the best part? It’s so easy to make!
Believe me. I’m a total newbie at roasting a whole turkey, so if I can do it, you can totally do it, too!
To help your turkey roasting adventure go smoothly, I’ve packed this post with everything you could ever want to know about cooking a turkey this Thanksgiving.
Choosing the Right Size Turkey
First things first, you need to select the perfect turkey for the job. Let’s talk a little bit about size and quality.
Knowing what size turkey to buy for your Thanksgiving gathering is important. The last thing you want is to run out of turkey on the big day!
Here’s a handy little guide to how much you’ll need depending on the number of guests.
- 2 to 4 guests — 8 to 12 pounds
- 5 to 7 guests — 12 to 16 pounds
- 8 to 10 guests — 16 to 20 pounds
- 11 to 13 guests —20 to 24 pounds
These amounts will allow you to have some leftovers and ensures that you won’t run out if you have unexpected guests.
The Turkey Seasoning
Let’s talk seasoning. There are a few popular options out there to help pack in as much flavor as possible while making sure your turkey is juicy and perfectly seasoned. From brining to injecting and even basting every half hour, there seems to be a “new way” to do things every year!
For this recipe, I’m keeping it simple by making a dry rub and mixing it with a stick of butter to create a sort of paste/compound butter. In my humble opinion, more butter is always the answer. Here’s what you need:
- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
- 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary leaves, minced
- 1 tablespoon coarse Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- Zest of 1 orange and 1 lime
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
To make the compound butter, add all the ingredients into a food processor and pulse until a paste forms. That’s it! The whole thing smells absolutely amazing and will definitely get you excited for the meal ahead.
How to Cook a Turkey
Cooking a whole turkey can be so intimidating for the holidays, especially if you’ve never done it before, but it doesn’t have to be! I tested this recipe so many times to make sure it was foolproof for the big day. Here’s what to do.
- Preheat the oven to 450°F. Remove the thawed turkey from the packaging and remove the turkey neck and bag of giblets. You can keep them if you’d like to make something with them, but I discarded them for this recipe.
- Pat the turkey dry with a handful of paper towels or a large kitchen towel until it’s completely dry. Place turkey on a baking sheet and set aside.
- Fill the bottom of your roasting pan with the juice of 1 orange, the juiced orange quarters, and 2 cups of turkey stock.
- Fill the turkey cavity with an onion (halved), an orange (quartered) and a sprig of rosemary. Tie the turkey legs together with kitchen twine to help the turkey cook evenly.
- Spread the compound butter turkey seasoning all over the turkey as well as underneath the skin. Secure the edges of the skin with some toothpicks so it doesn’t ride up the bird while roasting.
- Place the turkey breast side up in the roasting pan and insert an in-oven meat thermometer deep inside a breast of the bird. Make sure it’s not touching a bone, but it’s still deep in the bird. Set the thermometer temperature to alert you when it reaches 165°F. Place in the preheated oven and roast for 25 minutes to crisp the skin.
- Remove turkey from oven, lower the heat to 350°F, loosely cover the breast with a tent of aluminum foil and return to the oven.
- Bake for 2 ½ to 3 hours, or until the temperature of the meat reaches 165°F.
- Carefully remove from oven and check the temperature of the bird in different places to make sure everything is at least 165°F. If there are spots that are under, leave the thermometer in that spot and return it to the oven to roast until it reaches the temperature.
- Transfer the turkey carefully to large cutting board and rest for 30 minutes. Slice and serve.
Recipe Tips
Whether you’re roasting a turkey for the very first time or the hundredth time, it’s the simple things that make all the difference. Here are a few tips to make sure your turkey comes out great every time.
- Make sure to thaw your turkey ahead of time. This is probably the most important thing to remember. Don’t underestimate how long it will take for a turkey to go from frozen to thawed. Here’s a handy guide to how long it will take to thaw in the fridge, depending on the size of your bird.
- 4 to 12 pounds — 1 to 3 days
- 12 to 16 pounds — 3 to 4 days
- 16 to 20 pounds — 4 to 5 days
- 20 to 24 pounds — 5 to 6 days
- Use a meat thermometer. This is the most accurate way to make sure your turkey is completely cooked. I highly recommend using an in-oven meat thermometer that allows you to set your desired temperature.
- Cover the breasts with foil to prevent overcooking. After the initial 25 minutes of roasting on high heat, I recommend covering the turkey breasts with a loose tent of foil to help prevent any overcooking. This will help slow down the cooking process of the breasts and ensures that everything is finished at the same time.
Related: How to carve a turkey
Thanksgiving Turkey Side Dishes
Woo! That was a lot of turkey information, right? Thanksgiving is no joke, but in the end it’s all about family and the delicious food that we get to share with loved ones.
While turkey is often the star of the meal, we can’t forget about all the tasty side dishes that tie everything together! Here are some of my favorite sides to serve on the big day.
- How to Make Turkey Gravy from Drippings
- Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole
- Green Chile Corn Casserole
- Easy Honey Cranberry Sauce Recipe
- Honey Balsamic Brussels Sprouts
If you tried this Chipotle Citrus Thanksgiving Turkey Recipe or any other recipe on Isabel Eats, don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how it went in the comments below! I love hearing about your experience making it!
Chipotle Citrus Thanksgiving Turkey Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 14-pound fresh or frozen whole turkey, thawed
- 2 cups turkey stock
For the seasoning
- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened and cut into 6 pieces
- 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary leaves, chopped
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 orange, zest and juice divided
- zest of 1 lime
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
For the stuffing
- 1 onion, halved
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- 1 orange, quartered
Tools needed
- kitchen twine
- large roasting pan
- meat thermometer
- aluminum foil
Instructions
Prepare the seasoning
- Add softened butter, chipotle peppers, chopped rosemary leaves, salt, black pepper, oregano, orange zest, lime zest, and minced garlic in a food processor. Pulse until mixture comes together and resembles a paste.
Prepare the turkey
- Preheat oven to 450°F. Remove thawed turkey from the packaging and take out the turkey neck and bag of giblets stuffed inside. Discard or keep to use in a different recipe.
- Pat turkey dry with a handful of paper towels or a large kitchen towel until completely dry. Place turkey on a baking sheet and set aside.
- Fill the bottom of the roasting pan with the juice of the zested orange, the juiced orange quarters and 2 cups of turkey stock.
- Fill the turkey cavity with the onion halves, the sprig of rosemary and the orange quarters. Tie the turkey legs together with kitchen twine to help the turkey cook evenly and for a beautiful presentation.
- Carefully push your fingers under the skin of the turkey breast all the way to the back of the turkey to help separate the skin. Be careful not to tear the skin.
- Spread half of the compound butter under the skin and the remaining half all over the outside of the turkey. Secure the edges of the skin with some toothpicks so it doesn’t ride up completely while the bird is roasting.
Roast the turkey
- Place turkey breast side up in the roasting pan and insert an in-oven meat thermometer deep inside the breast of the bird. Make sure it’s not touching a bone. Set the in-oven meat thermometer temperature to 165°F. Place the turkey in the preheated oven and roast for 25 minutes to crisp the skin.
- Remove turkey from oven, lower the heat to 350°F, loosely cover the breast with a tent of aluminum foil and return to the oven.
- Bake for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, or until the temperature of the meat reaches 165°F.
- Carefully remove from oven and check the temperature of the bird in different places to make sure everything is at least 165°F. If there are spots that are under, leave the thermometer in that spot and return it to the oven to roast until it reaches 165°F.
- Carefully transfer the turkey to large cutting board and rest for 30 minutes. Slice and serve.
Notes
- Learn how to carve a turkey here.
- Don’t let all the seasonings and juicy pan drippings from your turkey go to waste! Learn how to make turkey gravy from the pan drippings.
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