Make Ahead Roasted Turkey

If you're pressed for time (or oven space), Make Ahead Roasted Turkey is just what you need. With this technique, cooking turkey the day before, the week before, or even the month before, still tastes delicious and freshly carved.

👥 16 Servings⏱️ Prep & Cook: 5h 15m⏳ Prep: 15 min🔥 Cook: 5h👤 Meggan Hill📖 culinaryhill

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🥘 Ingredients

Check off ingredients as you prepare them:

🍳 Cookware

●pan
●oven
●measuring cup
●baking dish
●saucepan
●whisk

📝 Preparation Steps

To make the turkey:

Adjust oven rack to bottom third of oven. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place turkey on a rack inside a roasting pan, breast side up. Pat turkey dry with paper towels. Sprinkle with poultry seasoning and pepper. Tuck wings under turkey; tie drumsticks together.

poultry seasoning (see note 2)2 teaspoon

Roast, uncovered, ⏱️ 30 minutes. In a 4-cup measuring cup, mix broth, herbs, lemon zest and juice, and garlic; pour over turkey. Roast, uncovered, until a thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thigh reads 165 degrees, about 3 to 3 1/⏱️ 2 hours.

lemon zest2 teaspoons

While turkey is roasting, baste occasionally with broth mixture. Cover loosely with foil if turkey browns too quickly.

Remove turkey from pan; let stand at least ⏱️ 20 minutes before carving. Skim fat from cooking juices.

To freeze the roasted turkey:

Carve the turkey and place in shallow freezer containers. Pour cooking juices over turkey then let cool slightly, about one hour. Cover and freeze up to 3 months.

To thaw and reheat the roasted turkey:

Partially thaw the turkey in refrigerator overnight. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Transfer turkey and cooking juices to a baking dish.

Pour 1 1/2 cups broth over top. Bake, covered, until a thermometer inserted in the turkey reads 165 degrees, ⏱️ 50-60 minutes. Remove turkey to a platter, reserving cooking juices, and keep warm.

To make the gravy and serve:

In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat, stir in flour until smooth. Gradually whisk in the cooking juices; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Cook and stir until thickened, about ⏱️ 2 minutes. Serve gravy alongside turkey.

butter1 tablespoon

Nutrition Facts

calories

413 kcal

fat Content

17 g

serving Size

1 serving

fiber Content

1 g

sugar Content

1 g

sodium Content

567 mg

protein Content

61 g

cholesterol Content

203 mg

carbohydrate Content

2 g

saturated Fat Content

4 g

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