This oven roasted turkey recipe is easy to make and turns out juicy, packed with flavor, and perfectly crisp skin. If you’re looking for a Thanksgiving dinner must-have dish… this is it! Learn how to cook a turkey in the oven with this step-by-step guide for beginners…
As a cookbook author and home cooking enthusiast, I’ve cooked what feels like a million turkeys. I’m here to make cooking the perfect roasted turkey completely stress-free!
Do you need to brine turkey before roasting it?
Your turkey needs to be thawed (which takes one day per each 5 LBs)…
But no – you do not need to brine the turkey before roasting it.
Though, it’s a great idea to brine then roast a turkey because it adds even more flavor. To do so, brine it in the fridge 1-2 days in advance. See the Sip Bite Go brine recipe for details.
Quick look at cooking a full turkey in the oven…
This recipe is super simple and a game changer if you’re in charge of cooking Thanksgiving dinner this year.
Here’s a quick look at this recipe for oven roasted turkey.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Prep the turkey. (also see how to thaw a turkey)
- Stuff the turkey with onion, lemon wedges, and garlic cloves.
- Season the turkey with poultry seasoning.
- Bake the turkey. After 90 minutes, take the turkey out of the oven, bush with melted butter and cover loosely with tin foil.
- Finish roasting the turkey in the oven until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F.
- Remove the turkey from the oven and rest for one hour. Enjoy!
New to roasting turkey in the oven?
Scroll for a printable recipe and a step-by-step video.
See this popular oven roasted turkey breast on Sip Bite Go…
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients for oven baked turkey…
- 12-16 lb turkey
- 1 yellow onion
- 2 lemons
- 6 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ¼ cup poultry seasoning
- 2 tbsp butter, salted
Checkout how to smoke a whole turkey in a Traeger pellet smoker…
How to cook turkey in the oven
Now I’ll walk you through the detailed recipe for oven roasted turkey with extra tips…
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and remove turkey from the bag (or turkey brine if you followed the Sip Bite Go brined turkey recipe beforehand). Remove / discard the neck and giblets or anything that comes with the turkey that you don’t want.
- Pat turkey dry with a paper towel.
- Drizzle olive oil over turkey and rub to fully coat it.
- Season inside the turkey with ½ tbsp poultry seasoning.
- Stuff the onion, lemons, and garlic cloves into the cavity.
- Season the outside of the turkey with the remaining poultry seasoning.
- Truss the turkey if desired.
- Place the turkey in a roasting pan (ours was elevated on a roasting rack that came with the pan) and roast turkey in the oven at 325 degrees F.
- After 90 minutes, take the turkey out of the oven and brush with melted butter.
- Cover the top of the turkey loosely with tin foil.
- Place the turkey back into the oven and cook until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F in the thickest part of the turkey, the thigh. (The total cooking time for this 12lb turkey in the Sip Bite Go demonstration was about 3 hours.)
- Remove and rest for one hour before carving.
See easy Thanksgiving Turkey recipes…
FAQs
If you’re cooking at 325 – 350 degrees F then the general rule of thumb is about 13 – 15 minutes per pound. In any case, cooking times will vary so you should go based on internal temperature rather than time. I highly recommend that you use an internal read thermometer that you can read from outside the oven like.
When using an internal read thermometer, the turkey will be done when it reaches 165 degrees F in the turkey breast meat (white meat) and 175 degrees F in the thigh (dark meat). The internal thermometer should be inserted into the thickest part of the thigh when measuring a turkey for doneness.
See tasty recipes for holidays
- Tri Tip (it’s seriously the best!)
- Smoked turkey breast
- Oven roasted turkey
- Turkey brine recipe
- Brown butter sage sauce
- Smoked mac and cheese
- Smoked turkey
- Oven baked ham
- Smoked whole turkey
- Traeger spatchcock turkey
- Caramelized onions
- Air fryer baby potatoes
- Air fryer turkey breast tenderloin
- Garlic herb compound butter
- Bacon-wrapped jalapeño poppers
- Sous vide turkey breast
- Chorizo sausage stuffing
- Easy leftover turkey recipes
- Sous vide Brussels sprouts
- Potato side dishes
- Pasta side dishes
- How to make a turkey gravy packet better
- Air fryer turkey legs
- Smoked turkey legs
- Smoked mac and cheese
Are you a foodie, too?
Hey home chef, hope that answers all your questions about oven roasting a whole turkey.
I feel confident this oven roasted turkey recipe will leave you with minimal fuss and you sure will be the cooking hero this Thanksgiving holiday.
Pair your roasted Thanksgiving turkey with a homemade gravy or cranberry bbq sauce and you’ll be in for a treat.
Enjoy cooking and chat soon on Instagram / TikTok / YouTube.
– Jenna
Next, browse the Sip Bite Go recipe collection…
Oven Roasted Turkey Recipe | Sip Bite Go
Ingredients
- 12 lb turkey thawed (you can adjust this recipe for 13, 14, 15 lb whole turkey)
- 1 medium yellow onion quartered
- 2 medium lemons quartered
- 6 cloves garlic lightly crushed
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ¼ cup poultry seasoning divided (any blend you’d like)
- 2 tbsp butter salted, melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and remove turkey from the bag (or turkey brine if you followed the Sip Bite Go brined turkey recipe beforehand). Remove / discard the neck and giblets or anything that comes with the turkey that you don’t want.
- Pat turkey dry with a paper towel.
- Drizzle olive oil over turkey and rub to fully coat it.
- Season inside the turkey with ½ tbsp poultry seasoning.
- Stuff the onion, lemons, and garlic cloves into the cavity.
- Season the outside of the turkey with the remaining poultry seasoning.
- Truss the turkey if desired.
- Place the turkey in a roasting pan (ours was elevated on a roasting rack that came with the pan) and roast turkey in the oven at 325 degrees F.
- After 90 minutes, take the turkey out of the oven and brush with melted butter
- Cover the top of the turkey loosely with tin foil.
- Place the turkey back into the oven and cook until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F in the thickest part of the turkey, the thigh. (The total cooking time for this 12lb turkey in the Sip Bite Go demonstration was about 3 hours.)
- Remove and rest for 30-60 minutes before carving.
Leave a Reply