Best Oven Roasted Turkey Breast for Thanksgiving

Searching for the perfect recipe to serve for Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner?

This Oven Roasted Turkey Breast recipe is a great alternative to roasting a whole bird when you have a smaller group or don’t want a ton of leftovers.

It only takes a few minutes of prep time and cooks so much faster than a full size turkey.

While the ingredients are simple, the flavor of this Oven Roasted Turkey Breast is absolutely delicious!

Ingredients

• 2 carrots – peeled and chopped
• 2 stalks celery – chopped
• 1 onion – peeled and quartered
• 12 cloves garlic
• 6 pounds fresh bone-in turkey breast – rinsed and patted dry
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter – room temperature
• Sea salt – to taste
• Black pepper – to taste
• Garlic powder – to taste

Equipment

• Measuring spoons
• Knife
• Cutting Board
• Roasting pan
• Carving knife
• Aluminum foil

By the Numbers: How to Roast a Turkey Breast

Follow these easy instructions to learn how to cook a turkey breast for Thanksgiving dinner.

Step 1: Preheat Oven.

Since this recipe comes together quickly, the first thing you want to do is to preheat your oven to 325˚ F.

Step 2: Prepare the Roasting Pan.

Chop your celery, carrots and onion and peel the garlic, then place them in the bottom of the roasting pan.

The pan should be just big enough to hold the turkey breast like the one pictured. If you use one that’s too big, the veggies will be too spread out and everything won’t roast evenly.

Step 3: Prepare the Turkey Breast.

Next, take the butter and rub it all over the turkey breast. Make sure you get both the inside and outside of the breast.

Once it’s nice and coated with butter, you can sprinkle sea salt (or kosher salt), fresh ground black pepper and garlic powder over the entire turkey breast. The salt helps to crisp up the turkey skin so don’t skip it.

After it’s seasoned, place the turkey breast into the roasting pan, skin side up, on top of the chopped vegetables. The veggies serve both as a rack and as extra flavoring.

Step 4: Roast the Turkey Breast.

Place the roasting pan, uncovered, into your oven and roast the turkey breast for about 2 ½ hours. It’s done when the thickest part of the breast registers an internal temperature of 165˚ on a meat thermometer. The skin should be a nice golden brown when it’s done.

If your turkey breast is larger or smaller than mine, it may need more or less time, so keep an eye on it.

Step 5: Tent the Turkey Breast.

After the turkey breast is done cooking, remove it from the oven and transfer it to a heat-resistant cutting board (like a bamboo cutting board, not plastic).

Make a tent from aluminum foil and place over the turkey breast. Let it rest for 30 minutes before serving to lock in the juices.

Step 6: Serve the Turkey Breast.

Once it’s rested for 30 minutes, it’s time to slice and serve your roast turkey breast with your favorite side dishes.

Tips for Making & Serving Oven Roasted Turkey Breast

If this is your first time making a roasted turkey breast, be sure to read the answers to these common questions.

1. What’s the cooking time for a smaller/larger turkey breast?

The general rule of thumb is that it takes about 20 minutes per pound at 350˚ F to cook at turkey breast to 165˚ F. When you roast it at a high temperature, you’re more likely to end up with dry turkey.

I like to cook my turkey breast on a slightly lower heat as I find it leads to juicy meat, so I cook mine for about 25 minutes per pound of meat at 325˚ F.

2. Do you eat the vegetables in this recipe?

The vegetables in the bottom of the pan add flavor and act as a roasting rack for the whole turkey breast). However, they still taste great and are totally edible.

The nutrition information provided in the recipe card above is calculated for eating both the turkey meat and veggies.

3. Is there a dairy free option?

If you want a dairy free recipe, you can substitute extra virgin olive oil for the butter.

4. Best way to get crispy skin?

If the skin of the turkey breast has softened while tenting, you can put the turkey breast into the broiler for about 2 minutes to crisp it up.

5. What to serve with roasted turkey breast?

Be sure to make my other delicious gluten free recipes to serve with your turkey breast:

• Cranberry Sauce recipe
• Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes recipe
• Gluten Free Gravy recipe
• Bacon and Brussels Sprouts side
• Gluten Free Stuffing recipe

And of course, all of the Thanksgiving traditional sides pair great too, like green bean casserole, gluten free stuffing, sweet potato casserole, salads and more.

For more Thanksgiving recipes, check out Fine Cooking Thanksgiving Cookbook: Recipes for Turkey and All the Trimmings.

6. What to do with the leftover bones?

Whenever I make a whole turkey or turkey breast, I always save the bones to make turkey stock.

You can follow the same steps as in my Chicken Stock Recipe to make turkey stock. Don’t skip the step about skimming off the fat when using turkey bones as they tend to be greasier than chicken bones.

7. Will there be pan drippings?

If you’re hoping to make homemade gravy with turkey drippings to pair with your holiday dinner, you’ll find there aren’t a lot with a turkey breast. That’s because most of the pan juices come from the dark meat, not the white meat.

8. What to do with leftover turkey?

If you have any leftover white meat, you can make pretty much any recipe you’d make with leftover chicken. Some of my favorites are:

• Chicken Pot Pie Casserole
• Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup
• Chicken Enchiladas
• Chilaquiles Breakfast Casserole

9. How long does it take the defrost a frozen turkey breast?

The best way to thaw a turkey breast (or any meat for that matter) is in your fridge. Place the sealed breast onto a plate or other tray that can catch any moisture and defrost in the refrigerator for about 2-3 days, depending upon the size of your breast.

10. How long to cook a boneless turkey breast in oven?

Roasting a boneless turkey breast takes about 10-12 minutes per pound. While it’s faster to bake a boneless breast, I find they often don’t turn out as juicy as bone-in breasts.

11. How long does oven roasted turkey breast last in the fridge?

Cooked turkey is good for 3-4 days when stored in an airtight container in the fridge.

12. How to reheat oven roasted turkey breast?

Place your sliced turkey into a baking dish with some turkey stock or pan drippings and cook in the oven at 350˚ F for about 30 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 165˚ F.

13. Can you freeze oven roasted turkey breast?

Yes, fully cooked turkey can be frozen for up to 3 months. The best way to freeze it is the same method I use for freezing tomato paste.

Cut the turkey into bite sized pieces, spread onto a sheet pan and freeze for one hour. Transfer the frozen turkey pieces into a freezer bag or other freezer safe container and keep frozen for up to 3 months.

The reason I like to freeze it in bite-sized pieces is because it’s easy to measure out and use for recipes that way. Just make sure to carefully reseal your bag so you don’t end up with freezer burn!

13. Where to buy a turkey breast?

If you can’t find a turkey breast at your local grocery store, check out the Bone-In Turkey Breast from Crowd Cow. It’s all natural with no fillers and can be delivered right to your door!

Crowd Cow has lots of other great meat selections too, so be sure to browse around while you’re ordering your whole turkey breast!

New members can use promo code SAVE108 at checkout to get $8 OFF first orders and $100 of Free Meat and Free Shipping.

Pin this Turkey Breast Recipe to Your Thanksgiving, Christmas or Dinner boards.

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