Chef John's Boneless Whole Turkey

10 Ratings
  • 5 8
  • 4 2
  • 3 0
  • 2 0
  • 1 0

The idea of removing pesky bones before your bird makes its grand Thanksgiving entrance is worth considering. Not only do you get an impressive looking roast to wow the table, but carving is significantly easier. If you're worried about losing flavor, don't. This tastes virtually identical. Stuff with your favorite stuffing.

Gallery

Read the full recipe after the video.

Recipe Summary

cook:
1 hr 50 mins
total:
2 hrs 10 mins
prep:
20 mins
Servings:
20
Yield:
20 servings
Nutrition Info
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Ingredients

20
Original recipe yields 20 servings
The ingredient list now reflects the servings specified

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).

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  • Place turkey, skin-side down, on a work surface and arrange meat with your hands into a flat, even surface. Season with salt and black pepper. Press stuffing all over the surface of the meat.

  • Fold long edges of turkey around stuffing into the center of the bird and carefully turn turkey seam-side down. Tie the leg-end of the turkey with kitchen twine to cinch the turkey together. Repeat ties at 2-inch intervals along the length of the turkey, ending with a single tie along the length of the turkey. Season with salt and place in a large roasting pan.

  • Roast turkey in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) and roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the turkey reads 155 degrees F (68 degrees C), about 1 1/2 hours. Transfer turkey to a platter; remove and discard twine. Let rest until internal temperature increases to 165 degrees F (74 degrees C), about 20 minutes.

  • Place roasting pan over medium-high heat and stir cream into pan drippings. Cook and stir until sauce thickens and reduces, 3 to 7 minutes. Pour through a fine mesh sieve into a gravy boat or bowl. Slice turkey crosswise and top slices with gravy.

Cook's Notes:

My turkey was about 15 pounds, but this will work on any size bird.

I wanted to try salt only on the outside, without butter or oil, just to see what would happen, but nothing did. So, feel free to slather on butter.

Editor's Note:

To see Chef John's technique for removing the bones from the turkey, watch his Boneless Whole Turkey video.

Nutrition Facts

Per Serving:
567 calories; protein 69.8g; carbohydrates 6.6g; fat 26.9g; cholesterol 202.8mg; sodium 349.9mg. Full Nutrition
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