Citrus Herbed Roast Turkey
Category
Dinner
Servings
6-10
Prep Time
20 minutes
Cook Time
2 hours 5 minutes
Author:
Miss Molly
Deliciously moist turkey or chicken that uses compound butter, loaded with herbs and citrus. You’ll be proud to carve and serve this at your dinner table.

Ingredients
1 orange, juiced and zested
1 lemon, juiced and zested
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 tbsp fresh sage, chopped
3 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped
3 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
pinch of pepper
pinch of salt
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
6-7kg/8-13lb turkey, (thawed)
½ large orange, cut in two wedges
1 lemon, quartered
1 garlic head, cut in half
4 sprigs of fresh sage
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
5 sprigs of fresh thyme
salt and fresh ground pepper
2 tsp chicken stock powder
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 tsp chicken stock powder
Mashed Potato
Green Beans
Cranhberry Jelly
citrus herbed butter
Turkey
Serving
Directions
For the butter:
In a small bowl, combine all ingredients and stir together thoroughly. Set aside.
For the turkey:
Arrange a rack on a lower shelf of the oven and preheat to 230°C/450°F.
Use a roasting pan with tray/rack. If you don't have a roasting rack, use crumpled aluminium foil to elevate the turkey from the base of the pan.
Using paper towel, pat the skin of the turkey dry and place in the roasting pan. Stuff the cavity with the orange, lemon, garlic and herbs. Tuck the wing tips under the turkey.
Gently loosen the skin around the turkey breast area by running your hand between the skin and the breast meat working your way down to the leg. Take 1/4 of the butter mixture and rub it, thoroughly, under the skin over the breast and leg meat being sure to coat as much of the turkey as possible. Repeat on the opposite side and then coat the remaining butter mixture over the skin being sure to cover the entire bird.
Tie the legs of the turkey together with kitchen twine.
Mix chicken stock powder with water and pour onto the bottom of the roasting pan.
Place the roasting pan in the oven. Immediately turn the temperature down to 180°C/350°F.
Roast, using a baster or brush to baste the turkey with the pan juices every 30 minutes. Cook until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers at least 165°F.
Roasting should be calculated at about 13 minutes per 500gm/1 lb). Start checking the temperature after 1.5 hours roasting time.Remove from the oven and cover with foil. Let the turkey rest for approximately 30 minutes before carving.
Make the Gravy
Make the gravy: Fit a fine-mesh strainer over a glass or heatproof bowl. Using a spatula, scrape up any fond (browned bits) from the bottom of the roasting pan. Pour the pan juices through the strainer and discard the contents. Set aside for a few minutes for the fat to rise to the surface.
Keep 1/3 cup of the fat from the surface of the pan juices into a medium saucepan (if you don't have enough fat, add oil or butter as needed to make up the amount). Separate and discard the remaining fat. Measure the remaining juices, then add water to make up the amount to 2 1/2 cups.
Place the saucepan over medium heat then whisk in the flour and cook until slightly darkened in colour, about 1 minute. Pour in the reserved pan juices, whisk to combine, and bring to a simmer. Simmer until thickened to the desired consistency. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
Serve the carved turkey with mashed potato, gravy, cranberry jelly and greens.
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