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Home | Herb Roasted Turkey Breast with Gravy for Thanksgiving

Herb Roasted Turkey Breast with Gravy for Thanksgiving

Herb roasted turkey breastWhen we crave those classic holiday dinner flavors, we often grab a turkey breast roast from the market and make this easier, smaller scale, and faster version of a Thanksgiving feast. It's perfect for a nice family meal or Thanksgiving dinner if your family is smaller and you don't want to deal with cooking and storing a whole turkey. Another bonus when just cooking the turkey breast: you're less likely to overcook it since it's all you're dealing with.

I grab a handful of fresh herbs from the kitchen garden and use them in a compound butter to season the turkey breast bother under and on top of the skin. Not only does this give the turkey an amazing flavor, but it makes the skin extra crispy, too.

Put the roast in a cast iron skillet or roasting pan, pop it in the oven, and you'll have dinner in no time. I love using a cast iron skillet because it makes it easy to make gravy out of the pan drippings.

You can of course use the same method on a whole turkey; just double the amount of butter and herbs and roast it as your normally would.

Serve with sides like cranberry sauce, roasted vegetables, stuffing, and mashed potatoes.

Ingredients

For the turkey

  • 1 turkey breast roast, 2 to 3 pounds
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 tablespoons fresh sage, minced
  • 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, minced
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, minced
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the gravy

  • Turkey pan drippings
  • 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup dry white whine, optional
  • 3 to 4 cups turkey or chicken broth
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 375ºF. In a small bowl, combine softened butter, herbs, salt, and pepper. Loosen skin on the turkey breast so it comes away from the meat. Rub butter and herb mixture onto the meat under the skin and rub anything left over on the outside of the skin. Season with additional salt and pepper if desired.

Herb roasted turkey breast Herb roasted turkey breast

Place turkey breast in a 9- to 12-inch cast iron skillet or roasting pan and put it in the oven to roast. Baste with pan juices every 15 minutes or so. Cook approximately 1 hour or until temperature reads 165ºF on an instant-read thermometer. Check temperature after 45 minutes to make sure you don't overcook it.

Set turkey aside on a cutting board and cover loosely with aluminum foil while you make the gravy.

To make the gravy, pour off all but about 4 tablespoons drippings from the pan. Add flour and whisk to combine with drippings. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes and then slowly whisk in wine (if using) and bring to a boil. Whisk in at least 3 cups broth bit-by-bit, adding more if it's too thick. Pour into a gravy boat or pitcher and serve at the table.